On Feb 16, 2008 8:59 AM, Steven Stern <subscribed-lists@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > Hash: SHA1 > > On 02/16/2008 09:19 AM, Mike Chambers wrote: > | These external HD's that are out there, like a seagate 250G I saw at > | Staples, can they work just fine with Fedora 8 and up? > | > | Can I just plug that in and start putting files on it? > | > | Does it have to be reformatted and/or what type filesystem usually comes > | on them (fat)? > | > | How does Fedora recognize them and what path are they usually? And how > | fast/slow are they compared to an internal hd? > | > | If I was to buy one, it mainly would connect (for now until I > | trade/upgrade computers one day) to my little HP machine (acting as home > | server) to host my data as I think one of my HD's are going bad, adn > | this machine can't hold more than 40G (guessing due to BIOS) HD. > | > | In other words, do these things play nice with Fedora/linux and even > | Windows if I wanted to take it with me to help fix another computer? > > They play nice as long as you have a USB2 port on your PC. If your > little machine has a USB1 port, the external drive will be too slow to > use. I've bought two 500GB drives and, when plugging them in, find they > "just work". > > If you're going to use it only on Fedora, I'd suggest reformatting it as > ~ ext3. If, however, you plan on moving it back and forth to a Windows > box, then use FAT32 or NTFS. In addition to that good advice, check out the thread I started here with the subject "USB external hard drive disconnecting". I always figured external drives would just work, but apparently some models are programmed to go to sleep. This has been causing me some grief. You can google for "Seagate USB external drive linux" to read about some other troubles with that particular brand. There are solutions, but it's been more of a hassle than I expected. Mine is a Cavalry 500 GB, by the way. My drive came pre-formatted with NTFS, I think. I reformatted it as ext3. Personally, I've had much better luck with a firewire drive (just worked perfectly), though that's just one data point. Good luck, reid
