Opening up a computer for the first time: how do I not damage anything?! (1 Viewer)

[Francois Caron]

I've worked with some motherboards, particularly newer ones, that are more finicky when you select master/slave instead of cable select. Don't ask me why. Using cable select also helps to prevent confusion if you move the drives later on.

That's the reason I DON'T use Cable Select at work. Whenever I set up a new series of machines, I create a master hard drive containing all the applications and development tools the users will need, all fully tested on one of the target machines. I then use Powerquest's Drive Image software to copy the entire contents of the master drive to the target drive. If I tried to do this work with the Cable Select option, I couldn't be sure if the drive I'm working on is the source drive or the target drive especially if I happen to be overwriting a drive's existing image. The last thing I want to find out two hours later is that I performed the drive copy in the wrong direction.

 

[nolesrule]

You are both correct, sort of. You should leave the computer plugged in until you have grounded yourself on the metal case. Once that is done, you can attach the ESD wristband to the case and unplug it.

 

[Tekara]

electrical flow functions off of potentials, if there is zero potential between you and computer then there will be no static discharge, so a grounding strap will work fine.

this remains true even if both you and the computer possess a positive or negetive charge, whether minor or massive. as long as you and the computer are both of equal charge there will be no static discharge.

ground does not mean earth, it is a classical term that has remained in use much like the thought of electricity flowing from + to - in spite of electron flow being from - to +. ground needs not be of zero potential either; it can be of any potential, ground is a reference point upon which other point's potential charges are referenced. this is the basis for kirchoff's laws in determining voltages in circuitry.