2.10.2 Hard disk

The hard disk is a rigid disc, which is coated with a magnetic substance and protected by a metal housing (hard disk drive). A hard disk drive essentially consists of several discs, a spindle motor, read/write heads and a device for positioning the head. The hard disk is located inside your computer, but it can be exchanged.

Hard disks work in accordance with ATA (Advanced Technology Attachment). This describes the protocol in accordance with which the data is transported via the cables. ATA is a drive specification for hard disk connections defined by ANSI (American National Standard Institute).

There are two types in our PCs:

•For hard disks, the widely used IDE (Integrated Drive

Electronics) connection standard (40-pin) is used on the motherboard. The IDE connection is also called PATA (Parallel ATA). This standard PC interface is primarily used for optical drives and hard disks.

•Another connection option for hard disks is the use of the SATA (Serial ATA) interface (4-ping), if this is available on the motherboard.

The hard disk is your computer’s main storage medium and you can make your work easier and more productive by copying your applications and files onto your hard disk. You can copy files to the hard disk or delete them from it as often as you want.

The hard disk drive should be handled with great care, as it is very sensitive.

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