How to Copy Files to an External Hard Drive

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How to Copy Files to an External Hard Drive

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From time to time, you may need to back up some of your important files. One major convenient method is to use an external hard drive, which is purchasable from many websites and computer stores.

Steps

Read your external hard drive’s manual for any special instructions that must be completed prior to hooking the drive up to you computer.
Install the drivers and required software that came bundled with your device if necessary
If your external hard drive requires an external power source (ie. it needs more power than what can be delivered over USB / Firewire), plug it into an electrical outlet with the AC power adaptor provided with your external hard drive.
Connect the drive’s data cable (probably USB or Firewire) to the device and your computer.
Wait while your device is recognized and initialized.
If you are a Windows user, your external hard drive will show up on the My Computer screen just like any other hard drive.
Drag and drop (or copy & paste) the files you wish to back up on your external hard drive.

Tips

Back up important files regularly. If you can’t afford to lose it, you should always keep a backup copy of it.
If you have a lot of data to backup, and portability is not an issue, get an external hard drive. If you do not have much to back up and you want to carry it around easily, get a USB memory stick (a.k.a. thumb drive).
Know whether or not you have USB and/or Firewire ports. If you don’t, you may have to buy a USB or Firewire card to put into your computer to use an external hard drive.
See if your external hard drive supports USB 2.0. This standard is much faster than regular USB (USB 1.1).

Warnings