How do I replace the hard drive on a Toshiba Satellite p15-s479?
How do I replace the hard drive on a Toshiba Satellite p15-s479?
The hard drive is located under the CD/DVD drive. Before you start taking apart the laptop, remove the battery and unplug the AC power.
1. You have to remove the CD/DVD drive. Turn the laptop over. Remove one screw right above the dive and slide the drive out of the laptop.
2. When the CD/DVD drive is removed, you’ll see a metal plate. The metal plate is secured by 4 screws. Remove them and lift up the plate from the bay. The hard drive is located right under the plate.
3. After you remove the plate, you’ll see the hard drive. The hard drive also secured by 4 screws. Remove the screws, slide the hard dire to disconnect it from the connector on the moterboard and lift it up.
4. You have to transfer the brackets from the old hard drive to a new hard drive. Also, if there is a foil shielding around the old hard drive, you’ll have to transfer it to a new hard drive too.
Here’s a disassembly guide with pictures: Toshiba Satellite P10/P15 laptops. How to remove the hard drive.
February 13th, 2007 at 11:37 am
how do I replace the hard drive on a Toshiba Sat. 2065 cds
January 31st, 2007 at 12:55 pm
Hey RODNEY, about the foil wrap… i don’t know for sure how it works for HDs, but it is used on many electronic devices to isolate them from eletrical noise or magnetic fields. HDs are magnetic drives, and they could use some of that protection, that might be the answer to your question.
January 30th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
I have a Toshiba Qosmio G10. The temperature activated fan is making a lot of noise. How would I clean it? Regards, Warren
January 28th, 2007 at 9:18 pm
Rodney,
I think you will not get any problems using the hard drive without the shielding. I wasn’t able to find any information about this shielding and have no idea why Toshiba wrapped the hard drive. You can transfer the shielding to your new hard drive, it’s not difficult.
January 28th, 2007 at 8:40 am
Anyone know the purpose of the shielding foil surrounding my hardrive? I replaced my drive in a P25-S509 (toshiba) and the drive had this shielding. I put in a new Hitachi drive, 7200 RPM and left off the shielding. It’s runninng great but are there problems down the road without the foil shielding?
January 23rd, 2007 at 9:56 pm
Thanks fir the response, but the examples don’t show how to get into my particular model (p15-s479). I have gotten to the jack, but it looks okay.
January 23rd, 2007 at 8:39 pm
Charlie,
You cannot replace the jack through the fan bay, it’s necessary to open up the laptop and remove the motherboard. Here are some disassembly examples.
January 22nd, 2007 at 8:27 pm
Hi,
I have a Toshiba Satellite p15s479 and I have a problem with the DC jack. I know that I need to replace it or fix the soldering, but I can’t figure out how to get the plastic covers off to see the jack. I’ve got the motherboard and fans out, but I’m stuck now. Little help?
Thanks,
Charlie
January 9th, 2007 at 12:37 am
Tomas,
You should be able to access both hard drives from the bottom of the laptop if you remove the cover located in the corner. The hard drive cover is large and very hard to miss.
January 8th, 2007 at 8:51 am
Could you tell me where the hard drives are in the Toshiba Qosmio G10 with duel harddrives. Thanks.
January 7th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
Thank you for your instructions on how to remove the hard drive. It enabled me to recover data from a system and saved the day. Blessing on Your Head…
January 6th, 2007 at 10:47 pm
I have been looking around for a larger HD for a Gateway Solo 2300 / 233mmx / Pentium II – Many Ebay sellers are selling 30 up to 80gb Hard Drives specifically for the 2300. But the gateway site says the ’supported’ limit is 10gb. They also say, “drives larger than 6gb might not be recognized correctly”
So I’m wondering how the sellers are selling something that gateway does not support. I’m going to try the hard drive. I also have a copy of maxblast that I got with my maxtor hd. It says it will work as long as I have at least 1 maxtor hd in my system. I’m trying it all in my desktop first. Not sure how it’s going to work since my laptop only has the 1 / 30gb hd that I bought from a vendor thinking it would work OK.
January 4th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
DCAL SERVICES,
) but here’s my suggestion. It looks like the hard drive is actually located under the keyboard, so you’ll have to lift up the keyboard in order to access the hard drive. First, remove the keyboard securing strip, the plastic piece that located between the keyboard and it covers hinges, I believe it also has the power button on it. I don’t know if the keyboard strip is secured by screws on the bottom of the laptop, so just remove all screws located under the strip on the bottom of the laptop. After that lift up the strip with a sharp object, you can use a flathead screwdriver. Second, remove four screws securing the keyboard (located under the strip), lift up the keyboard and flip it over on the palmrest. I think that’s would be enough to access the hard drive.
I’ve never worked on this model (I think it’s older then I am
January 4th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
HOW DO I REMOVE MY HARD DRIVE OUT OF A TOSHIBA SATELLITE 1605CDS/4.3 PART NO PS160U-18886, I BELIEVE I SEE IT UNDERNEATH THE KEYBOARD, I HAVE ALL THE SCREWS OUT, IN FACT THE FRONT PART OF THE KEYBOARD IS RAISED SO I CAN SEE THE HARD DRIVE(I BELIEVE) TOWARDS THE BACK OF THE UNIT(BY LCD SCREEN) PLEASE HELP IF YOU CAN
December 20th, 2006 at 8:45 pm
Bernie,
I don’t think that you’ll have any problem if you upgrade to a Toshiba 100GB hard drive. Toshiba doesn’t provide any information on upgrading hard drives in this model, but I think you should be fine. Toshiba Qosmio G15 compatible with ATA (not SATA) hard drives, I believe the same would be for Qosmio G10. It’s very easy to check. Remove the hard drive and take a look at the connector. If it has 2 rows of pins (44 pins total), then it’s an ATA drive.
December 20th, 2006 at 5:38 pm
I have a Toshiba Qosmio G10 (I think this may be a Canada only version) 2 hard drives c: is 60GB and d: is 40GB. I want to upgrade the D: drive and see many options. Is Toshiba 100GB 2.5 in drive likely to be compatable, or any others? Some drives are SATA but is this computer using a standard ATA? In other words, how do I choose a drive that will be compatible?
December 19th, 2006 at 6:52 am
Can you tell me how to replace the hard drive in a Sony Vaio VGN-A140P laptop? Thanks alot for any help, Rick
December 16th, 2006 at 10:42 am
Hi,
Again, thank you for taking your time to help with my old laptop! It is my first computer I have ever owned, and it was bought by my mom as my graudation gift many years ago, so I love it even until now.
Yes, I agree with others that your instruction is very accurate. Following your instruction, I can take out my old HDD.
I hope there are more people like you to help others. Keep up with the good work.
Thank you!
Lee
December 16th, 2006 at 9:27 am
Lee,
I don’t know. This laptop is old and originally was supplied with a 6.4GB hard drive. Toshiba doesn’t provide any information on upgrading the hard drive in this model, they list only 6.4GB. Is it possible that the BIOS will recognize a larger drive? Yes, it is. But the only way to find out is testing the laptop with a larger drive.
I doubt that it will accept 120GB drive.
If you have another laptop with a larger hard drive (over 20GB), remove the drive and install it into the Satellite 2595XDVD computer. Enter the BIOS setup and see if the drive is recognized correctly.
December 15th, 2006 at 5:56 pm
Hi,
Thank you VERY MUCH for your instruction and part numbers!!!
Last question I promise: What is the largest HDD capacity Toshiba Satellite 2595XDVD can be used?
I plan to continue to use my laptop and need a larger storage. Some websites claim that this laptop can use up to 120G HDD, but some websites claim that it can use up to only 8G HDD.
Thank you,
Lee
December 15th, 2006 at 4:11 pm
Lee,
You can easily access the hard drive from the bottom of the laptop, it’s located on the left side from the battery. You’ll have to remove one screw and remove the hard drive cover in order to access the drive. Toshiba Satellite 2595XDVD was equipped with a 6.4GB hard drive. Here are part numbers that you can use to find a replacement: Toshiba hard drive P000271180, IBM hard drive P000272010 and P000312190. Google by the part number and find the best deal on this drives, you can use either of them.
December 14th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
How do I replace the hard drive on a Toshiba Portege 3490ct? I can’t seem to find the hard drive and the disassembly guide website do not have one for the 3490ct.
December 14th, 2006 at 10:41 am
Hi,
I have a Toshiba Satellite 2595XDVD that cannot boot up, so I tried to reformat the HDD and reinstall Windows2000, but it says that it cannot detect the HDD and cannot reformat and reinstall W2000. I tried the original W98 service CD from Toshiba, same results: cannot reformat and reinstall W98. I also use the original Toshiba floppy boot disk. It can go to C: prompt, but when I enter “dir”, it says that it cannot detect c drive or something like that. I suspect that it may be HDD failure (not sure though). I want to replace my HDD, but I do NOT know the model/part number of my HDD (where to buy one), and I do NOT know how to locate/replace the HDD in my laptop. I love my laptop even though it was outdated. Can you tell me the model/part number of my HDD and teach me how to locate/replace the HDD of Satellite 2595XDVD?
Thank you,
Lee
November 7th, 2006 at 10:17 am
Laptop Freak,
I reseated the drive exactly like you said and presto, it works again. Thanks.
Your disassembly guide was very useful and your knowledge on laptops is right on.
No wonder why they call you “Laptop Freak”!
Paul II
November 3rd, 2006 at 5:20 pm
Paul,
I just added a link for a Satellite P10/P15 laptop hard drive removal guide at the end of the main post. Step 2 shows how to pull the DVD drive from the laptop. Before you buy a new DVD drive, try reseating the drive. Just pull it from the laptop and put it back. It’s possible that the connector got oxidized and you can fix it by reseating the drive.
If you decide to replace the drive, you should be able to find the part number on the drive. Or you can give me the model number for your laptop (it’s on the label with the serial number) and I’ll find the DVD drive part number for you. After that you should be able to find a new drive by the part number.
November 3rd, 2006 at 11:55 am
My dvd multi drive on my Toshbia P15-S479 isn’t working anymore. I was trying to copy a cd and when it asked me to insert a blank disc, the drive didn’t want to open. I restarted my computer and now the drive isnt being recognized. Sometimes if I try to open the drive, you can hear a motor or something trying to eject the tray but still nothing happens. So I am left with no other choice to replace the drive.
I am assuming the model number of the drive is on the drive but how do I get the DVD Multi drive out?
I need disassembly guide please.
Thanks.
September 17th, 2006 at 9:57 pm
Jovi,
What is your laptop model?
September 16th, 2006 at 10:57 am
1. You have to remove the CD/DVD drive. Turn the laptop over. Remove one screw right above the dive and slide the drive out of the laptop.
I’m finding this hard to do. I can’t get the dvd rom to slide out after taking the two screws. I need further help. Thank you very much!
August 10th, 2006 at 10:45 pm
Paul,
Removing the hard drive from Toshiba Satellite A35 laptop would be very similar to Satellite P15 instructions. The only difference – there is no metal plate as described in the step 2 above. Otherwise you can use the same instructions.
August 10th, 2006 at 10:26 pm
Hi,
I have a Toshiba Satellite A35-S150 laptop. I need to change its hard disk as it can not access the hard disk during boot up or with service disk. I need some pointers how to go about changing the hard disk. TIA,
/Paul