How can I tell if I have a cable select computer or cable?

How can I tell if I have a cable select computer or cable?
I have a Compaq Presario 5204. The paper manual says if you connect an
additional IDE (hard drives?) to set the jumpers to cable select.
If I understand cable select allows the derive at the end to be the
primary (master and the middle on the ribbon cable the slave. Western
Digital talks about cable select hook up as a cable with a black master
at the end of the cable plug and a mid way plug as being gray. Is that
an absolute specification followed by all cable makers. As far as I
know my computer has never had it's cable changed but both my IDE
connectors are black. And the cable at the end is marked drive 0 and
the middle one drive 1. The cable does have the red strip on the
farthest out wire out for determining the pin it should be connected to
so right to left is not reversed and pins are damaged due to the
missing middle pin?
WD also talks about either using the master and slave jumper or the
cable select jumpers on both drives but not both. Ifs that true for all
made drives? Does it matter that much if both configurations where used
at the same time? Or if either is used not much difference if any in
operation?
Also could a hard drive as in a number three be connected to the cable
middle or end that a CD-ROM is connected? Are second middle cabled
installed CD-ROM drives call master primary and slaves too?

"DJW" wrote in message
ups.com...
How can I tell if I have a cable select computer or cable?
I have a Compaq Presario 5204. The paper manual says if you connect an
additional IDE (hard drives?) to set the jumpers to cable select.
If I understand cable select allows the derive at the end to be the
primary (master and the middle on the ribbon cable the slave. Western
Digital talks about cable select hook up as a cable with a black master
at the end of the cable plug and a mid way plug as being gray. Is that
an absolute specification followed by all cable makers. As far as I
know my computer has never had it's cable changed but both my IDE
connectors are black. And the cable at the end is marked drive 0 and
the middle one drive 1. The cable does have the red strip on the
farthest out wire out for determining the pin it should be connected to
so right to left is not reversed and pins are damaged due to the
missing middle pin?
WD also talks about either using the master and slave jumper or the
cable select jumpers on both drives but not both. Ifs that true for all
made drives? Does it matter that much if both configurations where used
at the same time? Or if either is used not much difference if any in
operation?
Also could a hard drive as in a number three be connected to the cable
middle or end that a CD-ROM is connected? Are second middle cabled
installed CD-ROM drives call master primary and slaves too?

DJW, to bypass more difficult analysis, let's just say ONE WAY to
install a 2nd hd to one with NOTHING else on it is to have the original one
jumped as MASTER, the 2nd one jumped as slave, and use a 2-device cable to
connect the 2 hd's in any order you wish--job done. Simple, huh?
To install a 2nd hd to a system whose orig. hd has say a cd already
attached to it with NO other ide devices in the system, leave that ide
connector alone with its 2 devices, as it's full. Attach a new cable to the
2nd ide connector on the mobo, jump the 2nd hd as master, and attach this
2nd hd to any free connector on the new cable--job done. Simple, huh?
To install a 2nd hd to a system that has 3 ide devices already, a hd & 1
more ide device on one ide connector and 1 more on the 2nd ide connector,
leave the 2-device side alone, as it's full. It's, say, a hd and a cd. Say
the 2nd ide connector has a dvd on it. Using a 2-device cable, put its one
end in the ide connector on the mobo, jump the 2nd hd to MASTER, jump the
dvd to SLAVE, and attach them in any order you desire--job done. Simple
again.
Note that in the last two cases, the hd's were always jumped to master.
Only in the first case was one jumped differently, and it was the one where
2 hd's were conected to same ide connector. A SECOND WAY to do the first
case would be to ensure the first hd was jumped as MASTER, leave it
connected on its ide connector by itself, jump the 2nd hd to MASTER as well,
and connect it to the 2nd ide connector by itself.
And you want to know about jumping them as cable-select. I'll let
someone else guide you thru those scenarios, as I'm going to untruly claim
that I specialize in MASTER-AND-SLAVE installations. I'm sure they can make
the c/s guide simple. Hope this answers some of your questions. It might
be worthwhile for you to draw 4 diagrams showing these 4 scenarios with
proper labelling on each of the 2-, 3-, and 4-device setups--esp. if you
wish to work/tinker on computers in the future. Remember that probably all
computer systems can be designed WITHOUT using cable-select. Later, look at
your c-s instructions and see if all could be set up WITHOUT master/slave.
'Tis best to know both solutions. There is, in my knowledge, no system
having ONLY one of these 2 solutions. I'm sure this last sentence answers
at least one of your ?'s.
Good luck to you. s

On 12/1/2006 7:55 PM sdlomi2 plucked Senior Frog's Magic Twanger and said:
"DJW" wrote in message
ups.com...

How can I tell if I have a cable select computer or cable?
I have a Compaq Presario 5204. The paper manual says if you connect an
additional IDE (hard drives?) to set the jumpers to cable select.
If I understand cable select allows the derive at the end to be the
primary (master and the middle on the ribbon cable the slave. Western
Digital talks about cable select hook up as a cable with a black master
at the end of the cable plug and a mid way plug as being gray. Is that
an absolute specification followed by all cable makers. As far as I
know my computer has never had it's cable changed but both my IDE
connectors are black. And the cable at the end is marked drive 0 and
the middle one drive 1. The cable does have the red strip on the
farthest out wire out for determining the pin it should be connected to
so right to left is not reversed and pins are damaged due to the
missing middle pin?
WD also talks about either using the master and slave jumper or the
cable select jumpers on both drives but not both. Ifs that true for all
made drives? Does it matter that much if both configurations where used
at the same time? Or if either is used not much difference if any in
operation?
Also could a hard drive as in a number three be connected to the cable
middle or end that a CD-ROM is connected? Are second middle cabled
installed CD-ROM drives call master primary and slaves too?


DJW, to bypass more difficult analysis, let's just say ONE WAY to
install a 2nd hd to one with NOTHING else on it is to have the original one
jumped as MASTER, the 2nd one jumped as slave, and use a 2-device cable to
connect the 2 hd's in any order you wish--job done. Simple, huh?
To install a 2nd hd to a system whose orig. hd has say a cd already
attached to it with NO other ide devices in the system, leave that ide
connector alone with its 2 devices, as it's full. Attach a new cable to the
2nd ide connector on the mobo, jump the 2nd hd as master, and attach this
2nd hd to any free connector on the new cable--job done. Simple, huh?
To install a 2nd hd to a system that has 3 ide devices already, a hd & 1
more ide device on one ide connector and 1 more on the 2nd ide connector,
leave the 2-device side alone, as it's full. It's, say, a hd and a cd. Say
the 2nd ide connector has a dvd on it. Using a 2-device cable, put its one
end in the ide connector on the mobo, jump the 2nd hd to MASTER, jump the
dvd to SLAVE, and attach them in any order you desire--job done. Simple
again.
Note that in the last two cases, the hd's were always jumped to master.
Only in the first case was one jumped differently, and it was the one where
2 hd's were conected to same ide connector. A SECOND WAY to do the first
case would be to ensure the first hd was jumped as MASTER, leave it
connected on its ide connector by itself, jump the 2nd hd to MASTER as well,
and connect it to the 2nd ide connector by itself.
And you want to know about jumping them as cable-select. I'll let
someone else guide you thru those scenarios, as I'm going to untruly claim
that I specialize in MASTER-AND-SLAVE installations. I'm sure they can make
the c/s guide simple. Hope this answers some of your questions. It might
be worthwhile for you to draw 4 diagrams showing these 4 scenarios with
proper labelling on each of the 2-, 3-, and 4-device setups--esp. if you
wish to work/tinker on computers in the future. Remember that probably all
computer systems can be designed WITHOUT using cable-select. Later, look at
your c-s instructions and see if all could be set up WITHOUT master/slave.
'Tis best to know both solutions. There is, in my knowledge, no system
having ONLY one of these 2 solutions. I'm sure this last sentence answers
at least one of your ?'s.
Good luck to you. s



I use Western Digital HDD in my system. They come factory default set
to cable select. What cable select means in simple terms is that the
device is set to master or slave depending on where it's connected on
the ide cable. You follow the same cable connection procedure as you
would if you were manually jumpering HDD and devices as Master or
Slave. The only difference is they are all jumpered to cable select.
Say on the Primary ide I have a HDD and a CD R/RW. The HDD goes in the
Master position on the cable the CD R/RW will be connected in the Slave
position. Since they are set to cable select they "know" which ones they
are.

Now say I have a DVD-RW on the Secondary ide. It's jumpered to cable
select and placed in the Master position. Now, I find I need a
secondary HDD. Since all are set at cable select I can move the two HDD
and Devices around for optimal performance without dickering with Master
- Slave settings. They all "know" what they are based on what position
they occupy on the ide cable. Here's another tip, unless you are
working with legacy equipment, or ide cables just about all modern eide
cables can recognize cable select.

Your computer has some built in behaviors if you have a device that can
be set to cable select but the hardware doesn't fully support it. On
boot you'll get an error message and the machine won't boot. Then it's
time to check to see if all drives and devices are properly pinned into
the ide cable, and the usual debugging checks. If all else fails, go
back to jumpering as Master / Slave.

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Brian M. Kochera
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