Hard Disk Technology

The hard disk drive was primarily developed with the reason to provide a secondary storage device which is fast and have higher capacity and compactness as well as that is much reliable as a data storage system. As it is known that the hard disk drive is basically an internal. In some cases it can also be external.

The advantage regarding the external hard disk drive is that it is easy to move the data or the user information form one place to another. The other forms of data transfer can be made on the network itself. But in the case where in the physical distance is shorter say in the office itself the form one desktop computer to another then the external hard disk drive is much useful.

The external hard disk drive then can be used to transfer the data that is quite large enough; and which cannot be moved over the network.

Also another reason behind this external hard disk is the speed of the data transfer that can take place. Suppose the installation of the software that is large enough is to be taken place. If the backup of that software is within the external hard disk drive; then that hard disk drive itself can be connected to the computer and the software can be easily installed over it.

After that the hard disk drive can be easily removed. Usually these types of the hard disk drives are used with the USB port. In some situations device driver software is provided for the hard disk that is external.

The internal architecture of the hard disk drive contains the four major components as described briefly over here. They are the Disk Platter, Head Arm, the Chassis, and the Head Actuator. The Chassis is the part of the hard disk that acts as the base and provides the physical support to it. The Chassis is the part of the hard disk drive over which the other parts are placed.

The Disk Platter is the component of the hard disk drive where all the data or the information is stored over. The disk platter is usually a magnetic material that is used for the storage of the data. The disk platter which has the data over it can be accessed with the help of the Head Arm that moves around the platter to access the data or the information.

Usually the Disk Platter is the circular shaped disk. There are more platters also in any hard disk drive that add up to more space in terms of the memory. Usually the hard disk drive’s Head Arm is controlled by another major component of the hard disk that is the Head Actuator. The Head Actuator in a hard disk drive is the electronic device that is controlled by a rotating motor.

The rotating motor is responsible for the movement of the Head Arm. It helps the Head Arm in moving it all over the hard disk platter. Usually in the earlier hard disk drives the Head Actuator that is present inside the hard disk drive was controlled by a stepper motor. Presently the newer hard disk drives have the commonly used motor as the servo motor that is used by the Head Actuator.

The hard disk drives usually require a voltage of about 5V. The power connection is provided from the SMPS of the computer.