How to Attach a Firewire Drive to Your Computer

FireWire is the Apple corporation's brand name for the IEEE 1394 interface cable that makes high-speed communications possible. FireWire is mostly used for data transfer with external drives, DV camcorders, webcams and digital movie players. Now you can buy an external FireWire drive, available in 4-pin and 6-pin. The 4-pin FireWire drive is used to connect a digital camera with an external or additional power source. The 6-pin Firewire drive is used with a hard drive to provide data as well as power to some other drives. Follow these steps to find out how to attach a FireWire drive to your computer.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Attach the FireWire Drive to a Windows Computer

1. Connect the FireWire cable to its port provided on the bus-powered FireWire drive. The hard drive will spin and your computer will detect it as a "Plug-n-Play" device.

2. Go to "My Computer" to view the drive's contents. You can view, modify and edit those contents the same way you do the files on a regular external hard drive or pen drive.

3. To detach the FireWire drive, click on "Safely Remove Hardware" icon at the bottom of the Windows tray. Click "OK." You'll get this message: "It is now safe to remove hardware." Click "OK" and detach the FireWire drive.

Attach the FireWire Drive to a Macintosh

4. Connect the FireWire cable to the port provided on the bus-powered FireWire drive. The hard drive will spin and build up on the desktop.

5. Click the FireWire drive icon to view its contents. You can view, modify and edit those contents the same way you do the files on a regular external hard disk or pen drive.

6. To detach the FireWire drive, drag the icon to "Trash" or right-click the icon. Select "Eject" from the file menu.

Tips & Warnings

• You should restart your computer when you attach a FireWire drive.
• Make sure you dismount the FireWire drive from your computer before you unplug it. This will prevent any potential data loss.
• Avoid mishandling the external drive. Don't twist or cut the cables.