Tom's Hardware > Forum > Storage > Hard Disks > 2 HD controllers...
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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 01:41:52 AM

Hi,

I've got an external 5.25" enclosure that had an IDE to USB thingie in it. What I'm wondering is if there's any problem with the following: Can I have a hard drive connected to both the IDE-to-USB thing AND the motehrboard of another computer, as long the IDE-to-USB thing isn't powered?

-Kallenin

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Codesmith   06-03-2006 at 11:13:32 AM
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What you are saying makes no sense.

How are you planning on plugging two sets of data and power cables into one drive?

Yes you could carefully canablize a couple IDE cable and create an custom IDE cable with two motherboard connections, but what would that accomplish?

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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 01:40:53 PM
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Okay so let me put it in less confusing terms. Hard drive is connected to 2 things: A and B. A is an external enclosure and B is the motherboard. What I'm asking is if its okay to leave A connected while I transfer between the hard drive and B, as long as A isn't powered.

-Kallenin

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Pain   06-03-2006 at 03:09:52 PM
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While I have never tried it myself, I actually wouldn't try it. I doubt anyone can answer it because no one has tried it either. I think you'd be better off creating a network.

Why do you even want to do that?

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g-paw   06-03-2006 at 03:35:18 PM
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The purpose of an external hdd is to give you a Second hdd meaning the first is in your computer. If you have a second computer without a hdd and want to boot it off the external hdd, that is a different question. If you only have one computer, either take the hhd out of the enclosure and install it in the computer or get a second hdd and install it in the computer.

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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 04:29:13 PM
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So I wanted to spare you guys the details, but since you're so insistent, it's all really rather simple:

I want an external hard drive with an internal cable dangling from it so i can plug it in internally if I should ever want to.

-Kallenin

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g-paw   06-03-2006 at 04:46:57 PM
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First, to have the power and data cables dangling from the enclosur, you have to either cut up the enclosure so you could have the cables dangle or take the hdd out. If you take the hdd out of the enclosure, just unplug the hdd from the enclosure and use the cables in the computer. Of course I may be missing something.

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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 05:06:37 PM
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Well basically that's what i'm doing. I just don't want to have to keep unscrewing the hard drive from the enclosure, so I would have the power and ide cable dangling out - i would only need to cut a teeny hole for the power, since the ide cable is flat nuff.

Looking at the pinout of the hard drive cable, I don't see any power, so my guess is it would work, but maybe take a performance hit from the capacitance of the dead stuff hanging on the line.

-Kallenin

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Pain   06-03-2006 at 05:32:45 PM
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How is the external box connected now, internally? Take a regular IDE cable and just hang the MB connector out the back of the enclosure and use the 2 device connectors to connect everything internally.

Still not sure why you care to do that, but whatever. :roll: Seems easier to me to just create a network, or to just plug the external HD into the other machines USB.

And, how can we help if you try to spare the details? :wink:

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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 05:42:47 PM
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I think it should work fine...(we'll find out later). What I'm not so sure about is how safe it would be to have the hard drive plugged into the motherboard while using the power from the enclosure.

-Kallenin

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Pain   06-03-2006 at 05:54:25 PM
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In theory it shouldn't matter, but I thought you were going to switch power as well as data?

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kallenin   06-03-2006 at 06:04:27 PM
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I was going to switch the power, but I was more of just wondering if I could power off of the enclosure - i probably wouldn't anyway, but there is one particular case in which it could be useful to power off of the enclosure - if I'm trying to use it in an airplane. :)

-Kallenin

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