How to Replace the Hard Drive on a Dell D600

Installing a new hard drive on your Dell Latitude D600 laptop computer can give you more space to store your files and programs, allowing your computer to work faster than it would with its old hard drive. The replacement procedure is easy to perform because of the accessibility of the externally mounted hard drive. Removing a single screw is enough to get the hard drive out of the computer, so the only work you'll do is deciding which operating system to install on the replacement hard drive.

Things You'll Need

• Phillips screwdriver
• Removable media device
• Paperclip
• Operating system installation disc
• Valid operating system product key

Instructions

1. Copy onto a removable media device, such as a USB flash drive or a CD, the important data and any programs that you would like to transfer to the new hard drive. You'll probably need the software drivers for your computer's peripheral devices, as they won't start without the drivers, which are often difficult to find when you need them.

2. Delete your Web history, including your passwords and searches. Imagine what a person can harvest from your discarded hard drive and, if that doesn't compel you to erase your tracks, then you're one of the few people in this world with nothing to hide.

3. Shut down the computer and remove all the cables and devices from the system.

4. Turn the computer base side up and locate the hard drive on the top-left corner of the base.

5. Extract the screw on the hard drive and turn the computer top side up.

6. Open the display. On this computer, the hard drive can't be removed or replaced unless the display is open.

7. Slide the hard drive out of its bay.

8. Extract the screw from the hard drive bracket and remove the bracket from the hard drive.

9. Place the bracket on the new hard drive and insert the screw to secure the two together.

10. Slide the new hard drive into its bay.

11. Turn the computer base side up and insert the screw into the hard drive.

12. Turn the computer top side up and open the display.

13. Insert a paperclip into the optical drive release hole to eject the disc tray.

14. Insert the operating system installation disc into the disc tray and close the tray.

15. Start the computer. A message will appear on-screen that reads, "Press any key to boot from CD."

16. Press a key and the operating system installation will begin.

17. Follow the instructions provided in the operating system installation wizard to load an operating system on the hard drive.

18. Transfer the information on the removable media device (used in Step 1) to the new hard drive once the operating system is installed.

    Now the computer is ready for use.

References

• Dell: Adding and Replacing Parts: Dell Latitude D600 Systems User's Guide