How to Use Ide/sata Hard Drive For a Usb Backup Drive

by Vook tv

Anyone who has accumulated computer parts over the years will probably have a few hard drives lying around from old desktop computers. You can actually make use of these drives and use them as a USB backup storage drive. Older computers would have a 3.5 inch IDE drive while newer ones may use a SATA interface. You can use both types and even a 2.5 inch laptop drive as well.
Ever have a computer crash and no way of accessing your data? You will be able to remove the drive and plug it into an inexpensive adapter and retrieve all your data with another PC.
Step1:
You will first need to purchase an ‘USB 2.0 to IDE/SATA Drive Adapter’. You can purchase one online for about . I purchased my through Amazon.com but you can find these adapters everywhere online.
Step2:
Select a spare hard drive by determining the storage size you will need to back up all your important data. Use the appropriate connector from your USB adapter and plug it into your spare IDE or SATA drive.
Step3:
Connect the power supply into the wall and the 5 volt output to the hard drive power connector.
Step4:
After your computer boots up connect the USB plug on the adapter into a USB port on your computer. Windows will find the new hardware and install the appropriate drivers. At this point your drive is ready to use.
Step5:
Open ‘My Computer’ and you will find your hard drive. If this is a spare hard drive that you’re going to use for backup, it would be a good idea to reformat the drive.
Step6:
Do a Google search and look for free backup utility software that will allow you to backup selected files, folders or your entire disk. You can now backup all your important computer files and even access lost data from a hard drive that has crashed.