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Author Topic: Notebook harddrive upgrade Andrew McCrea Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 645 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Nov 2000 posted 01-29-2007 06:04 PM                        Hey everyone, I bought a cheap Acer notebook on Boxing Day (that's the day after Christmas that everything goes on sale "really cheap" in Canada) and it has 40GB, and is partitioned. I don't know why its partitioned, but it has nothing on the partition. I'm planning on upgrading to a 120-200GB HD, most likely a 160GB like my PC. The stores want to charge $140 to install it, but I know enough about computers to install a harddrive. How do I switch it over to the new HD with all my files, operating system, etc.?  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 01-29-2007 06:21 PM                     What on earth do you need that much space for... I hate really large drives... they just slow things down. 40 to 60 gb is the largest I'll go. Loose a 200gb drive and loose a lifetime of junk! Mark  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 01-29-2007 06:27 PM                     It's all about porn storage Mark. Andrew, there will be a cover on the bottom side of your laptop. Remove it and the drive simply pulls out (maybe with a screw or latch). Incredibly simple.  |  IP: Logged Phil Hill I love my cootie bug Posts: 7595 From: Hollywood, CA USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 01-29-2007 06:42 PM                  But Grand-Poopie-BAH, I think he was asking how he could save all of his EXISTING files, INCLUDING the porn, and transfer them to his new, improved, and bigger drive. (Norton "Ghost"?) OBTW: Make sure the new drive is at least a 7200 RPM one for fast access!  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 01-29-2007 07:33 PM                     quote: Andrew McCrea but I know enough about computers to install a harddrive. How do I switch it over to the new HD with all my files, operating system, etc.? Does the laptop have a burner drive? If not, buy a large sized thumbdrive (1 or 2GB size) to copy what desired files over. Then get the OS in the new HDD first by proper installation from install disc. Then, you can start all over by getting the programs in afterwards. Programs can be replaced, files are not so easy. There are applications, inc which I'm not too familiar with that you can just use the USB cable to interconnect two computers to transfer files, but you had to do a search on that one.  |  IP: Logged Andrew McCrea Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 645 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Nov 2000 posted 01-29-2007 08:09 PM                        The problem is that the laptop came with the OS on it and I don't have a disk. This machine runs Windows XP MCE. I can back-up my system though (it takes 7 CDs or 2 DVDs, but it only has a CD-RW). I didn't think you could just copy everything over, including the OS and have it work... I did that with my PC and had to re-install Windows XP from disc... but on the other hand, all the files were still there. Of course, its all about the porn storage! Not really though... I keep music on my computers, and I'd like to have Adobe Audition, Dreamweaver, etc. on my laptop.  |  IP: Logged Darryl Spicer Film God Posts: 3250 From: Lexington, KY, USA Registered: Dec 2000 posted 01-29-2007 09:43 PM                    was this a factory installed operating system. Some factory installs systems have problems with trying to run on larger drives than they originaly were installed on. Actually I think the bigger issue is that even if the factory installed OS worked on a bigger drive it makes the back up disks that the factory provided useless since the drive no longer matches the factory set-up. I could be confused in all this but that doesn't matter if you don't have the original factory install disks.  |  IP: Logged Andrew McCrea Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 645 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Nov 2000 posted 01-29-2007 09:52 PM                        Well, I'll obviously talk to one of the guys before I purchase the new harddrive. My theatre is across the street from a Best Buy (I've actually been able to pick up a wireless signal from them) so maybe I'll go in early tomorrow to ask them a few questions.  |  IP: Logged Bobby Henderson "Ask me about Trajan." Posts: 10973 From: Lawton, OK, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 01-29-2007 10:01 PM                     One possible solution is the EZ-GIG PC Card data transfer kit. It's a $50 device that plugs into a notebook computer's PC Card slot. It mirrors your main boot partition over to the new hard disc drive. I don't know how well this device works, but I saw it listed recently when looking around for possible replacement hard discs for my notebook computer. It was acting funky, so I had to reformat and reinstall everything and now it seems to be working fine. I may still buy a spare drive or two just in case. The device is in stock at www.drivesolutions.com. Look under the "Other Products" section. You may be able to find it at other places with a web search. The EZ-GIG device may not be of much use to someone whose hard drive is already glitching out or nearly toasted. Having data already backed up elsewhere is the only cure for that.  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 01-30-2007 04:10 AM                        Unless you really can't be dealing with more than one box (i.e. you need the portability), my suggestion would be to think about an external HDD for extra storage. This basically kills two birds with one stone. Firstly, you've got an easy and hassle-free way of moving stuff to and from the laptop's internal HD - just drag and drop using Windows Exploder. Secondly, you can back up the system partition easily, using a utility such as Norton Ghost or Drive Image. So if you get a virus problem or a corrupted Windows installation or any other scenario in which restoring a clean system image is the best solution, you can easily do that. There are also two other advantages. Firstly, if there's a physical failure of either HDD, you haven't lost anything. And seconly, your laptop is unlikely to have more than one HDD bay, meaning that if you do buy another internal drive, you'll be unable to use the existing one, which you've already paid for as part of the computer. The one downside is the limited internal space. With my laptop I simply keep a slimmed down version of 'My Documents' on it (without the audio and video, basically) for use away from home. Unless you know you're going to want to do heavy-duty multimedia stuff away from home and are unwilling to carry an external HDD around with the laptop, I can't see this being a problem.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 01-30-2007 04:53 AM                        quote: Andrew McCrea I don't know why its partitioned, but it has nothing on the partition. That's because computers with pre-installed OS typically have a hidden partition which contains the backup files. I bet it has some kind of system restore function which feeds off that partition. If it is a new notebook which doesn't have the OS disc with it, but you purchased an OEM version of Windows in the package, then they usually have a function somewhere which allows you to burn recovery discs (I think you mentioned that already). In which case the files to be burnt and backed up are on the hidden partition. You can tell when you look at properties of that partition under "My Computer". Often, you can see that a certain disc size is associated with that partition, but much less of it than you would think it is available. That's the hidden partition. In any case, I would burn those back up discs (how much do you have to spend on 7 CDs these days?) and do what Dr. Enticknap said, namely, get an external USB2 hard drive. Keep all the files you need (in Brad's words, your favorite porn) on the internal hard drive, back everything up (including the 7 backup discs), store everything you don't need with you all the time on the external drive.  |  IP: Logged Cameron Glendinning Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 845 From: West Ryde, Sydney, NSW Australia Registered: Dec 2005 posted 01-30-2007 05:14 AM                     I'm up to my 2nd external 250 gig drive now, its amazing how much porn you can collect over a short period of time! This is one very easy way to go, I edit video with my laptop, and thats the only time I carry an external with me, its also nice to know that back up of music/ family photos / info is safe at home, not left in the back of a taxi or stolen Full sized external firewire/usb2 tend to be cheap compared to the laptop internal hard drives.  |  IP: Logged Mark Lensenmayer Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1605 From: Upper Arlington, OH Registered: Sep 1999 posted 01-30-2007 07:48 AM                     I would buy a 2/5" USB-powered drive case and put a big drive in there. It would be small enough to fit into the laptop case and wouldn't need an external power brick. Put applications only on the main drive and all of the data on the external. It is possible to clone a drive from a smaller to a larger one, but I've had nothing but problems when trying thi Some people have ruined the screens on their laptops, and they give the machine to me to get their data. I just buy one of those drive enclosures, put in the drive from the laptop, then copy off their data to dvd or cd then I have a nice external drive that I can use for emergency backups.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 01-30-2007 08:52 AM                     Brad... of course its all about porn but I still hate large HD's. The USB drive is the only way to go and he can hide it from hiz mum.. Super convenient! Thats how I store all of my porn... not even my dog knows where I hide that HD!! Mark  |  IP: Logged Andrew McCrea Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 645 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Nov 2000 posted 01-30-2007 09:49 AM                        OK, but... I want to run large programs on the laptop. I can't put Dreamweaver and Audition on these computers because it fills the one partition right up. With a portable HD stick thing, I can put files on there, but I couldn't install programs to it. The other partition, I haven't done the "Show hidden files" but its drive D, listed right in "My Computer" and has nothing the naked eye can see, so I assumed it would be empty.  |  IP: Logged

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