Adding an old HD to another Puter...

Trying to add an old un-formatted Maxtor 160 ATA 100/133 (out from an old HP XL918) to an existing Compaq 5011CL 80GB Ultra DMA HD to an existing Compaq...

I have an extra DELL 4300 P-4 computer, which two of the four CMOS battery clips broke off, while I was trying to reset the DOS Black screen telling me to type in the admin password, or depress control-delete to bypass this function, well it would never go away, I am trying to reformat this 160GB HD and use it as storage for other extra 5011CL Compaq 1.2GB computer. Someone mentioned the jumpers is a way to refresh the HD, not removing the battery.

On the Dell 4300, Do I remove the jumpers, put them back in,then try to reformat the computer?

OR

If It's wiser to just trash the 4300, keep the 160GB HD, install it onto the Compaq as storage, which already has the WinXP onboard,then try to reformat just the 160 without erasing the 80GB Compaq's HD?

I was told that if I have the other compaq running Windows XP, I can not simply hook up the MAXTOR 160 ATA 100/133 to the Compaqs' 80 Ultra DMA and expect it to work,that first, I have to reformat the HD. Can't I do this when the computer recognizes the second HD as the Slave?

If C:\ drive is jumpers as the master and the other one {B} is jumpered as a slave.


You can copy all your data off it, then as you list XP, you can go into disk management and format {B}.
Or if you wish, remove all partitions and then format it. But you will lose everything on the drive either way.

Thanks train,
I don't care if I lose anything on the bigger 160GB Maxtor ATA 100/133, that's why I was trying to find the mobo jumpers on the dells' 4300 mobo to reformat, to disable the password prompt, then install on the Compaq.

I did not know I could reformat JUST THE 160GB using the Disk management in the Compaq, and keeping all the apps and storage already on the Compaq's 80GB existing HD.

The Compaq I was going to use as applications, and the 160GB I was going to use as storage on the Compaq and then trash the dell 4300.
Is all this feasible to do? Or do I have to reformat both partitions on both HD's, and re-install Windows,apps,data, and start over again?

With the existing 250w power supply on the Compaq 5011CL,and current Motherboard, without flashing the bios, you think this would be a stable computer using as a backup and storage? I have never flashed anything in my life. Again, thank you for your help.

Very feasable, about what I do but I have 6 hdds in my computer.

This link should be a big help.
http://www.theeldergeek.com/disk_management.htm

Ok Thanks,
I have a DELL 4300 Computer case, are these proprietary cases that ONLY use their DELL Motherboards, or could I stick any other Mobo in this case? ( MSI,etc...

I have looked for the 4300 Mobo Diagram to see exactly where the onboard jumpers are so I can bypass or disable to password prompt to get me out of the DOS mode....or by installing the Hard drive and doing the Disk management, and reformatting only this new Maxtor 160GB tp work with the Compaq, would this work? I also guess that this HR should be formatted to NTFS and not Fat32.

Thanks again.

Other motherboards will fit and it just depends of the form factors and sizs.

Motherboard Form Factors
http://www.acme.com/build_a_pc/forms.html

Kind of dated, but still true.

Although, you just might like something like this case.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129021

Bios password, you can disable/remove that in Set up.

Quote:

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installing the Hard drive and doing the Disk management, and reformatting only this new Maxtor 160GB tp work with the Compaq, would this work?

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I use that myself.