Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop?

Sweetchuck · 06-01-2009, 05:03 AM

I have an old desktop which has been stripped of most of its parts for PCs belonging to friends and family. I'm going to scrap it soon, but want to recover the data on the HDD. It's nothing hugely important, but I want to access it nonetheless.

It's a 3.5" IDE drive. At present, I have no external enclosures or alternative desktops to put it in, and the desktop it's in doesn't boot.

As such, what I want to do is disconnect the data cable linking the HDD and desktop motherboard, and connect the HDD to my laptop using an IDE-to-USB cable. However, the drive requires a power supply (which I don't currently have). My proposed solution to this is to leave it mounted in its desktop caddy and continue drawing power through the desktop (which will be switched on, even though there is no way of booting, due to the HDD's data cable going to the laptop).

As such, my question is this:

Is it possible to access the data in a desktop mounted IDE HDD (as an external drive) if it is taking power thorugh the desktop, whilst having its data cable connected to the laptop?

**raptor_pa** · 06-01-2009, 05:30 AM

Yes it is possible, if the motherboard is in the old PC and connected, it should power up. If there is no mother board, then you would have to jumper the 'power good' wire on the ALX connector of the power supply (what normally connects to the motherboard) You can google ATX power good pin to find out which it is. Some manufacturer's ( Like Dell) use different leads than the ATX standard for this .

Sweetchuck · 06-01-2009, 10:43 AM

Thanks for such a prompt and helpful reply.

The desktop (which the HDD is in) still has mobo, PSU etc, but has been stripped of sound and GFX cards as well as RAM. As far as I can see, it should still be able to power up the drive, even with such a barebones spec.

So the plan is to plug my IDE-to-USB cable into the HDD (and then into the laptop) but leave the power supply cable from the desktop in place to power the HDD. If I do this, my understanding is that the drive will show up as an external HDD under My Computer on my laptop. Is this correct?

Thanks again for the help!

**raptor_pa** · 06-01-2009, 11:43 AM

Yes it will.

Sweetchuck · 06-02-2009, 04:07 AM

Nice one; many thanks once again for the help. Much appreciated!

06-01-2009, 05:03 AM	#1 (permalink)
Sweetchuck Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 4 OS: Vista Home Premium (SP1)	Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop? I have an old desktop which has been stripped of most of its parts for PCs belonging to friends and family. I'm going to scrap it soon, but want to recover the data on the HDD. It's nothing hugely important, but I want to access it nonetheless. It's a 3.5" IDE drive. At present, I have no external enclosures or alternative desktops to put it in, and the desktop it's in doesn't boot. As such, what I want to do is disconnect the data cable linking the HDD and desktop motherboard, and connect the HDD to my laptop using an IDE-to-USB cable. However, the drive requires a power supply (which I don't currently have). My proposed solution to this is to leave it mounted in its desktop caddy and continue drawing power through the desktop (which will be switched on, even though there is no way of booting, due to the HDD's data cable going to the laptop). As such, my question is this: Is it possible to access the data in a desktop mounted IDE HDD (as an external drive) if it is taking power thorugh the desktop, whilst having its data cable connected to the laptop?

06-01-2009, 05:30 AM	#2 (permalink)
raptor_pa Mod Hardware Team Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Central PA Posts: 4,801 OS: XP	Re: Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop? Yes it is possible, if the motherboard is in the old PC and connected, it should power up. If there is no mother board, then you would have to jumper the 'power good' wire on the ALX connector of the power supply (what normally connects to the motherboard) You can google ATX power good pin to find out which it is. Some manufacturer's ( Like Dell) use different leads than the ATX standard for this . __________________

06-01-2009, 10:43 AM	#3 (permalink)
Sweetchuck Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 4 OS: Vista Home Premium (SP1)	Re: Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop? Thanks for such a prompt and helpful reply. The desktop (which the HDD is in) still has mobo, PSU etc, but has been stripped of sound and GFX cards as well as RAM. As far as I can see, it should still be able to power up the drive, even with such a barebones spec. So the plan is to plug my IDE-to-USB cable into the HDD (and then into the laptop) but leave the power supply cable from the desktop in place to power the HDD. If I do this, my understanding is that the drive will show up as an external HDD under My Computer on my laptop. Is this correct? Thanks again for the help!

06-01-2009, 11:43 AM	#4 (permalink)
raptor_pa Mod Hardware Team Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Central PA Posts: 4,801 OS: XP	Re: Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop? Yes it will. __________________

06-02-2009, 04:07 AM	#5 (permalink)
Sweetchuck Registered User Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 4 OS: Vista Home Premium (SP1)	Re: Old IDE as external HDD: possible to power from desktop? Nice one; many thanks once again for the help. Much appreciated!