You will need a special USB to SATA/IDE cable to do this. If you are just going to use the hard drive once to get your files, use this method. Now that your hard drive has been removed from your desktop, you can use the methods below to connect it to your laptop. WikiHow has a great tutorial on this, should you need photos to guide you.
Newer models often have levers or buttons that you can push to remove the hard drive.Note that your hard drive may be located inside a fixed cage and you may need a screwdriver to remove it.It will be labeled as the hard drive! DO NOT REMOVE ANYTHING FROM THE COMPUTER THAT IS NOT YOUR HARD DRIVE.The hard drive looks about the size of a small book or passport and is normally located towards the front of the case near the optical drive.Step 4: Locate the hard drive inside the computer case
#HOW TO CONNECT A MAC INTERNAL HARD DRIVE VIA USB MANUAL#
However, before we get to all that, you’ll likely need to disconnect your hard drive from your desktop. If you just want to use the hard drive once to get your files, you can purchase just the SATA/IDE cable.ĭepending on your needs, there are variations of this product that can help turn your hard drive into a functioning external hard drive with a power brick and extra cables but for this guide you don’t have to have those. If you’re planning on using that hard drive for the long term, you’ll want to purchase a USB case for your hard drive that has a USB to SATA/IDE cable. Do you want to use it as another hard drive for your laptop or do you just want to use it to get your files back and be done with it?
Which method you use depends on how often you plan on connecting to your desktop’s hard drive. You can either use a USB to SATA/IDE cable or a USB case to connect to your laptop. There are a couple ways to transfer files from your internal hard drive to your laptop. You can connect your internal hard drive to a laptop via a USB connection in order to do this. However, with the help of a cable and a laptop, you can access those files via your desktop’s hard drive. It is always a dark day when your desktop computer stops working and you find yourself cut off from all of your precious files and data.