Determine Your Existing Ide Configuration - Plextor PX-504A Installation And User Manual

Section 2. Installing Your PX-504A
Figure 3: Removing a Typical Computer's Cover

Determine Your Existing IDE Configuration

With your computer open, determine the existing IDE configuration. You can do this
by looking at the 40-pin IDE ribbon cable (or cables—there may be two) and seeing
what is connected to them.
One end of the IDE cable is connected to a port on the computer's motherboard; and
the other end is connected to one or two peripheral devices (such as a hard disk or
CD-ROM drive). If there are two devices, one is configured as Master and the other
the Slave, as indicated by the position of jumpers on the back of the drive.
In the case of the Cable Select bus, both devices must be jumpered as Cable Select.
This configuration requires a special Cable Select cable.
If there are two IDE ports, one is for the primary IDE bus and the other is for the
secondary bus.
Before you install your PX-504A, your computer's IDE configuration is usually one
of the following:
• Configuration A: Hard disks connected as Master and Slave devices on primary
IDE port; CD-ROM drive connected as the Master device on secondary IDE port.
• Configuration B: Hard disk connected as Master device and DVD or CD-ROM
drive connected as Slave on the primary IDE port; nothing connected to
secondary IDE port.
• Configuration C: Hard disk connected as Master device on primary IDE port;
nothing connected to secondary IDE port.
• Configuration D: System uses special "Cable Select" cables; all devices are
jumpered for Cable Select.
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PX-504A Installation and Users Manual