Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (
More info?)
It looks like with the small chasis you can't simply install a standard
5.25" drive. This is not the tower system with the standard bays. Rather
it is the small form factor chasis. In the pictures I have seen, it always
looked like these machines with the small form factor chasis used a drive
more like a latptop drive rather than a standard 5.25" drive. I will look
at it more closely in case I am mistaken, but I think that is the case.
I agree with your points. It would be easier and I have several spare
CD/DVD burners I could use - if they will fit.
Thanks, Keith
"Christopher Muto" <muto@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:0GBIe.20866$QX2.2308@trndny01...
> there is nothing proprietary about the cd rom drive. why not just pick up
> a cheap drive to put in there. and forgo the external one and related
> issues (external power supply, cables, desk space). a combo dvd (player)
> / cdrw (recorder) can be had for $30 at newegg.com (toshiba combo dvd/cdrw
> inbeige to match the optiples for $25 + $4 shipping part number
> N82E16827130028). and this week circuit city has a lite on dvd-r on sale
> for $40 after rebate (over kill, but a good value). this way the kids can
> play their movies on it too...
>
> "news.columbus.rr.com" <mail@mail.com> wrote in message
> news:kLzIe.62074$yC5.56643@tornado.ohiordc.rr.com...
>>I got it to work. I tried putting the CD on the end of the ribbon on the
>>secondary IDE with both set to CS and that did the trick.
>>
>> I forgot about that part about using the end of the ribbon cable. I had
>> it on the middle connector.
>>
>> This system never had the CD drive in it. (Faceplate in in place.) I am
>> setting this up for my young kids to play with, so I will probably just
>> use an external USB CD drive once I load XP.
>>
>> Question: Is this a proprietary CD ROM drive? Naturally a 5.25" drive
>> won't work, but what kind will? I have a spare laptop drive from one of
>> my ThinkPads, but I don't have the correct IDE cable to fit on drive end.
>> Is that the kind of drive these machines use?
>>
>> Thanks a lot for your help!
>> Keith
>>
>> "Christopher Muto" <muto@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
>> news:8MyIe.6129$%a2.1335@trndny03...
>>> what stew said plus these thoughts...
>>> i am suspicious as to why the cd drive was missing in the first place.
>>> i mean if it did not have a blank panel in the slot perhaps it was
>>> removed for testing and the problem lies in the secondary ide controller
>>> on the motherboard that the cd was once connect to. i suggest replacing
>>> the primary ide cable with one that supports two devices and connecting
>>> both the hard disk and the cd drive to that cables (use cs, and make the
>>> hard dish the primary device by connecting it to the connector at the
>>> end of the cable). this is not an ideal set up from both a performance
>>> perspective and because of the case you have (you will not be able to
>>> reassemble the case with this cabling configuration). but this will
>>> allow you to load the os and help isolate the problem as being related
>>> to the secondary controller or not.
>>>
>>> "S.Lewis" <stew1960@mail.com> wrote in message
>>> news:VnyIe.5145$%X1.550@bignews1.bellsouth.net...
>>>>
>>>> "news.columbus.rr.com" <mail@mail.com> wrote in message
>>>> news:jayIe.62068$yC5.59369@tornado.ohiordc.rr.com...
>>>>>I bought a used GX110 in the small desktop chasis. It didn't come with
>>>>>a CD drive so I am trying to cable in a 5.25" drive temporarily just to
>>>>>get XP loaded. The problem I am having is that I can't get the BIOS to
>>>>>recognize this drive.
>>>>>
>>>>> I remember from working on a couple of other GX machines last year
>>>>> that you had to jumper the drives a certain way to get the BIOS to
>>>>> recognize the drives. I can't find that info now and I could not find
>>>>> it on dell.com. I remember something about keeping the main drive
>>>>> jumpered as Cable Select/CS. That is the way it came to me.
>>>>>
>>>>> I tried every combo I can think of on the jumpers for the CD drive but
>>>>> I can't get the BIOS to recognize it. It keeps coming back with
>>>>> "Unknown Device" in the BIOS.
>>>>>
>>>>> Can someone help me? Thanks in advance!
>>>>> Keith
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/Systems/opgx110/ens/ug/setupopt.htm#primary_secondary_drive_n
>>>>
>>>> Hmm. Provided there are no bent pins in the drive itself, provided the
>>>> data/IDE ribbon cable isn't damaged or bad, and provided the power
>>>> connect from the power supply is good, that leaves only the jumpering
>>>> (which you've done /CS ) and setting the BIOS to "auto" for the
>>>> secondary IDE....
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Stew
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>
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