Need help choosing new/second HDD!

I have an HP Pavilion,the hard drive of which is of the IDE ATA persuasion.

What type(s) interface(s) is/are NOT compatible?Is there any way around it?

Also,my tower doesn't have slots for extra hard drives,just one drive mounted vertically against the front inside,any tips on how to mod,or should I just go with an external?

 

Well, if your motherboard does not support SATA hard drives, you can't install one of them unless you install a SATA controller card in a PCI slot.

Do you have any free 5.25 bays in your case? By 5.25 bay, I mean an empty space for a CD/DVD drive. A hard drive could be fitted into one of them; you'll need some brackets to get it properly secured.

 

If you have no space inside, as usafveteran asked, then I would get an external Hard drive , with its own case. I suggest this if you have a spare usb connection.

 

Thanks for the help.I ordered a 500 GB SATA2 drive thinking that it would operate just fine,only being limited to the slower data transfer rate of my current interface.This due to my understanding(or lack thereof) of the information I've been reading about different HDD interface types.So I'm gonna need a controller card,eh?Maybe I should just send it back and get the right kind instead of shelling out another $100 for the card.

 

Yeah, I think I'd either exchange it for an IDE drive or get a SATA controller card for much less than $100, such as http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816132006

 

Will an UltraATA work for me?It's basically the same,right?

 

Okay,maybe I should start over,since I'm learning as I go.

I found SATA sockets on my mobo.Do I still need a controller card or is this just a plug-n-play situation?

I know that the SATA2 drive I ordered will work with SATA,so I have no problem,right?Also,what is lacking in order to make it run full speed since the physical connections are the same?

 

If you have sata sockets, all you need is a sata cable (thin red cable) to connect it to the motherboard, and a spare 4pin plug from the power supply, if you have room to fit inside the pc- you do not need a seperate controller card-

 

Sweet.Thought so.Thanx.:cool