A SATA hard drive is a disk drive inside your computer case that is connected to the motherboard with a serial cable. When you want to upgrade your computer or you want more room to store information like movies and videos, you might need more hard drive space. Adding a SATA hard drive can easily give you that additional space. If you want to replace your primary SATA hard drive with a new SATA hard drive, be sure that you have a copy of an operating system to place on the new drive.
Instructions
1. Back up all the data you want to keep. If you have pictures, documents, video or other data stored on your current hard drive, be sure to copy that data to a removable drive, such as a CD or DVD, so you will be able to access it after you replace your current hard drive.
2. Turn your computer off, unplug it and open the computer case. Each computer case will be slightly different, but most will open by unscrewing two large thumbscrews on the back of the computer. Some cases will slide open--some even snap open.
3. Locate your current SATA hard drive. The drive will be a short rectangle with two wires connected to the back side. It will be attached to the frame of your computer with four small screws.
4. Unplug the wires from the back of your current hard drive. These wires are connecting with two plugs that may be a bit stiff. If the wires do not easily slip off, wiggle them back and forth gently. In some cases, the plug will have a plastic catch that needs to be held in order for the plug to release.
5. Remove the hard drive. To do this, unscrew the four screws holding it in place and slide the drive out of the drive bay.
6. Install the new SATA hard drive in the same location. Be sure to use the screws that come with the new hard drive. Then install the same two cables to the rear of the hard drive.
7. Turn your computer on. In most cases, the BIOS will recognize the new hard drive immediately. In some cases, BIOS may give you an error and ask you to press F1 to continue. In that case, after you press F1, your new hard drive will be recognized by the BIOS.
8. Insert your operating system CD/DVD and install the operating system on your new SATA hard drive.
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