Installing heatsink/fan combo over CPU

The 500Gb drive is really nice. It hold a complete set of originals where the 250Gb and 300Gb need to be split onto another drive. I'm really looking forward to the 750Gb drives to come down in price a lot. I'll put my 250Gb drives and a few 300Gb drives up for auction at eBay and I'll probably get enough for them to buy a 750Gb, but not for 6 months at least. I also have room in my pc for another internal hard drive, so that's another option. But I'm all out of money to put into my pc right now but one step at a time.

 

I dont know much about sata

but Fred_G mentioned perhaps connecting them up via usb - with the chance of power issues

if so you could always get a powered external hub like this one (Ive got one on the way) this is an Australian site so its just an example, often the things we need are out there its just a matter of finding them

USB 2.0 Powered 7-Port Hub
http://www.pccasegear.com/prod2227.htm

PCI External Bracket, 3-in-1 SATA Combo, UV Blue
http://www.pccasegear.com/prod2340.htm

sata/ide to usb converter (only 1 to 1 unfortunately)
http://www.pccasegear.com/prod3580.htm

cable sleeving and heat shrink
http://www.pccasegear.com/category106_1.htm

wiring loom (should be available from industrial/domestic electrical suppliers)
http://www.pccasegear.com/prod207.htm

As i mentioned these are all examples (and probably not exactly what you are looking for)

There will be more variety in the U.S.

 

At the very least you could give advice on how to get 500 posts in one thread

 

How to get over 500 posts in 1 thread? . . . it's easy. . . get some wonderful people to answer all my questions for help. I'll never forget that this is a project that we all participated in. All your hands almost reached out and connected things to get this computer up and running, and up and running again, and up and running again, lol.

 

This one I'm interested in very much. How exactly does it work? Does it connect to an external USB 2.0 port and have 3 SATA ports?

PCI External Bracket, 3-in-1 SATA Combo, UV Blue
http://www.pccasegear.com/prod2340.htm

I have 2 HUBs that are plugged into an electrical outlet. One of them has 4 USB 2.0 port and 3 firewire ports. The USB 2.0 ports work but the firewire ports don't work. The upstream cable is USB 2.0. Do you think that's the reason why the firewire ports don't work?

 

the name is a (little) bit deceiving / confusing
the only thing this one does (as far as I can tell)
is transfers the connections from the inside to the outside of the case

ie:
1 internal sata becomes one external sata
1 internal 4 pin power becomes one external 4 pin power and one external 3 pin power

not much use unless you are changing / testing drives one at a time
although if you have an external sata hub this would be very handy

As I mentioned I do not know much about sata
so I do not know if sata can be piggy backed at all (using a hub or something to turn one into four etc), and if it can what speed loss this incurs, if any (one of the more experienced posters will know this)

the wiring loom does kind of sound like what you may be looking for to tidy cables up somewhat, it has a slit down one side so you can just fit it straight over cables

 

There must be something better out there !!!

All I can find are internal sata contoller cards (plug into a pci slot)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...n=sata+controller+card&Submit=ENE&N=0&Ntk=all
which range from 2 up to 12 internal sata connectors
anything at 6 or above is pricey

the options I can see with these are

to connect 4 external sata drives
buy
an internal sata contoller with at least 4 internal connectors
and
4 - PCI External Bracket, 3-in-1 SATA Combo, UV Blue (or something similar)

this would be fairly tidy, but would also use up 5 pci bays (unlikely you have 5 spare pci slots)

or
to connect 4 external sata drives
buy
an internal sata contoller card with at least 4 internal connectors
and
run sata cables to the outside
either by leaving the side cover off of the computer
or by cutting a hole in the back of the computer case.

NONE OF THE ABOVE IDEAS ARE IDEAL

But wait theres more
just found this :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816150009

its a pci card that has 2 external sata connectors
could be the go
there might be more

Re: the firewire issue, I will see if I can get walter over here
hes playing in the arcade at the moment

does it only have an upstream usb or does it have an upstream firewire as well ?

 

I think these are all what you are looking for

taken from the list in my previous post

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816122015

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816132009

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816132009


just need to make sure of
sata
sata II
and e-sata (external sata)
compatability

as well as transfer speed before going any further
one of the other guys will be able to help you more with this
if need be, I would imagine

(I'm more of a research assistant )

Good luck

 

Walter explained much about Sata, above.
I am lucky that I purchased an Asrock crossfire motherboard, with my e6400 core 2 duo (budget type board, but I spent a few bob elsewhere), and I have four, on-board sata connections, and two of them connect to rear for e-sata use.(and two firewire connectors - this is why I plumpted for this one.
I also have a multi point front 5.5 bay contraption, which has card reader, 4 usb, and firewire,AND another sata connection ( i should not have your problem, Denise, but until all are tried, I will not know.:neener

Walter seems to be the oneto guide you here, as Fred, and I think Shanemail, are like myself, just skating aroud sata - If I use it I will probably try jbod.
I also use multipartition, so jbod will suit me as I decide to add hard drives.
Again I am lazy, I tend to save stuff all the time to dvd .

 

I have had a look round, like the others, and it does appear that you need a PCI controller card, to power you external sata, and as Fred showed you, there are many.
I only found one with one external e-sata plug point, several had two, but did not refer to e-sata, just sata, and I hope one of the others can redirect you to what is best.

 

It was a test

I posted the same link twice
here is the other one I found
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816115034

Ive only gone about 5 pages out of 9 into the list, so doubtless there are more

 

Sounds like you need a network storage device. http://www.newegg.com/ProductSort/Category.asp?Category=24

Or, you have another computer right? Spread the drives between the computers and network them so you can access all the drives.

I know you said you are low on cash, but maybe later you could build your own storage computer. Just get a cheap mobo with some sata connectors, and you should be able to get 3 IDE and up to 6 or so SATA drives in it. You could get one with onboard video, and you would not need a high end CPU. You would need a good PSU though.

Just my early morning ramblings!

Oh yeah, good point shanemail. I forget about powered USB hubs. Duh, I even have one! lol

E

 

Well Denise, now you can look at ,
Powered hubs, for your sata (Shanemail)
Network your old computer, as a stacker for your extra drives (Fred)
The low down on sata generally (Walter)
PCI, or, PCI-e sata controller cards, with sata, or, e-sata connectoion- several links from Shanemail.
I did find one that might be what you want, and the compatability seems good - not forgetting x64 drivers -
4 port pci cntroller here, getting pricey, though, seems pretty compatable, but don't forget, x64 drivers are fussy.

http://www.satasite.com/esata-pci-e-4-port-caldigit-fasta-4e.htm :highfive

 

That 4 port pci-e card runs in a pci-e slot, it says it needs 8x, but if you are using your on-board graphics, you have a pi-e 16x, and pci-e 1x.- lot of bread , though probably best to muddle on for a while with what you have, or perhaps Fred would show you how to network the old and new.

 

I remember the post quite well. I'm not looking to set up a RAID array, not ever, so this info is what I remembered and I look for 3Gb cables, cards, etc:

I didn't know much about hardware (I really still don't) when I bought this kit so it looked like it had everything I needed, including a SATA port for a plug-in SATA card. Unfortunately, in that area, I was wrong so I'm trying ways to get around it. I'll know better next time. Just as I know that Windows X64 has nothing I need but a lot of problems with software, hardware and drivers. I thought that X64 was faster than X32 so that was the reason I bought it. Since I don't do gaming, it's wasted in my pc until programs, drivers and hardware catch up, which I hope will be soon.

Yeah, yeah . . . go peddle it somewhere else

 

A network storage device would be great but I don't have the money for one . . . probably won't for a very long time. But my birthday is coming up soon.

 

Hi Shanmail . . . Thanks for all the research you've done for me. I appreciate it very much!

Two of the cards that you pointed out

1. HighPoint RocketRaid1742 PCI SATA II Controller Card RAID 0/1/5/10 JBOD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816115034
2. SIIG SC-SA2012-S1 PCI SATA Controller Card -http://www.newegg.com/Product/ShowImage.asp?Image=16%2D150%2D009%2D06%2Ejpg%2C16%2D150%2D009%2D02%2Ejpg%2C16%2D150%2D009%2D03%2Ejpg%2C16%2D150%2D009%2D04%2Ejpg%2C16%2D150%2D009%2D05%2Ejpg&CurImage=16%2D150%2D009%2D06%2Ejpg&Description=SIIG+SC%2DSA2012%2DS1+PCI+SATA+Controller+Card+%2D+Retail

have a pin set-up like this:

........ .......................................... .........



My pci ports have pin set-ups like this:

........................................ .........

Would it be alright if some pins hang off the side of the port?



I do have one pci express 16x port that has this pin set-up:

........ .......................................... .........

But I think Walter or Asus said that this port was for things like a graphics card.

 

And thanks, shanemail, for the link for
cable sleeving and heat shrink.
http://www.pccasegear.com/category106_1.htm

It'll help a lot. :highfive

 

I know you said you are low on cash, but maybe later you

An excellent idea, Fred! (but, like you said, in the future)

 

A lot of information and I thank you all for it. A lot to digest also, but all in good time. I didn't think it was going to be a problem to connect my SATA ext hdds. So much for knowing what's what, but I'm catching on.

 

Hi Denise, the pci-e slots can be used for other things, --as I said, if you are using on-board graphics, they are free slots, as long as the cards are designed to be used in these slots.
So Shanemails leads could be useful.- one obviously uses a pci-e slot.
Again , be careful what you buy, perhaps Walter, or, Asus might be able to give you a little more on sata, and x64 driver compatability.
Networking is just , basically , using the old computer that you already have and looping it to the new one- Fred can probably explain the how, and why- Just cable, and network ability/catds in both computers.

 

Denise, a little while ago, you were worried about how much space system restore was using.
I forgot to let you know that you do not need to lose the most recent restore spots, and you can alter the amount of disc space that system restore uses.
When you are doing little else, go to all programs, accessaries, system tools, and on the left is a line that says, system restore settings.
Click on that , and you will see a % use assigned for system restore.
I would consider how much your system is using to run Windows- probably around 4 to 6 gb, and set the restore to twice that, and then you should keep, at least the last two restore points.
Happy computing.:wave

 

Hi baklogic,

I had to go a different route to get to the settings (I used Help & Support) and it shows that only 12% (5999Mb) is being used for System Restore points. I don't know why it went so high the other time, but that was after Max Registry Cleaner messed up my settings so that might be the reason. I won't be removing any System Resore Points unless it uses 30G to 40G again, which I don't think will happen. I allocated 50G to my C drive but it came out as 48.8G and I have 33.7G available. I use the C drive for programs, My Documents and to work partition to convert files that will be moved to one of the other 2 partitions that are for storage or to one of my ext hdds.

Thanks for the tip!

 

12% appears to be standard allocation, for system restore.
By saving things, in the manner you are, if Windows crashes, you can still get to your work, and pics, etc:
It is a similsr system to what I use, and I might have to revert to doing the same, as I will be putting Vista on another partition, and using Xp seperately, , as apparently Vista does not like Partition magic.
Good luck with it all.

 

Before I used PConPoint X64 on this system, I had Restore Points and a complete back-up of my entire C drive. I couldn't access any of them because the computer wouldn't boot up.

I need to learn how to make the floppy disks that the computer wanted . . . I think they were System Recovery Disks but that's not the real name that the system gave me. I have to go back into Windows repair and write down the name of what it was looking for and get the info that it wants onto floppies.

Some day in the near future, I want to install Windows XP Pro X32 again because many of my programs don't have X64 versions so they don't work. But I want my computer to continue to run as it is for a while before introducing it to a large change like that. Actually, it'll be me who will need the time to make the change. Right now, I would like to get my carpeting dried, get a SATA card, and reconnect my external hard drives.

 

After watching you go through this, and looking around, I, also, decided to keep to x32 , for now.
Too much hassle for drivers for XP x64, let alone Vista, so I will be putting Vista on soon, but x32.:wave

 

I agree baklogic. I will definitely be looking into installing my XP Pro X32 version (keeping X64 as well), but I think it was Asus who said that I would need direction to do that. Since I haven't the faintest idea how to do it without wiping out everything on my C drive (again!), I'm going to wait on it.

 

Re: PCI-Express
It depends on what you are using the computer for
I am guessing it is not for gaming ?, so the onboard graphics will be fine
In which case there is probably no reason not to use the pci-express slot

Bearing in mind that your board only has 2 pci slots, not sure if you are already using them or will have need of them in the future ?

 

Also does anyone know if it is possible to back-up system restore points ?

I thought it was (pretty much anything else can be backed up)
but have not found a link yet

 

I just deleted about 5 restore points before my last repair of Windows. I unchecked Do Not Show Hidden Files or Folders and Hide Protected Operating System Files. Then I did a search for Restore, checking the boxes on the bottom of the search screen to search system folders and search hidden files and folders. Because mine were so large before I repaired Windows, I deleted the large ones that were between 1.5G to 7G. I didn't hesitate because I knew that my pc couldn't be restored to any workable condition. I've attached a screenshot of the results of a search for Restore Points that I just did and you can see the Restore Points.

 

Denise,
Actually deleting those was not what I would have suggested. Usually , after running my program, or, update, for a while, and restarting my computer, without any problem,and I have my computer running nicely,,I just switch off system restore, restart, and switch back on system restore, but with HyperOs, I do not really need system restore. Perhaps others might look at my method differently.
Shanemail.
I have used Hyperos, with partition magic for some years, now, and the beauty of it is that I can save a complete back up, on to any partition that has enough room, in minutes, and I can restore that backup ,in minutes, if I tinker too much, or get a bug, or, bad download.
I know XP has a backup folder, for pro version, but with XP home, you have to go to the disk, to find it, and install it.
But, as to having a backup, for system restore points, I cannot say -- perhaps looking around where Denise did, might lead to a possibility -
Studiot is pretty good at this sort of thing, perhaps Walter, Fred, Yargwell, or Asus might know - interesting one.

 

Shanemail, Major Attitude has several backup methods
http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=27238

 

Thanks for the link

 

I would not use a copy of windows restore files as a reliable backup method. Perhaps I am wrong in my thinking. The programs in Major Attitudes post look good. Personally, I have a hard drive in my computer that is only hooked up every week or so for backing up my system. I use http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=5534. The only thing I do not like about the program is that it takes an entire disk or partition, you can't just create a folder for the backup.

But for a free program, I am very happy with it. 'Bout time for me to backup again.

Denise, have you used the windows Disk Cleanup yet? I am assuming it is the same as the 32bit XP. I am a little hesitant to post this, but what the heck. Have any of you used this http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4191 with the 64 bit windows?

E

 

I agree entirely, baklogic. I wouldn't recommend deleting restore points by the procedure I mentioned to anyone who has a computer that is in good working condition.

At the time that I deleted the restore points, I had to repair/reinstall Windows and the restore points had taken up about 95% of my C drive partitiion. I had nothing to lose since those restore points would not have helped me and the repair of Windows might have turned out to be another reinstallation, wiping them out in the process.

 

I've used CCleaner and it seems to have caused no problems. I'm keeping the back-ups just in case.

I've also used Disk Cleanup and have seen no problems.

 

I would like to find a registry cleaner that doesn't damage my C drive. Both PConPoint and Max Registry Cleaner were excellent programs for X32 OS, but damaged X64 OS. I use Dial-A-Fix utilities to Flush DNS and Purge SFC and to Process Idle Tasks.

 

I think that if you tried Windows own" live onecare safety scanner", at least it is by Microsoft, or, whatever registry cleaner you feel brave enough to try - just look at all the deletions that the program wants to deleete, and if you are not sure, untick it.
Fred, That seems a handy backup program.
:seeya

 

I am a bit confused Denise, why are you wanting a registry scanner? Are you having problems with something? From a quick google on flush DNS, looks like windows does it once every 24 hours with bad entries http://www.tech-faq.com/flush-dns.shtml. You can also do it manually if you desire. The Purge SFC I am not sure what that is. Not too sure about the Process Idle Tasks either. Looks like windows does this every 3 days.

Note: I am unfamiliar with the 64bit windows. The searches I did were just for winXP. I am assuming they apply to the 64 bit versions also.

As far as the registry on my computer, if it ain't broke, don't farf around with it, is my theory.

E:cool

 

As far as registry cleaner, ccleaner hasn't let me down yet. If you are looking for something for a novice that is *nearly* foolproof, try tweaknow regcleaner. It will seperate entries to be deleted into categories "safe," "unsafe," and "unsure" as to the safety of deleting them. I am not sure I read every post as it is getting hard to keep up, but if you are looking to delete some restore points, you can use Windows cleanup. Go to > start> my computer> right click on appropriate HDD> properties> general tab> disk cleanup> more options tab> under system restore click cleanup> you can then remove every restore point except the last one. This is what I do when necessary. I don't know if it was mentioned yet. Sometimes I lose my place when reading this thread.

Always be careful with the registry, as Fred says. Err on the side of caution in deleting entries. After so many cleanings, it may not be a bad idea to defrag the registry. White space that results from a deletion lingers making the registry entries fragmented in time. I very much like to use "free registry defrag." Excellent program.

Edit- Don't forget, no matter what program you use for registry cleaning, backup registry first. Both ccleaner and tweaknow both have very simple was to backup before deleting. That way you can revert in if needed.

 

At this point, I want to leave things in my computer as they are. I'd like to enjoy it for a few days before I have to reinstall Windows again, lol. So no registry cleaners until X64 has been around for quite a while and these programs have been proven to be safe.

I use CCleaner but it doesn't remove things such as empty registry values, obsolete shortcuts, residue left by uninstalling programs, and a number of things that PConPoint and Max Registry Cleaner does. They both worked great with x32 but they have a long way to go before they come up with a program that doesn't damage the registry/Windows. These programs clean up many more things than CCleaner and Disk Cleaner.

I do a lot of work with video files. When they're running, they need as much resources that they can get so they will run faster. Process Idle Tasks processes the tasks before I start up my video programs so that it won't have to share the resources. If I can save 1/2 hour here or 1/2 hour there, I'll take the 2 minutes it takes to process idle tasks.

I learned that the hard way, as you know
Is Free Registry Defrag for Windows X64 also?

If I went into Safe Mode, would Windows Defragger be able to defrag the registry?

From the link that was provided by Fred,

I used to like the handy little device in Internet Options to Empty Web Settings, but IE7 no longer has that option.

All these little things had my pc running like a well-oiled machine. I never had a problem after running them with X32 Windows in my old computer.

I had many programs installed in my old computer. When I installed programs in my new one *it's so beautiful!*, I found that many of them aren't needed so I deleted them. These files weren't for cleaning the registry, etc, but for things like "change the name of your Start button," "Picture to Icon Converter," and a number of others. I get a kick out of those types of files and they're fun to play around with.

I installed "Disable Balloon Tips" but it doesn't work. Whenever I point to a folder or a file, the dang thing gets in the way so that I can't see what's under it, so I'm still looking for another one that will really work.

 

When i first got online (only 5 or 6 years ago)
my favourite (favorite for those in the U.S) hobby was downloading software to see which programs were the best, which worked & which didnt etc.

download managers, security software, desktop appearance, image processing - etc,etc

Strangely enough, i used to have a lot of computer stability issues as well as security issues - go figure

These days I just keep it simple, if you are not constantly downloading /installing /uninstalling stuff that you do not need, your computer will be happier and you have less need to run programs that can cause issues

As Fred_G mentioned earlier :
"As far as the registry on my computer, if it ain't broke, don't farf around with it, is my theory."

I think the same can be said about computers in general

Gently coerce it to be how you want it to be, and then - dont poke it with a stick or throw rocks at it.

Of course if you find good solid programs online from a reputable source (I can think of one great download site offhand), by all means go for it - just think about whether you really need it first.

Keep it simple sweetheart :cloud9

 

I would have to say shanemail summed it up very well in my opinion. You just did a major upgrade, enjoy it!

Come on now shanemail, poking sticks at computers can be fun. I usually just put the sledgehammer next to the offending device, so it knows I am serious!

E

 

LOL I think my computer know who's boss also . . . it is!

Yea, I deleted those "unuseful" programs. I wasn't going to use them so there was no use having them in my computer (in their upzipped state). I deleted a number of them before I transferred my Downloaded Programs folder to the new computer. It'll be better off without them.

 

There are registry hacks for balloon tips, and lots of others - But, As both Fred, and Shanemail said - enjoy the computer for a while.
Leave all those little programs alone, and when you have a little more knowledge of the registry, you will not need them.:wave

 

Arrrggggghhhhh!

You're going to make me wait to get rid of those . . . those . . . those . . . horrible beasts sent by Microsoft to put us all in a funny farm!

C'mon . . . I didn't give you that terrible a time building this pc for me, did I?

 

the optimisation software out there is generally stopping our learning process
the majority of, or more likely everything they do can be done through the OS via GUI (Applets & "built-in apps") or directly through the registry anyway

Its just that most of us , do not know where to find them or how to use them

 

Anyway....

How are the connection issues of the 3 Terabytes of SATA / firewire / USB Hard drives progressing Denise ?

 

The connection of the ext hdds had to be on hold. I disconnected them from the power surge protectors and put them on my couch because of the mini flood that I had here a few days ago. The rooms are getting dry though.

I'm also thinking about a better way to set them up. It would be nice if I had a shelf to put them on. I have a shelf that runs along the back of the wall that my computer is up against . . . it's an enclose for the water pipes. But the hard drives would be hard to get to to turn them on and off because the switches are on the back of the drives. I have one drive that has its on/off switch in the front of the drive. It doesn't look an on/off switch, and it makes more sense for them to be on the front.

I've devoted most of my time to building the computer over the past couple of weeks so I have to turn my attention to the many things that I let go, and the flood didn't help. I'm way behind on a lot of things and they really do need my attention now. But I'm think I should have them connected by the end of the week, if not sooner.

 

Whew! It's been a rough few days for me!

I just reread the last few pages of posts and my mind is in a boggle. shanemail came up with a lot of SATA cards/devices and baklogic liked them and I think baklogic added a card (but it was way outside my price range) and said that pci-e was good, but I'm so confused . You'd said

I won't be using the slot for the graphics card (16x I think?) so I can put a SATA card in there if I can find one that's compatible with with my pc and is 3.0/s. I went back and forth between the links and read what they do and their specs and requirements and when I finished, I couldn't remember the first one I read, so I went back to it, then I read another one and another one, and I think you get the picture . . . I don't have a clue. I'm at a point right now that I don't know if I have a SATA or a SATA II motherboard. (And you want me to help other people? . . . I pity them if they follow my advice) :eek

I looked at some cards at the link given for NewEgg . . .

These cards have good price tags and I think they can do what I want them to do: they can both plug into one of my pci slots and give me 4 external SATA ports. I read a little about multipliers but I don't understand what they're explaining. They say things like

QUOTE]4 External eSATA 3Gb/s SATA II Ports
Port Multiplier aware - supports up to 20 disk drives* [/QUOTE]

With 4 ports, how can it support 20 disk drives? Is a multipier a case, a HUB? confused If it goes outside the realm of my immediate need for 4 SATA external ports, I don't need to know the answer right now. It'll only boggle the mind a little more. :foolish

These are 2 cards that are within my price range. I believe that they'll give me 4 external ports when I plug them into a pci-e port: confused

[http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816122015

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16816133002

I know what SATA, eSATA and SATA II are. If I buy a card that's SATA II with RAID function, can I use it on my SATA hard drive/motherboard without setting up a RAID array or wouldn't SATA II be compatible with what I have . . . confused again.

Denise