Mounting hard drives sideways

[Pez D Spencer]

I just got a Lian-Li PC-65 case. The hard drive cage allows for the mounting of hard drives on thier side or flat if an additional bracket is used. Because of they way I have my wiring routed, the best way for me to mount my drives is on their side. Is mounting a drive on its side bad for it or does it not really matter? I've seen drives mounted standing on end but never on the side before.

Thanks.

 

[swtethan]

they wouldnt make it like that if it were unsafe

 

[Pez D Spencer]

Is that opinion based on actual knowledge or are you just blindly placing your absoulte trust into them? I surely hope its not the latter.

 

[Blain]

I remember reading somewhere that you should format and load OS on a HD in whatever position it will be mounted.

 

[Wentelteefje]

Originally posted by: Blain
I remember reading somewhere that you should format and load OS on a HD in whatever position it will be mounted.

My Maxtor was overheating when mounted horizontally (no fan in front), so I decided to mount it vertically... I just ordered a new mobo, so did it all in once... The OS was installed horizontally, the drive runs vertically now, and it runs great... Temps are way lower and it seems to perform better, although that's quite subjective I know... It "feels" faster, but I wouldn't know how come...

@ Pez D Spencer: It works just as good as a horizontally mounted drive... You shouldn't have any problems whatsoever... Cooling will improve as well...

 

[RallyMaster]

Most Dells, HPs and Lenovos (I would know since I just got back from China) have HDDs mounted vertically. I personally wouldn't do that because I have room in my case but their cases aren't that large.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

From what I've read HDs should not be mounted with the PCB facing up.
Any other position is OK. HDs are mounted on end, on side and flat in my cases.
No problems.


...Galvanized

 

[Pez D Spencer]

Thanks for the replies.

 

[crispy2010]

"WD drives will function normally whether they are mounted sideways or upside down (any X, Y, Z orientation). Of course, the physical design of your system may limit the positions in which the drive can be mounted. However, in all cases, you should mount the drive with all four screws for good grounding. Also ensure that there is enough air space around the drive for adequate air flow, and avoid mounting the drive near sources of excessive heat (such as some CPUs)."

I got that from the horses mouth, wd's website!

 

[Zepper]

It is recommended to not mount them more than 5 deg off from horizontal or vertical Otherwise the recent mounting instructions I've seen allow all orientations. But I'm old-fashioned, so upside-down (PCB up) is taboo here and if I find one that way, I "fix" it! And horizontal is still preferred due to more balanced stresses.

.bh.