Drive Optiplex
Posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
Can a Dell Dimension 4300 CD Drive properly in a OptiPlex GX280?
I got a dell optiplex gx280 that has a Compact Disk Drive, but not Digital Video Disk (DVD) drive. My dimension 4300 does have one that is also RW, so will they work properly in each other? I really can’t stand not playing The Sims 2 and C&C Tiberian Wars on my good CPU, my dimension sucks, 16mb. VRAM.
Thanks.
I will take the most descriptive as Best Answer
Depending on how many answers I get, I’ll take a poll.
In most computers until recently, the back of most devices like you describe looked like this:
http://technewsmadesimple.com/images/IAC/ide.jpeg
This is called an IDE connector.
But some newer computers use connectors that look like this:
http://www.pcstats.com/articleimages/200708/LGGSAH62N_sata2.jpg
This is called a SATA connector.
If both devices use the same type of connector, then the drives will be interchangeable. If not, you will need to invest in an adapter or a new drive.
Hope this helps! 
Hard drive swap – Optiplex 745