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32375
December 18th, 2015 16:00
Recovering Inspiron 5150 hard drive
I have an inspiron 5150 from years ago that was damaged (spilled liquid on the keyboard and the monitor won't come on), so I put it away to gather dust. However, recently I discovered that there is a very important file or files on the hard drive and I'm wondering can I remove the hard drive from the Inspiron and install it another, equally antiquated machine (Vostro 200) =to access its contents? I have a new laptop but don't want to "tinker" with it because I use it for work so the old box is all I have available.
So can I remove and install or what's the easiest way to do this for a lay person other than having somebody who knows what they're doing do it for me?
Thanks.
ejn63
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December 19th, 2015 13:00
The drive is the older parallel ATA type - you will need an external case to use for attaching it to the desktop:
< >
(be sure the case takes a parallel ATA drive -- NOT a SATA drive).
shesagordie
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December 19th, 2015 13:00
ddell15
Yes, you can remove the SATA hard drive from the 5150 and install it in the Vostro 200 as the secondary hard drive, to see if the files you need can be recovered.
See page 132 Here:
http://ftp.dell.com/Manuals/all-products/esuprt_desktop/esuprt_vostro_desktop/vostro-200_Owner%27s%20Manual_en-us.pdf
Or, you could use an 3.5" SATA external enclosure and attach to Vostro 200 USB connector, similar to this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182347
Bev.
shesagordie
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December 19th, 2015 13:00
The hard drives are SATA, the optical drives are ATA/IDE, see pages 9 & 14 here:
ftp.dell.com/.../dimension-5150x_Service%20Manual_en-us.pdf
Bev.
ejn63
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December 19th, 2015 13:00
That's a Dimension 5150 -- the original post asked about an Inspiron 5150, which is a notebook -- the Inspiron 5150 used EIDE/PATA drives.
shesagordie
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December 19th, 2015 14:00
Oops, you are right.
ddell15
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December 20th, 2015 07:00
One other point of clarification: the device you recommended is suitable for my purposes? I ask because you said to make sure the external drive I purchase supports the old parallel ATA connection and it appears that this one does, but I wanted to make sure before ordering.
Thanks.
ejn63
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87.5K Posts
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December 20th, 2015 07:00
The one I linked will work with your EIDE drive -- you will need to pull the blade connector from the back of the drive (be gentle as there are 40 flimsy pins underneath) in order to seat the drive in the USB case.
ddell15
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December 20th, 2015 07:00
Yes, I had a friend loan me a sata external case and it didn't align, and neither did the Vostro when I attempted to put it into the second hard drive slot. Anyway, I really appreciate the info.
So just to clarify, once I buy this external device I can pull the data (if the drive is still accessible) directly onto any computer using a USB?
Thanks!!!