dell dimension c521 second hdd

weeder

I plan on building or buying a server soon and this machine is in a possible new server for the size and there supposed to be silent and theres very good rates on dell outlet
now the problem is theres only one hard disk bay and i was planning on adding a 320Gb as the IDE slave (most new dells only have one ide controller) so i was wondering if it was possible to remove the built in card reader and use its 3.5 inch bay for the hdd or is it non removable like the floppy drive on my 4600?
and finally do i lose my warranty by opening it?

thanks in advance
sean

mike65

I don't have an answer but last night I nearly bought one, then I thought to check the inside by googling the model and "drive bays" at which point I discovered its uselessness for expansion so bought a inspiron 530 instead.

Mike.

kaizersoze

No IDE connections in a C521 (SATA only) or most current Dell models, except maybe the 9200. If you still want one go to bargain alerts and check out the offers on a new one. Cheaper than the outlet in most cases.

weeder

if i could remove the card reader id be grand , the prce attracts me here at 310 brand new from dell and do any dells at all void the warranty for opening?

kaizersoze

weeder wrote:

if i could remove the card reader id be grand , the prce attracts me here at 310 brand new from dell and do any dells at all void the warranty for opening?

No.

weeder

thanks kaizer and mike

but im nearly sure the cdrom drive is on the only ide bus in it which i had planned to put a 320GB i had onto it in slave mode

kaizersoze

weeder wrote:

thanks kaizer and mike

but im nearly sure the cdrom drive is on the only ide bus in it which i had planned to put a 320GB i had onto it in slave mode

Nearly sure isn't sure enough.:D
The dvd drives are SATA aswell. There are no IDE connections on the motherboard.

mike65

No IDE? Have to get a SATA/IDE converter

Mike.

weeder

kaizer was right!
http://i.dell.com/images/global/products/dimen/c521_cabinet_245x250.jpg
new plan so my current machine (dell 9150) is a good bit weaker to pre 300 euro models on the outlet (core2duo 2GB ram 320GB drive x1200 for €300)

so the plan is buymyself a new(refurb) system for around 300 and swap the drives, ill then put my IDE drive(s) into the 9150 also meaning my current pc becomes the server and i get a newer pc

weeder

only minor problem now is finding a place for it lol