When to add another hard drive to Powemac G5 and which one?

[notheremuch]

My internal 160GB is filling up quickly, I'm at c70% capacity. Is there a "rule of thumb" for when you need another drive?

2nd - What internal drive (not size) is the general recommendation? I'm on a dual G5. Also 8GB or 16GB? Does that make a difference in practical use?

Last question - Is installing it DIY? I despise paying for installations, but I despise even more having to do anything more than "slide it in"....

 

[iPhil]

My internal 160GB is filling up quickly, I'm at c70% capacity. Is there a "rule of thumb" for when you need another drive?

2nd - What internal drive (not size) is the general recommendation? I'm on a dual G5. Also 8GB or 16GB? Does that make a difference in practical use?

Last question - Is installing it DIY? I despise paying for installations, but I despise even more having to do anything more than "slide it in"....

1) Its you should try to keep 6-8 Gbs free thats the general rule for knowing when installing a 2nd drive..

2) Your PM has SATA connectors then its simply as connect the the 'red' cable to the drive and the board card and slide the hard drive into drive slot

 

[iGary]

http://eshop.macsales.com/Search/Se...3.5+Hard+Drive+Internal&x=0&y=0&Manufacturer=

 

[_bnkr612]

Do you have an interest in an external drive? I feel safer having my data backed up on something I can just unplug and place in a safety box whenever I leave for long weekends, or take to another computer if this one fails.

I keep the 148.93 GB in my PMac a little cleaner, but my external replicates that data and stores old files I don't use, or would like to retrieve later.

Good on ya.

 

[CanadaRAM]

2nd - What internal drive (not size) is the general recommendation? I'm on a dual G5. Also 8GB or 16GB? Does that make a difference in practical use?

Degree of confusion here. 8 Mb or 16 Mb refers to the cache RAM on the hard drive. All else equal, more cache means that the drive will perform a bit faster. But there are many other performance factors.

Look for a drive with a full factory warranty. Seagates have 5 years, Maxtors 3 except their MaxLine III server drives which have 5. Hitachi and Western Digital have 3 I think. Any drive that is offered for sale with less warranty is a 'pull', reconditioned or OEM drive that you should stay away from.

 

[notheremuch]

Thanks for the info and help. BTW This is not a backup drive, I've already got an external for that. Thanks!

 

[risc]

Whatever you end up deciding just make sure you read a post I made in another thread about using a 2nd drive it'll save you a lot of heart ache later.

https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/2130870/

Also if you would like to know which drive to buy check out the reviews at http://www.storagereview.com/

 

[solidbreakz]

Seagate Barracuda S-ATA drives have a 5 Year warranty, Native Command Queueing, and are whisper-quiet. I have 2 400GB drives in my DC PMG5 at work and they get a real workout on a daily basis. I also own two more in external enclosures. They can be pricey, but Seagate makes primo stuff.