Summary The following is an analysis of a proposed effort to improve the functionality, performance, and reliability of the computer described current configuration section, which is acting as an HTPC (Home Theatre PC). The budgetary allowance for this project is $500.00, but must prioritize a failed SATA hard drive containing the boot and system partitions. Secondary to replacements parts, considerable weight will be given to upgrades that would be compatible with a complete replacement within the next 24 months. Current Configuration Motherboard: ASUSTeK M4A78 Plus Processor: AMD Athlon II 3Ghz Memory: 4x 2GB DDR2 800Mhz utilizing 4 available banks, supporting a maximum of 16GB. Storage: 1 250GB SATA II hard drive with boot and system …show more content…
However, this computer does connect to an external TV tuner over ethernet to record over-the-air signals. As indicated in the bulleted list above, the 250GB SATA drive is configured as the boot device, while the two 1TB drives are configured to store all important data, recordings, and DVD to MPEG compatible conversions. Although the 250GB drive is specified as a boot device in the BIOS, it is third in the boot order following USB boot devices, and CDROMs. This BIOS boot setting is configured to allow for an alternate boot up source, should the main boot drive fail, which is the current case. Since this computer is configured as an HTPC, all other BIOS settings provide no advantage and are set to …show more content…
This 250GB SATA drive only contain the operating system, but no important data. A USB boot disk was created and allowed the system to boot, providing access to the two 1TB hard drives, which are functioning properly and all data is available. However, the HTPC configuration and installation will need to be redone after the failed drive is replaced. Considering the budget of $500.00 would not allow for a complete rebuild of the computer, the best course of action would be to replace failed devices with newer technologies that are backward compatible with the existing system. Considering the primary drive is where most of the HTPC database and caching activity occurs, it seems wise to target faster technologies as a replacement. Considering an eventual upgraded motherboard, with a newer CPU “is a good candidate for an SSD upgrade” (Jacobi), it would make the most economic sense to replace the current failed drive with this technology. In order to allow for growth a Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD has been selected. This drive will allow for future growth and performance gains. This drive is currently priced at $219.00 with free shipping, leaving some room in the $500.00 budget to include upgrading the older CD/DVD drive to a newer Blu-Ray compatible drive. The Blu-Ray unit selected, based on functionality and newer technologies is the ASUS BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS priced at $157.99, allowing for the HTPC to play,