Question Using Large Capacity HDDs (8TB+) on older PCs via USB dock/enclosure

[sirhawkeye]

So I haven't kept up with hardware probably for the past 5+ years so I don't remember what does and doesn't work in terms of older computers and storage... I have an older Core i5 computer (I think it's an H61 chipset) and believe it MAY have a 4TB HDD limit (only used 2-3TB drives with the computer previously so I don't know for sure on the HDD limit). When using larger hard drives, like 8TB, in a USB dock, does this become an issue at al for "older" computer chipsetsl? I want to say that this board may be about 5-6 years old. Part of me thinks that the USB dock/enclosure will allow the computer to read/write to an 8TB drive as the limitation I mentioned may only be for internal drives connected directly to the board and may not be detected by the BIOS (or may be incorrectly detected). If need be, I don't mind creating smaller partitions, although I don't know if that matters ... it may be more of a concern of overall drive capacity versus the limits of the chipset.

The dock I'm using is one from Vantec (the dual-bay USB 3.0 dock):
https://vantecusa.com/products_detail.php?p_id=86&p_name=NexStar+TX+Dual+Bay+USB+3.0+Hard+Drive+Dock

Says it supports HDDs up to 10TB (per bay).

 

[lvt]

When you use an external dock like this the limit of your system doesn't apply.

Just make sure that the product supports your HDD capacity and is compatible with your current OS.

 

[sirhawkeye]

OK thanks. Yes the computer in question is running Windows 10 so I don't think it should have a problem.