There is a blue wire going to the 1st SATA HD which I assume is the power supply. The other end is connected to the MB. There are 5 wires going to the 1st hd (white, black, red, black and orange) labeled P3 with is extended to the 2nd slot for a 2nd HD labeled P5. On the MB beside the blue wire is a vacant slot which I assume is a connection for the 2nd HD power supply. So if I got a WD SATA would it come with a power supply cable?? If not, where could I get the proper cable?? Also I have an old EiDA drive. I guess mixing an EIDA and SATA on the same Puter is not possible. Also there are connection problems. Thanks for any suggestions
Owning, and having owned, several Dell machines, you'll probably find that the blue cable is actually the data (signal) cable while that other cable can be traced directly back to the power supply (i.e. P3 & P5 = power). Thus, you'll only need a data cable (from that vacant slot on the MB to your new drive). I have bought several SATA drives; not one has had any cables included (but then I typically buy OEMs). Regardless, the cables are pretty cheap online.....just make sure to order one when you order the drive. Again, great source would be Newegg, for both the drive and the cable.
The blue wire is actually the data cable and the 5-wire harness is the power. Some power supplies (PSU) have both ATA and SATA power connections but if yours don't you can purchase an adapter cable (like these on NewEgg). When I converted my old Dimension 8300 into a server I replaced the old EIDE drive with a SATA drive. The 8300's PSU already had SATA power connectors so all I had to buy extra was a SATA data cable. I have read you can mix EIDE and SATA drives but I haven't personally tried it yet.
Thank you guys for replying, This is the blue sata cable in the gx280 now: m8865 0k g3 fp07k98-11 cn-0m8865-42940-4bm-04r8 The terminal on this cable is bent at a 90 degree angle going into the HD and about 22" long. Went on NewEgg and found what I think is a similar cable but looking at the pictures it is difficult to be sure. One of the cables that seemed to be close was okgear 24" satII cable model gc24augm12.
Can't imagine why that cable wouldn't work perfectly well. I think you just need to make sure that the end of the cable going into the drive has a right angle connector; if it's straight, you could have an issue with closing the case/cover.
I've got 2 SATAs in My Dell GX260 and what posters above said all sounds right. The only thing I'll add is that Cables To Go is another place to try for cables, particularly if you have trouble finding the right angle connector at Newegg. In any event, yes, just make sure you can picture how it all fits together, whether a right angle connector or not, without any interference, especially if your box hinges open and shut like mine does. I always double check that my SATA cables are folding up correctly rather than getting pinched as I hinge the case shut.
Is your HDD SATA II? Unless the cable is backwards compatible, I would get a regular SATA cable. I got one of the red 19" Tripp Lites with the right angle connector for my server. One of the women at work bought me her daughter's mini-tower computer complaining that the computer would freeze up at times. I played and played with it but couldn't get it to do it. Finally I thought to look at the system's event viewer and noticed at times there was a disk I/O error logged. In checking the SATA drive I noticed it had a straight data connector that was very loose. I replaced it with a right angle data cable which seemed to "lock" better. She hasn't had a problem with it since. [BTW, my company uses mostly GX270 mini-towers, desktops, and SFF (Small Form Factor--not much above a laptop, lol). I can't even tell you the number of motherboards I have replaced because of busted caps (leaking capacitors)]
Thanks guys for all the valuable info. One more thing. Is there a maximum size of Hard Drive that the GX280 will handle? For EX: 320G, 500G. I checked around and could not find an answer.
No, in terms of capacity, there should not be any such limitation. Just ensure that you're getting the right interface (SATA) and the right form factor (3.5"). One popular drive on the board here, since you mentioned WD in your OP, is the WD6400AAKS.
I'm with prius, I don't think there is any limitation. My old 8300 originally came with a 40GB EIDE. Now it sports a 750GB SATA.
Thanks guys, Wonderful responses. I actually feel that I can now make an intelligent purchase and installation.
