Hard Drive Replacement for PC

[dazzlenet]

I have to buy a new hard drive for my desk top. The one that was in it was a Seagate Barracuda 3.5" 7200.12 1TB ST31000524AS. I broke the plastic on it where the power or data cord plugs in, so it won't work now.

I want to replace it with a 2 Seagate Hard drives, a 1TB & a 2TB so I can back up on one. My motherboard is a MSI A75MA-G55 & I know it will accommodate more than one hard drive, possibly more than 2, I'm just not sure how to install them in sequence. Would I be better off to buy a 2TB hard drive & and external drive for backups?

How important is the rest of the info on the hard drive, such as Site Code, Firmware, etc. I want to make sure that I get the right replacements that are compatible.

Also, I hope to be able to install Windows 7 & I have an ISO file that I put on a flash drive. Not sure how to install Win 7 on a new hard drive b/c I have no idea how it will find the other info on my computer.

Older data regarding my PC (current updates not showing, etc.) can be found here: http://speccy.piriform.com/results/QuErH8heS2IIVHBanlZexZN

How important are the #'s on a hard drive when buying 2, possible a 2TB & a 1TB, or maybe 3 to put my operating system on a separate hard drive.

I don't see how a clean installation on Windows 7 will find all the items in my device manager....can't see how this works with a new install. So, after installing new hard drives (1-3) &/or an external drive for backups, I don't know where to go from there.

Just need to get the hard drives ordered - and make sure they are compatible with one another since I am not sure what all the #'s mean, such as firmware. etc. I had a recommendation to purchase a 2.5" SSD, but the price was outrageous. I am trying to get buy spending the least amount I can as I only use my computer for emails, selling online, and storing photos.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

You would be better off getting one HDD to put in your computer and an external one for your backups (actually two external HDDs for backups would be much better since even a backup HDD can fail without warning but only one is better than none). The external HDDs should be connected to your computer only when updating the backups; they should not be permanently connected.

Using an internal HDD for backups is a bad idea because the same thing that can cause data to be lost on the main drive can also take out the data on an internal backup drive.

If you can swing it, I prefer using the Western Digital (WD) Blacks for internal drives. WD has a better reputation than Seagate for drive reliability and customer service. I've had only six Seagates; two died within a year and a third, a SSHD, was a disappointment performancewise. Of the 23 WD drives I've had, only two have failed; one other one arrived DOA (which could have been caused by rough handling in shipment), which the vendor promptly replaced and now is humming away in my machine happy as a kitten under a leaky cow.

If you are going to run your OS and programs on a HDD, I wouldn't get a third one; you can just put them on a partition on your one internal HDD separate from a data partition. The only way I would recommend a separate drive for the OS and programs is if you were going to upgrade to an SSD. An SSD will give you lightning fast boot times and program access and is an upgrade that will give you more bang for your buck than any other upgrade you can do.

If you decide to go with a WD Black for the internal drive, a good 1TB would be the WD1003FZEX. For 2TB, the WD2003FZEX.

If the price of a WD Black is a bit too steep for you, the 1TB Blue—WD10EZEX—is a good substitute. Unfortunately, WD doesn't make a 2TB Blue.

There are a variety of external drives available but they tend to be lower quality than internal drives. I like to use the WD Greens for my backup drives, plugging them into a dock built into the front of my computer. You can either use an external dock to plug them into or put each one into its own enclosure. I personally would prefer the dock, especially because of the large number of backup drives I have (12) but enclosures would make handling the drives easier.

Good numbers for 1TB Greens would be WD10EZRX and for 2TB, WD20EZRX.

If you would prefer to get one or two external drives, the 1TB WDBZFP0010BBK-NESN and the 2 TB WDBMWV0020BBK-NESN are fairly good ones. If you go with one of these, I especially recommend getting two since they are not as good quality.

 

[dazzlenet]

Thank you so much for all the info. My question about SSD's are the cost. Aren't they very expensive, & if so, are they worth the purchase? If I did decide on a SSD, please recommend what I would need, such as another internal HDD along with an external hard drive for backups that you recommended? Also, if you viewed the specs on my computer, do you think it is worth adding more ram? The computer was custom built for a guy & he had it a year before I got it for $300 b/c he needed the $ desperately. I know it was a steal, which is why I don't mind spending more on it. It did come with a 24" screen that lasted a couple of years, & I replaced it with a 27" screen. I am happy with it, but I somehow deleted my partitions & took the hard drive out at the suggestion of someone else, which is when I broke where it connects to a cable. THANKS!!

 

[dazzlenet]

Oh, one more thing. I used WD's in a sawmill office (LOTS of DUST, etc.) & only had one fail in 6 years, & it was on a computer that I took home. We had surge protectors & voltage regulators, etc. for the ones in the office, & the one at home didn't, so I think that is what happened to it. I have had a couple of Seagates a long time ago & updated computers before any of them went out. I am fine with the WD's.

At this point I only use my computer for selling online, saving photos, & some documents. No bookkeeping that I HAVE to backup as I once did on the old tape backups. I just don't want to lose any more photos. I did manage to save them this time, but last time the same computer crashed, I lost all my photos & documents.

Do you think these are good deals?

Western Digital Black WD2003FZEX Hard Drive 2 TB SATA 6GB S | eBay

WD Internal Hard Drive WD1003FZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache | eBay

I am assuming this one is cheap b/c it won't hold up??

WD Blue WD10EZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6 0Gb s 3 5" Internal Brand New 718037779911 | eBay

Thanks for all your help. I borrowed 2 laptops I am using now & need to get my PC fixed so I can return these. One has WIN 7 which I love. The other is WIN 8 & I have spent more time learning to use it & navigate around that I loathe it! Hope WIN 10 is more like WIN 7!!!

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

You should have plenty of RAM unless you do a lot of photo and video editing (and I mean on a large scale professional level).

SSDs used to be outrageously expensive but they have come down quite a bit in price. I used to recommend the Samsungs but they have been having some problems lately. Even though, if I were in the market for another one right now, I would still buy one, I don't recommend them right now for people who are new to them. The Crucial MX100 series have an excellent reputation so those would probably be a good choice for you. For your use, the 128GB version would be large enough for your needs. NewEgg lists one here for $70.

Since you broke your HDD, you will need to do a clean install of your OS and programs. If you are not familiar with how to do that, I suggest that you start a new thread asking for help with that. We have plenty of people here who will be better able to help you with that than I am.

The WD Blues are good drives. The big difference between them and the Blacks are they have only a two year warranty. The reason the one in the fleabay listing is so low is to attract more opening bidders, then hope they get "auction fever" just before the bid closes. I've seen drives listed as dead, being sold for parts only, go for nearly new prices by the time the bidding dust settles.

I do not recommend buying drives from eBay (or, as it is also known, evil bay or, my favorite, flea bay). While the drives you linked seem like good prices, just before the bids close, a bidding war will ensue and the prices will skyrocket. Also, some eBay vendors have been known to pretty dodgy. and can create a mess you do not want to deal with. I suggest getting your drives from NewEgg or Amazon. NewEgg has better extended warranties (if you want to shell out for one) for drives with less than a five year warranty (such as the Greens or the Blues) and now does a better job of packaging drives for shipping but you have to pay for return shipping if one arrives DOA (dead on arrival). Amazon will pay for return shipping but has a nasty habit of getting stock from one of its Marketplace vendors if their own stocks run out and some of those vendors are dodgy. Whoever you order from, be sure the drive you order is filled and shipped directly from Amazon or NewEgg, not a Marketplace vendor.

 

[dazzlenet]

You should have plenty of RAM unless you do a lot of photo and video editing (and I mean on a large scale professional level).

The Crucial MX100 series have an excellent reputation so those would probably be a good choice for you. For your use, the 128GB version would be large enough for your needs.

I am a bit confused. Are you saying that I should purchase either the WD BLACK SERIES WD2003FZEX 2TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive or the WD BLACK SERIES WD1003FZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive and the Crucial MX100 CT128MX100SSD1 2.5" 128GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) in order to run Windows 7 and edit photos?

DOES THIS REQUIRE A BRACKET IN ORDER TO INSTALL?
Crucial MX100 CT128MX100SSD1 2.5" 128GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

 

[dazzlenet]

Backup To External Hard Drive?

Someone on another forum suggested that I purchase these:

Crucial M550 128GB SATA 2.5" 7mm (with 9.5mm adapter) Internal Solid State Drive CT128M550SSD1 & use it only for Windows so that not only does my computer boot up faster but also so that Windows is protected from data corruption.

WD - Blue 1TB Internal SATA Hard Drive for Desktops (OEM/Bare Drive) - Blue to back up important data to.

1TB SATA HARD DRIVE (Any brand) to save data to.

I think the person misunderstood my post and thought I could still use the Seagate Hard Drive that I broke.

Do you suggest I purchase the following:

Crucial MX100 128GB for Windows

&

Two (2) of the WD BLACK SERIES WD1003FZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives for data?

I had no idea that Windows 7 will install on a 128GB drive, but maybe I will have to install it differently than I ever have previously (?). Also, when purchasing the SSD, I will need to purchase a bracket for it to fit into my desktop, correct?

 

[AddRAM]

I recommend getting a Samsung SSD.

SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 120GB | Samsung Solid State Drives

SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 250GB | Samsung Solid State Drives

samsung 850 EVO 120 GB - Best Buy

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB Internal Serial ATA Solid State Drive for Laptops Black MZ-75E250B - Best Buy

You don`t necessarily need a Black series Western Digital, blues are fine. Get the largest you can afford. Just make sure it`s 6 Gbps.

Just to clarify: You install windows and your programs on the ssd and you use the WD for storage.


"I don't see how a clean installation on Windows 7 will find all the items in my device manager....can't see how this works with a new install."

Don`t get too hung up on this, windows has 99% if not 100% of the drivers you need 99% of the time, worry about other drivers after you install windows.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1649-clean-install-windows-7-a.html

 

[dazzlenet]

Thank you very much for helping me. I just want to get the correct drives ordered today & get my desk top running again! And, I want my backups on a separate drive this time.

 

[AddRAM]

WD Mainstream 2TB Internal Serial ATA Hard Drive for Desktops Multi WDBH2D0020HNC-NRSN - Best Buy

WD Blue 1TB Internal SATA Hard Drive for Desktops OEMBare Drive Blue WD10EZEX - Best Buy

 

[dazzlenet]

I recommend getting a Samsung SSD.

SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 120GB | Samsung Solid State Drives

SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 250GB | Samsung Solid State Drives

samsung 850 EVO 120 GB - Best Buy

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB Internal Serial ATA Solid State Drive for Laptops Black MZ-75E250B - Best Buy

You don`t necessarily need a Black series Western Digital, blues are fine. Get the largest you can afford. Just make sure it`s 6 Gbps.

Just to clarify: You install windows and your programs on the ssd and you use the WD for storage.


"I don't see how a clean installation on Windows 7 will find all the items in my device manager....can't see how this works with a new install."

Don`t get too hung up on this, windows has 99% if not 100% of the drivers you need 99% of the time, worry about other drivers after you install windows.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1649-clean-install-windows-7-a.html

So, if I consider purchasing the following, I will have less storage space for my photos, documents & files? What size backup is Windows 7?

NEWEGG: Western Digital Blue WD10EZEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive $54.99

SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 120GB $79.99


SSD 850 EVO 2.5" SATA III 250GB $129.99

 

[AddRAM]

After you install all your programs and install all the updates, the backup could be anywhere from 25 to 40 GB

Why do you still have 2 Samsung`s listed, you only need 1.

I`d get 120 GB Samsung and a 2 TB WD

That`s $170 and tax, gas, tolls etc

 

[dazzlenet]

After you install all your programs and install all the updates, the backup could be anywhere from 25 to 40 GB

Why do you still have 2 Samsung`s listed, you only need 1.

I`d get 120 GB Samsung and a 2 TB WD

That`s $170 and tax, gas, tolls etc

You had two listed in your post, so I assumed it meant I needed two. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

Can you tell me what the below is used for, please?

WD - RE4 Enterprise 2TB Internal Serial ATA Hard Drive for Desktops

 

[AddRAM]

All those links are just for you to look at.

Just google it, it should bring up all it`s information, or check it out at

Western Digital US Online Store - Special Offers

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Again, I do not recommend the Samsung SSDs right now because of some issues they have been having lately. There have been issues with the latest firmware bricking some of the latest 850 Pros. The EVOs have been having problems with slowdowns over time that Samsung has been having a problem getting a handle on. There are ways to deal with both of those problems but it's something a person new to SSDs should not have to deal with.

The Crucial MX100 is a solid drive that has been getting excellent user reviews and costs a bit less than the Sammys. The user reviews for the Sammys have been dropping a bit lately. The Sammy's are a bit faster then the Crucials but, in really life usage, you will not notice the difference between them and you will still be blown away with how much faster a SSD is over a HDD when booting up the computer and opening up many programs.

128GB is plenty of room to install Win 7 and programs on unless you are a gamer. Serious games are basically humongous programs that require more room than most other programs. I'm not a gamer so I don't have that issue. My SSD boot drive on my desktop machine has Win 7 and over 100 programs, some of them quite large, and takes up only 65GB. Most people won't need nearly as much room for their installations. The trick is to keep all your data on the HDD and off the SSD.

Best Buy is usually more expensive than NewEgg and their online selection, as often as not, includes Marketplace vendor offerings that may or may not be reliable. I do not recommend using Best Buy if ordering online. I've found just using their website is a bit frustrating.

What size HDD you get for inside your computer depends on how much room for data you will need, both now and for the next three or four years. If there is no way you will ever need any more than 1TB of storage space, there is no real need to get anything bigger. With one TB, you have a choice of getting a 1 TB Blue or a 1TB Black (keep in mind the Blues have only a two year warranty while the Blacks have a five year warranty). If you need or want 2TB, then you will need to get a Black since the Blues don't come any bigger than 1TB.

For backups, two external drives, like the ones I listed, will probably be more convenient for you. If you can afford better quality, using two Greens in an external enclosure will be adequate. You can use the better Blues or Blacks but, for backup drives that will run only a few minutes each day, that is really overkill. I use Greens for my backups and haven't regretted it. Of the 13 I have had (I still have 12 in use), only one has failed (one of the early Greens that had an excessive head parking issue; the ones made since then have had that problem fixed) and one started showing signs of impending failure, even though it still seemed to be running fine (WD replaced it under warranty anyway).

The WD RE drives are enterprise drives that are designed for use in big, commercial servers. They don't get any better reviews than the Blacks when used for non-commercial use and are really overkill for your use. Even though my machines run 24/7, I still don't use them.

 

[AddRAM]

I`m recommending 850 EVO, I have one and it`s rockin good.

I have a Crucial M550 256 GB, only 90% Health straight out of the box.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

The Crucial BX 100 is getting good reviews in spite of it being Crucial's budget line.

Crucial MX100 vs BX100


I guess the new MX 200 is intended as a replacement for the M550 in the premium line, and the BX 100 is intended to compete with the MX 100?

Seems like the biggest problem with SSDs comes after the purchase when previously unknown issues may arise. That gives me a little pause about how thoroughly the manufacturer's test the design before release. Not to mention RMA difficulties with some brands if you ever have to go through it.

According to ssdreview.com, BX100 does very well in performance vs. MX100.

BX100: SSD Reviews, Data Sheets and Comparison - ssdreview.com

MX100: SSD Reviews, Data Sheets and Comparison - ssdreview.com


4K Random Read

MX100: 175.64 MB/s
BX100: 246.01 MB/s

4K Random Write

MX100: 72.86 MB/s
BX100: 73 MB/s

Windows 7 Boot-up Time

MX100: 14 s
BX100: 6.1 s

Avg. Power Consumption

MX100: 2.31 Watts
BX100: 1.77 Watts

4K Random Read Access Time

MX100: 3.43 ms
BX100: 3.42 ms

4K Random Write Access Time

MX100: 1.42 ms
BX100: 1.02 ms

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

The BX100 and M550 are so new, they have received only a handful of reviews which, so far, have been good. However, I prefer to buy and recommend products with an established track record, hence my recommendation for the MX100. If buying a MX100 from NewEgg, one can buy an additional two years of warranty for something like $12 to get a total of five years of warranty.

The problems that are still plaguing the 840 EVOs, despite a fix recently issued by Samsung, took quite a while before they started turning up. It's simply too soon to know if the 850 EVOs will have the same problems or not. Many of the 850Pros have been getting bricked lately. Frankly, the rash of Samsung problems, from SSDs to smart TVs, that have been rearing their ugly heads recently has damaged my confidence in their products (my opinion of their tech help has been in the toilet for quite some time after the experiences I had with them concerning my printer).

 

[mjf]

When using WD ext HDDs like the My Book Essentials they use (or used to use) built in hardware encryption. A really dumb idea so if the flimsy connector or interface electronics fails you cannot simple remove the sata HDD and recover your data. I'd go for a Docking station and a plain sata drive. I'm using a USB 3 Docking station(s) and WD Green 2TB WD20EZRX for backups - good bang for the $.

In very dirty environments you need to think of a way to keep all your PC gear away from dust etc.

I find the Samsung SSDs have flimsy data/power connectors that can easily snap with a docking station eject mechanism and Samsung will not RMA it. At least make it clear in your warranty conditions Samsung that you don't cover docking station use. You should be fine using them with a normal internal sata connection. I have 1 Crucial and 3 (& no more!) Samsung SSDs.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

I'd go for a Docking station and a plain sata drive. I'm using a USB 3 Docking station(s)

I'd agree. I never got comfortable with the whole "enclosure" thing.

MJF: What docking stations do you use and recommend? Got a make and model number?

I've only got 1--a cheapish Rosewill with a single slot. It works, but I only use it 4 or 5 times a year. It looks flimsy, so I expect it to fail sooner or later and am wondering about a replacement.

Single slot is OK.

I had a scare last week--my 1.5 TB Green would not work in the dock. I thought the dock had died, but I put in another drive and it worked fine. So I guess I've got a dead Green---with absolutely no warning at all. It had worked fine in December and has been sitting in a closet since. When the dock is turned on, I hear 2 very faint beeps like the drive is trying to spin, but nothing happens.