How to connect a hard drive from a computer to a laptop. Connecting a hard drive from a laptop to a computer. Connecting the hard drive directly to the computer motherboard

It happens that after replacing the hard drive on a laptop or if the latter fails, it becomes necessary to connect the freed drive to a desktop computer. You can do this in two different ways, and we will talk about each of them today.

Laptop and desktop computers use drives of different form factors - 2.5 (or, much less commonly, 1.8) and 3.5 inches, respectively. It is the difference in size, as well as, in much rarer cases, the interfaces used (SATA or IDE) that determines exactly how the connection can be made. In addition, the disk from the laptop can not only be installed inside the PC, but also connected to it in one of the external connectors. Each of the cases we have identified has its own nuances, which we will consider in more detail later.

Note: If connecting a drive from a laptop to a computer needs to be done solely to transfer information, read the article provided at the link below. This can be done without removing the drive by connecting the devices using one of the available methods.

Removing a disk from a laptop

Of course, the first step is to remove the hard drive from the laptop. In many models it is located in a separate compartment, to open which you just need to unscrew one screw on the case, but much more often it is necessary to remove the entire lower part. Previously, we talked about how laptop computers from different manufacturers are disassembled, so we will not dwell on this topic in this article. If you have any difficulties or questions, simply read the article provided at the link below.


More details:

Option 1: Installation

In the event that you want to install a hard drive from a laptop into your PC, replacing the old one with it or making it an additional drive, you need to acquire the following tools and accessories:

• Phillips screwdriver;
• Tray (sled) for installing a 2.5" or 1.8" disk (depending on the form factor of the connected device) into a standard 3.5" cell for computers;
• SATA cable;
• Loose power cable coming from the power supply.

Note: If the drives in the PC are connected using the outdated IDE standard, but the laptop used SATA, you will additionally need to purchase a SATA-IDE adapter and connect it to the “smaller” drive.

1. Remove both side covers of the system unit. Most often they are secured with a pair of screws located on the rear panel. After unscrewing them, simply pull the “walls” towards you.



2. If you are replacing one drive with another, first disconnect the power and connection cables from the “old” one, and then unscrew the four screws - two on each (side) side of the cell, and carefully remove it from its tray. If you plan to install the drive as a second storage device, simply skip this step and move on to the next one.

   

3. Using the standard screws that come with the slide, secure the drive removed from the laptop to the inner sides of this adapter tray. Be sure to take into account the location - the connectors for connecting cables should be directed inside the system unit.



4. Now you need to fix the tray with the disk in the cell of the system unit intended for it. Essentially, you need to perform the reverse procedure of removing a computer drive, that is, screw it in with the supplied screws on both sides.
5. Take a SATA cable and connect one end to a free connector on the motherboard,
   
   
   and the second - to a similar one on the hard drive you are installing. The power cable coming from the power supply must be connected to the second connector of the device.

   

   Note: If the drives are connected to the PC via the IDE interface, use an adapter designed for it to a more modern SATA - it is connected to the corresponding connector on the hard drive from the laptop.

6. Reassemble the case by screwing both side covers back onto it, and turn on the computer. In most cases, the new drive will be active and ready to use right away. If, with its display in the tool "Disk Management" and/or problems arise with the setup, please read the article provided at the link below.

Option 2: External storage

Conclusion

Now you know how to connect a drive from a laptop to a computer, regardless of whether you plan to use it as an internal or external drive.

It’s not uncommon that after a laptop crashes, what’s left behind is a fully functional hard drive. I don’t want to throw it away at all, so users are often interested in how to connect a hard drive from a laptop to a computer. In this short article we will talk about how you can solve this problem.

Connecting a hard drive from a laptop to a computer using SATA

Connecting a hard drive from a laptop to a computer using USB

If the above method of connecting a hard drive from a laptop to a computer seems too complicated to you, or you want to be able to quickly disconnect such a hard drive, then you can. This can be implemented in several ways.

Method No. 1. Adapter from SATA to USB.

The simplest option is a small compact adapter from to 3.0. On one side, such an adapter has a SATA interface, with which it connects to the hard drive, and on the other side, a USB 3.0 cable that connects to the computer.

Method number 2. Pocket for 2.5 inch disks.

A pocket for 2.5-inch drives is something like a case into which a 2.5-inch hard drive is installed. Inside this case there is a SATA connector to which a hard drive from a laptop is connected, and outside there is a USB cable for connecting to a computer.

Method No. 3. A docking station that supports laptop hard drives.

You can also use a hard drive docking station. A docking station is a small device that connects to a computer via USB and into which you can install hard drives.

A docking station is probably the most expensive way to connect hard drives from a laptop to a computer. Since models supporting 2.5-inch drives are rare and cost above average.

A hard drive is a computer's storage unit. Bytes of information are recorded in it and do not disappear even when the power is turned off, which cannot be said about RAM. Having an HDD (hard drive) is mandatory for using any PC, but the problem is that the laptop does not have obvious connectors for connecting it, so we will look into the hidden part of it.

First of all, you should find out what kind of HDD you have (if you want to connect an existing one), since they also differ in form factor and size. Desktop computers use 3.5 hard drives, which are 25mm high, while laptops use 2.5 hard drives with a height of 9.5mm or, in older models, 12.5mm.

Accordingly, to find out whether it is possible to connect a hard drive to a laptop in the standard way, that is, by replacing the main HDD, you need to find out what kind of hard drive you have, and the necessary actions will be based on this.

Initially, we will look at how to connect a disk to a laptop with its replacement, then another situation - how to connect a second hard drive to a laptop with different interfaces.

Replacing HDD on a laptop

If in a stationary device, in order to remove the hard drive, you need to unscrew the cover, remove the connection cables and unscrew the screws at the fastening points, then here the situation is a little different. Next, let's look at a simple HDD replacement, provided that you have a 2.5 hard drive.

• Turn the laptop over and you will see a large plastic cover with bolts, sometimes there are several of them, then remove each one until you find the disk, usually under the last part;
• Unscrew the screws holding the device; sometimes special grooves are used instead;
• Pull the disk back, grasping the side where the contacts connect;
• Lifting up you can get the HDD;
• Install another hard drive in the same way.

An elementary situation is considered, which involves replacing identical devices, how to connect a 3.5 SATA HDD to a laptop or install additional devices.

How to connect a SATA hard drive to a laptop?

Situations with different types of devices will be considered here. First, let's look at the option of connecting SATA hard drives using an adapter. This method will allow you to connect the hard drive to your laptop via a USB connector, which is very convenient, but slightly slows down the system’s response speed when working in it.

Be sure to make sure that you have a SATA interface, as older models used IDE.

To perform this procedure, you need to purchase an adapter from SATA to USB; it can be found everywhere at an affordable price. Just like the SATA connection, 2 connectors are used: one is data transfer or control, the other is power, which is shorter in length - this is the information flow, the same with the adapter. See photo.

There are 2 wires from the adapter, one is responsible for power, you need to connect it to the network, the other has a USB output, it should be connected to a laptop, preferably to USB 3.0. Thus, regardless of the size, you will have a makeshift external HDD.

There is another connection method, which involves using a box. This box is equipped with a built-in SATA or IDE to USB adapter, completely turning the internal drive into an external one. The advantage of using the method will be protection from external damage to the device. This box can also be used (if SATA 2.5) to connect a second internal drive.

To connect a second internal drive, you will have to sacrifice the drive and replace it with a pocket for an SSD or HDD. Still, in 2016, using a CD-ROM is not relevant for most cases. Such a pocket does not require much effort to connect: you just need to remove the drive and insert the pocket directly into its place. Connecting a CD-ROM and HDD is no different, so adapters are not needed. Of course, you will have to disassemble the laptop a little. Such a pocket costs from 200-300 UAH.

What should I do if my hard drive is not showing up?

An unpleasant situation happens and after connecting, even if it is correct, the HDD still does not appear or does not work. Manipulations to solve the problem are carried out in the system. It takes a little effort to fix the glitch, since Windows must install the hard drive itself.

If the box, adapter or hard drive is not standard, then you may need to manually install the drivers. First you need to find out if this is true:

• Click Start and right-click “Computer”, then “Properties”;
• Now click on the “Device Manager” link;
• In the “Disk devices” section there should be an item with the name of your disk and there should not be a yellow exclamation mark icon on it.

If everything is in order, then proceed further, but if there is no such item or it is marked as problematic, then the problem is in the driver. You can right-click and select “Update drivers...”, if that doesn’t help, then you can find them on the manufacturer’s website. There should be no problems with installation.

Another case is when the drive letter is not determined, then you should:

• Go to “Control Panel” from Start;
• Click on the “Administration” tile;

• Now select “Computer Management”;

• In the left menu, find “Disk Management”;

• You should see the second HDD; to display it, you should initially change the letter. This is done via right click;
• If it doesn’t help, format it by right-clicking and the corresponding item. The file system must match, usually NTFS or FAT32.

That's all, we were able to connect the hard drive in different conditions and configure it for further use.

Hello friends.

Do you know how to connect a hard drive from a laptop to a computer? In fact, it is easy and today you will see it. The main thing is to find the compartment at the back of the laptop where the hard drive is located and do some simple steps. Now I'll show you everything!

So, to connect a hard drive from a laptop to a PC, we need to complete 2 steps:

1. Remove the disk from the laptop
2. Insert it into the computer and connect

Let's move on to the first step. Turn the laptop over and take out the battery. This is an important point, so be sure to do it. Next, we need to find the cover behind which the hard drive is hidden and unscrew a couple of screws. Usually on this cover there is an inscription HDD.

If there are several covers, but there are no inscriptions, then you will have to open each one and see exactly where the disk is located. The main thing you need to remember is where you are unscrewing the bolts from, in some cases they differ in size and they need to be put in their original place. Otherwise, then it will be like mine - the entire laptop is completely without screws.

We move the cover to the side and see a small hard drive. Here it is also secured with screws and they need to be unscrewed.

Great. We removed the hard drive from the laptop. Now you need to connect it to your computer.

Let's go to the computer. At the back of the system unit, unscrew the 2 screws and move the cover to the side.

The hard drive bays are located in the lower right corner. Now you already have at least one disk there. We will install the second one nearby.

To connect the hard drive from a laptop to a computer, we need two cables: .

There are corresponding connectors on the disk for these cables:

Let's connect!

The reverse sides of these cables look similar. The SATA interface must be inserted into the connector on the motherboard. It is usually located at the bottom and there you will already have the first disk connected. We insert the wire into the adjacent connector.

And the second SATA wire is connected to the power supply. We look at the wires that come from the power supply and find the connector we need. All interfaces are unique, so you won’t be able to connect the wrong one or the wrong side.

As you noticed, the laptop hard drive is smaller in size than a standard computer drive. This means that by default it cannot be secured to the system unit with bolts. Of course, if you inserted the disc for a short time, for example, to transfer important files to your computer, then you can simply put it neatly on some shelf.

Otherwise, if you are using it permanently, you will need to take care of purchasing a special adapter, using which you can bolt the disk into a special compartment. Thus, due to the vibrations that are inherent in these types of disks, it will not break prematurely.

Good luck connecting the drives!

User question...

Good afternoon.

Can you tell me how to transfer ~500 GB of information from a laptop disk to a computer hard drive? I tried copying to a flash drive, but it took a long time (especially since I have photos, and when transferring many small files, the speed drops).

How to connect a hard drive from a laptop to a computer at minimal cost, and is it possible? Or maybe there is an option to quickly transfer such a volume of files without connecting the drive directly to the PC?

Thank you in advance, the question is too big...

Hello.

There are two ways to connect a drive from a laptop to a PC:

1. connect it directly to the SATA/IDE port of your computer and transfer your entire amount of information;
2. buy a special BOX into which to insert a disk, and then connect this BOX to any USB port of a computer/other laptop.

In the article, further, I will consider in detail each of the options. By the way, so that speed is not lost when transferring many small files, you can (for example, in ZIP without compression (such an archive is created very quickly)), and then quickly copy the archive file to another disk (as a result, you will transfer one large file and the speed will be much higher).

How to remove a hard drive from a laptop

If you already have a hard drive in hand, you can skip this part of the article...

Perhaps this is the first thing the user encounters. For example, a laptop won’t turn on, but you urgently need to get data from the disk...

And there is one difficulty here. If earlier laptops always had a special cover on the back side for the hard drive and RAM, now not all laptops have it (new fashion trend...). As a result, in order to remove the hard drive from the laptop, you will have to completely disassemble it (which is a very difficult job for novice users. Many people act carelessly and tear thin wires - then they go to the workshop...).

1. turn off the laptop;
2. disconnect all wires from it: power, mouse, headphones, etc.;
3. turn over;
4. remove the battery (usually there are always two latches, see arrow-1 in the photo below);
5. unscrew the screw and remove the protective cover (see arrow-2 in the photo below).

The hard drive, by the way, can be covered with a special mounting cover and you may not be able to see the typical type of drive (shown in the photo above).

In the photo below: arrow-1 - hard drive; arrow 2 - RAM.

Actually, all you have to do is unscrew the mounting screws and remove the hard drive itself. Everyone knows, of course, but I repeat once again: remove the disk carefully and slowly, often the contacts of the disk can “boil” if it is standing there, and no one has taken it out for several years. One accidental hit or drop of the disk - and your data can be lost forever!

Now that the drive has been removed, you can start connecting it...

Connecting a drive from a laptop directly to a PC

The easiest, free and fastest way to connect a drive from a laptop to a PC is to simply connect it to a SATA port (so that they are backward compatible and there should be no problems).

Small disclaimer...

There are several ports for connecting hard drives: IDE and SATA (IDE is already outdated). Therefore, if you have an old computer (or an old laptop), you may encounter an IDE port. Then things will become somewhat more complicated for you.

Without going into technical terms, I will say that the IDE port is wider than SATA - an example in the photo below.

In this case, to connect an old IDE drive to a new computer (or a new SATA drive to an old PC that only has an IDE port), you need a special adapter: SATA/IDE or IDE/SATA. They are not expensive and are available in almost every computer store (example below).

If your computer or laptop is quite new, then there should be a SATA port, which means there should be no problems with the connection. The easiest way, in my opinion (especially if you can’t find free ports), simply disconnect your CD-Rom drive and connect your laptop hard drive to these ports (see arrows 1, 2 in the photo below).

If you need to copy information from a disk once, then you don’t even have to pin it: turn on the computer and transfer everything you need. Next, disconnect the drive and return it to the laptop.

If you want to work with it constantly, then there are special slides that will help you secure a laptop hard drive (and they are smaller than computer drives: 2.5 inches versus 3.5) in the most common standard system unit (photo of the slide below).

Inserting the disc into the BOX and connecting to the USB port of a PC/other laptop

Another popular way to connect a laptop drive to a PC is to purchase a special container (called a BOX). Moreover, the benefit here is versatility: no matter what kind of drive you have (old IDE, new SATA, 2.5-inch drive from a laptop or 3.5-inch drive from a computer) - such containers are available for a wide variety of drives!

The idea is that you insert your hard drive into this container, assemble it, and then you can connect it to any device that has a USB port! Those. in essence, you get an external hard drive (which have become so popular lately).

Disassembling and assembling such a container takes 2-3 minutes: open the lid, insert a disk into it, and connect it to the USB port.

Advice!

By the way, the assembled BOX is almost indistinguishable from an external HDD (example in the photo below).

The assembled BOX is no different from an external hard drive

PS

By the way, another option for transferring information from a laptop HDD to a computer is to connect them into one local network , then share the files on your laptop and download them to your PC. However, this option has several important disadvantages:

That's all, good luck connecting!