Installing new dvd drive in dell computer

Master/Slave configuration I am assuming you have IDE hard drive and not SATA. SATA is a small cable IDE is a wide 40 wire flat cable. You must install the jumper on both drives as master and slave. On the old WD HDD master has jumpers between 5 and 6 and slave jumper between 3 and 4. Default is jumper between 1 and 2 which is cable select which you use for a single drive.

It is not difficult to change cd/dvd drive.
Open cpu cabinet.
Then remove icd cable and power cable from cd/dvd drive.
Then remove screws of old cd/dvd drive.
Then you can pull it from cabinet from front side.
Then put your new cd/dvd drive into it's position then lock it with screws.
Then connect ide cable from motherboard and power cable to drive.
Then you can use it.
If you connect to drive with 1 ide cable means if you connect harddrive and cd/dvd drive with 1 cable then set harddrive as master and cd/dvd rom as slave you can set it slave with jumper settings.
It is in back side of cd/dvd drive.
There is instruction how to slave it with jumper.
Let me know if you need further assistance.
Thanks for using FixYa.

Reinstall your old hard drive as master and install the new hard drive as slave.

Here is the link to jumper settings from Westrn Digital;

http://wdc.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wdc.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1540&p_created=#jumper

If you've got your jumper settings wrong and installed your os on the 127 GB section of the 320 GB Hard drive and you change jumper settings and then you have problems you may need to reinstall the old hard drive as master and the new hard drive as slave. Reformat the new hard drive as 320 GB, and as a bootable drive. You can either do a disk copy from old to new or reinstall your os on the 320 GB drive. Please let me know how this goes. You can get to me @ [email protected]

The computer can't see the hard drive. IF the hard drive is on the same IDE ribbon as the DVD then you have a jumper problem. You need to look at the old cdrom if there was one and jumper new one the same as old one. (Master, slave or cable select) Also while you were digging around inside your computer did you pull the IDE ribbon to hard drive loose from the drive or the motherboard? Are the power connectors still hooked up? Every hard drive ribbon can have one slave and one master drive. Your hard drive should be the master and the cdrom the slave. Some systems are now set to "cable select" that means that the hard drive ribbon has a master connector and a slave connector and that the device (hard drive or cdrom) becomes a master if connected to one connector or a slave if hooked to the other one. If you go into your bios setup when you turn on the computer you should be able to look an see which of the drives or cdroms is hooked up as master or slave. Some will display this information during bootup posting.

Use Master/Slave setup. It makes no difference which drive is in which position, you just have to set the jumper on the drive. Cable position makes no difference as long as the jumper is set correctly.

Hello Betty,

The way you do it is mouting your old hard drive as 'slave' on your new computer..(if it's not the same).
do you have any experience on computer hardware?

all u do is make your new hard drive the master by setting the correct jumper for it the manual will tell u more. then make the old drive a slave. install yr opreating system it should be installed in drive c: thats the master when done, u do yr normal copy and paste to transfer your files from old drive to new drive.

xerick

old dvd drive jumper should be in one ''MA'' (master) and new drive jumper should be in ''SL'' (slave). http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/op/jump_IDE.htm

 

Refer to the picture below:

The CD drive should have 3 jumper pins labeled Master (MA), Slave(SL) and Cable Select (CL) at the back near the interface ribbon cable.  In this picture the green jumper is in the Master position.  To make it a Slave drive, you need to remove the jumper and place it in the middle pair called SL.  You may have to remove the CD drive if you can't access it while in the system.  When you put in the new DVD drive ensure that its' jumper is in the Master positon.  The drives will not work if both have jumpers in the same position.

 

Get back to me if you need more help.

 

 

 

 

 

 

there are jumpers on the rear of the unit and changing the position of the jumoer forces the computer to either a master or slave as it boots...on the rear panel it says cbl,sl,ms....ms=master, sl=slave, cbl=cable select...i hope this helps... also after done the jumper thing make sure your ide controller is on for the units on that cable...good luck my email address is troublerst at hotmail if you need further assistance....