Installing An External Hard Drive (DVD, crash, motherboard, sounds)
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Just plug it in and Windows will recognize it and assign a drive letter. Have My Computer open when you do this and you'll see the new drive appear.
Why are you transferring everything to the new drive? Do you mean you want to backup your files to the new drive? Or are you actually planning to MOVE them to the new drive?
The computer is about to crash and I don't want to lose my pics and important stuff. It is turning off by itself when in use and it is kind of old. I bought it in 2006 brand new.
I used a program called Second Copy to backup my data. It has a 30 day trial. Use it to COPY your data to the external so you have TWO copies. "About to crash" doesn't really tell me what your computer is doing. Once you have a copy of your data, see about getting your computer fixed. You could have something as simple as a failing power supply that can be swapped out in 5 minutes. In the future, always make sure you have at least two copies of your important files. For added protection, you can use an online backup service like Carbonite which comes in handy should the same disaster destroy your computer and your backup drive.
That's what I was told (about to crash) because the storage capacity is almost full. But I really appreciate your help. I will try Carbonite and see where it goes. I will be getting an upgrade in a few months so hopefully nothing will happen (cross my fingers) until then.
Whoever said your computer was about to crash because the drive is almost full doesn't know enough about computers to be giving advice. A full hard drive will not make your computer turn itself off. It sounds like you've got multiple problems. As long as you keep your backup current, you'll be OK.
Whoever said your computer was about to crash because the drive is almost full doesn't know enough about computers to be giving advice. A full hard drive will not make your computer turn itself off. It sounds like you've got multiple problems. As long as you keep your backup current, you'll be OK.
Hello, I just wanted to piggyback off of this thread because I had similar issues with my old PC a few months ago. I am also computer illiterate but based off the advice I got from several sources (including Staples) I just needed to change the power supply. Is that simply just getting a new power cord? My pc was cutting off while in use -- it would work for several minutes and then shut off. And as the days went by, the shorter the time my pc would stay on. i needed my pc for work and i was so frustrated with the situation, i wound up getting a new pc. but i would still like to hold on to the old pc as a backup. i never got a proper diagnosis ("estimate") from any repair businesses but I was a told by several sources that it could be a power supply issue or worse still, the motherboard needed to be replaced. beyond the shutting down issues, my pc was working fine. any help here? u seem to really be in the know EscapeCalifornia, so I'm just looking for some guidance. Thanks!
Hello, I just wanted to piggyback off of this thread because I had similar issues with my old PC a few months ago. I am also computer illiterate but based off the advice I got from several sources (including Staples) I just needed to change the power supply. Is that simply just getting a new power cord? My pc was cutting off while in use -- it would work for several minutes and then shut off. And as the days went by, the shorter the time my pc would stay on. i needed my pc for work and i was so frustrated with the situation, i wound up getting a new pc. but i would still like to hold on to the old pc as a backup. i never got a proper diagnosis ("estimate") from any repair businesses but I was a told by several sources that it could be a power supply issue or worse still, the motherboard needed to be replaced. beyond the shutting down issues, my pc was working fine. any help here? u seem to really be in the know EscapeCalifornia, so I'm just looking for some guidance. Thanks!
A bad power supply is a definite possibility. Its the first thing I'd try replacing since it sounds like you'd know pretty quickly if that's the culprit.
The power supply is a component inside the computer. Your power cord plugs into the back of the power supply. The power supply has wires that go to the motherboard, hard drive, DVD drive, and sometimes video card. Replacing it is one of the easier things you can fix on a computer but sometimes the case manufacturer can make it an unnecessary pain in the rear. Most of them are a standard size but some cases use an odd-ball size.
Do a google images search on "pc power supply" to see what I'm talking about. Most of the pictures are of square-ish metal boxes. Those are the standard ATX power supplies. Don't attempt to open the power supply itself as you could get a nasty shock.
What kind of computer is it? More likely it's not just the power supply, but also the motherboard or (if it has one separate from the motherboard) the video card. If it's a Dell, HP, Gateway, Sony or emachine then it's a pretty safe bet this is not just a power supply (which costs like 40 bucks for a decent one) but also a motherboard issue. Problem is when you buy these big box pcs they usually use specially profiled internal components so the only place to get a new motherboard or power supply is their parts dept.
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