Dell forum: Add a SATA Hard Drive

Get into BIOS setup and see if it shows there. If the BIOS doesn't see it, Windows won't either. The other thing is I have to ask if you've created a partition and formatted the drive. You have to do that before it will be assigned a drive letter.

Good luck.

The BIOS sees the drive but as you said it dosen't have a number/letter and I don't know how to address lit.
Thanks for your input!!

Thanks for your response. I have an Inspiron with Windows 7. I do not use EIDE,only SATA.
I bought the H.D. for another computer but that computer can only use a SATA 2 drive and this one is a SATA 3. I am just trying to use the drive as a backup drive.
I have checked the BIOS and it sees the new drive but hasen't given it a name or an address. How do I go about formatting the drive since it doesn't have an address

Dick
reclev@sbcglobal.net

I copied your link. I had to go directly from "control panel" to find "disk management" which got me to a place where I saw both drilves listed, but there it ended. I could find no way of finding "Change drive lertters and paths" I did manage to get a "Recovery" section in my "C" drive that I can't erase.
I supposely have Windows 7, but the instructions in the file you addressed don't coorespond with my selections. Are those instructins for Windows 8? I can get so far and then I hit something I can't do.
Thanks for your assestance and keep trying!!!!

Dick Clevenger
reclev@sbcglobal.net

Sorry for the delayed response.
Could you please post a screenshot of Disk Management using snipping tool or paint. You can upload the screenshot on Flickr or Imageshack.

I will help you further.

Thanks and Regards,
Manpreet C

- Click here to visit the Dell forum on CNET
- Click here to visit the Dell forum
- Click here to visit the Dell store on CNET

Will I not need your e-mail address to send a "snip" to you? If so please let me know what I can to to send it to you. I don't think I can put the "snip" in my "reply">

I've got the picture in my "pictures" folder under the name "Capture" Thats the only URL I have for it, is that enough? I will sent that much now and hope you get what you want.


pictures/capture

Hey Manpreet, I now have "J" H.D. that my computer sees. I don't know what I did right, but the computer now sees the H.D. and I am formating it as I write.
You have taught me many things through our discussions and I thank you for that and add that I thank GOD for your "hanging" with me through my trials. Again I thank you and ask GOD to bless you and yours for helping me.

Dick Clevenger
reclev@sbcglobal.net

I feel the problem is "solved", now how I remove if from the last of problems?
Thanks again for your assistance, we got it done....

Dick C.

Msnpreet, I'm not sure the drive finished its format. It went to "format" and in less than a minute said "format finished", I think it should take longer than that to finish a "format" since ii is a 500G drive, am I right? Maybe is should tell the computer how big the drive is.