igielski@mmm.UUCP (Tom Igielski) (11/26/85)
If I have a PC/XT with a 10 MByte hard drive, can I add other (perhaps external) hard drives? Does DOS treat these drives as 'D:', etc. If this is possible, what is the limit or any restrictions on doing this. Thank you. Tom Igielski
b-davis@utah-cs.UUCP (Brad Davis) (11/27/85)
In article <335@mmm.UUCP> igielski@mmm.UUCP (Tom Igielski) writes: >If I have a PC/XT with a 10 MByte hard drive, can I add other (perhaps >external) hard drives? Does DOS treat these drives as 'D:', etc. >If this is possible, what is the limit or any restrictions on doing this. I once took an off the shelf 10 meg ST 506 type drive and added it to an XT with the following problems: Your power supply probably can't handle the start up current for both drives. You might need another (or bigger) power supply. You will need power cables. The cable is only long enough to place the other hard disk in place of the floppy. The XT will NOT boot without the floppy. I placed the floppy on top of the computer with a dust cover over it. Its cables are just barely long enough. The drive is D:. You will need to do a real format (not the FORMAT command, the BIOS call), an FDISK run, and a FORMAT. P.S. The rule about data filling any available disk is true. -- Brad Davis {ihnp4, decvax, seismo}!utah-cs!b-davis b-davis@utah-cs.ARPA
arh@bdaemon.UUCP (arh) (11/28/85)
> If I have a PC/XT with a 10 MByte hard drive, can I add other (perhaps > external) hard drives? Does DOS treat these drives as 'D:', etc. > If this is possible, what is the limit or any restrictions on doing this. > Thank you. > Tom Igielski The IBM (really Xebec) fixed-disk controller is cabable of handling two hard disks, each of which may be 5, 10, 15, or 26 megabytes in formatted capacity. My article in the March 1985 PC Tech Journal has some useful pointers in it about converting old PCs to XT compatibilty. Adding a second hard disk is not too much of a problem. The article is called "The Making of an XT". Augie Hansen Contributing Editor, PC Tech Journal {allegra|amd|attunix|cbosgd|ucbvax|ut-sally}!nbires!bdaemon!arh
hilton@uiucuxc.CSO.UIUC.EDU (11/30/85)
yes, make sure your drive is set for 'd' and I would suggest leaving the resistor packs on both drives. yes q w