Solved
Buy SATA dvd/rw to replace IDE? Good idea?
Posted on 2011-02-11
One of my computers is a Dell 690 workstation. It has the maximum of 4 hard disk drives, all SATA. It has 2 dvd rw drives that are IDE. I am replacing a defective IDE drive with a new one. There are better choices in drives that are SATA than IDE. Is it OK to leave one of the IDE connectors open and install a SATA replacement? There ARE 2 or 3 open SATA sockets on the motherboard. I am not clear on if they can be used if I am already using 4 for the hard drives. If your answer is YES then can I assume there are adaptor cables that convert from the "normal" 4 pin hard drive plug to the long power plug for a sata drive? I already have spare sata data cables, just not any power cables.