3 replies to this topic

[Ally]

Hi,I recently got a dell latitude e5420 laptop but it doesn't have a dvd writer just a dvd rom. Can anyone tell me how to replace this as I have looked all over the net and can't find any instructions on how or if it is possible. Any help appreciated.

[Ally]

Hi its ok.I found the owners manual and that shows how to do it. sorry.

[8210GUY]

Glad your sorted, but so you know there is little to swapping such a drive, main thing to do is identify what type of drive it is:- IDE = Wide ribbon cable, these drives use a jumper to set it as master\slave, the pin out is usually imprinted on the drive, but often you have to look from different angles to see the etching, but the newer the parts the less likely it will be IDE. Sata = Thin cable, pretty much the norm these days, with these there is nothing to do except plug it in, that's it for these drives, the system will take care of the rest. So unless your dealing with an IDE drive it's as simple as it can get, it's true plug and play as they say, if it's IDE you need to check the jumper position, but that's it really, only extra point to note here is the ribbon cable, the Master Drive goes on the end connection, assuming it has 2 connections on it, a slave goes in the middle plug on such a cable, hope this helps if you have to deal with it again in the future.

[Ally]

thanks.its a sata drive so shouldnt be a problem.