How to Set a Slave Hard Drive on a Toshiba Laptop

Many 17-inch and larger Toshiba laptops have the capacity to run two hard drives, though they are typically only installed with a single hard drive from the factory. Adding a second slave hard drive is an excellent way to increase storage space. Additionally, the primary hard drive can be replaced with an SSD, which is much faster than a traditional hard drive. The existing hard drive can then be moved to the second hard drive slot and used as a slave hard drive.

Step 1

Power off the Toshiba laptop. Remove the power cord and the battery.

Step 2

Turn the laptop upside down and remove the panel where the hard drive goes with a screwdriver. Depending on the model of Toshiba laptop being worked on, this may include the entire bottom panel, a panel covering both hard drive slots or a panel covering the empty second slave hard drive slot.

Step 3

Install the second hard drive by inserting it into the open slot.

Step 4

Replace the opened cover.

Step 5

Replace the battery and power cord. Turn on the computer. The second hard drive is automatically configured as the slave drive. Depending on the operating system and previous status of the slave hard drive, it may need to be partitioned or formatted before being used by the operating system.

Warning

• Partitioning and formatting removes any preexisting data from the hard drive.

About the Author

Jedadiah Casey started writing professionally in 2007, with articles published in "The Flagler Times" newspaper. He has more than 20 years of experience with computers and networking. Casey holds a Bachelor of Science in information systems from the University of Central Florida, as well as professional industry certifications.

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