Hard Drive Recovery Associates

Hard Drive-less Computer

Hard Drive-less Computer

Every computer has a brain called the Central Processing Unit. It is named so because all major processes happen here. All brains have memory storage. And under the memory is the ROM or the Read Only Memory, the RAM or the Random Access Memory, and the cache. Among these storage hardware is the HDD or the Hard Disk Drive.

 

Most computers you see on the market today whether desktops or laptops have a hard disk drive or hard drive in short, as the main storage memory. There are those that have SSDs Solid State Drive as well. Hard drives have been proven a reliable technology in the computing world that’s why they are still around today and are ever-improving. A computer cannot efficiently process things without a memory hardware. But it can do so without a hard drive. Really? Arguably so.

 

A computer can still function without a hard drive. This can be done through a network, USB, CD, or DVD. Believe it or not.

Although a hard drive is typically where an operating system is installed, there are a number of ways you can run a computer without one. Computers can be booted over a network, through a USB drive, or even off of a CD or DVD. When you attempt to run a computer without a hard drive, you will often be asked for a boot device.

(Via:https://www.techwalla.com/articles/what-will-a-computer-do-without-a-hard-drive)

 

Upon startup. When a computer starts, various tests and checks are done. This is why you can’t immediately use the computer as soon as you see the desktop or the screen. You have to give it a minute or two.

When a computer first runs, a Power On Self Test (POST) is performed. This checks all of the hardware to make sure that everything is responding properly, then a series of system beeps are performed. The BIOS is loaded and the computer then looks for a boot device based upon the order of the devices in memory. These devices can be hard drives, network drives, external drives, or even removable media. Many servers are actual ran off of a single-network device with the hardware loading an operating system into RAM memory over the network.

(Via:https://www.techwalla.com/articles/what-will-a-computer-do-without-a-hard-drive)

 

In cases where no devices are found, your computer will let you know and will present you with a blank screen, one message, and a cursor that’s blinking. Kind of like the first computers.

If your system runs through the list of devices in the BIOS and none are available for booting, it will simply perform a series of PC speaker beeps and inform you that no bootable devices have been found. You will be presented with a blank screen, with a single message, and a blinking cursor. If there is an available device for booting, yet the machine is unable to recognize it, you may want to try modifying your BIOS settings and rearranging the boot order to recognize the device first.

(Via:https://www.techwalla.com/articles/what-will-a-computer-do-without-a-hard-drive)

 

Compared to booting using external storage, booting through the network is better.

It is increasingly common for a company to create discless systems that boot over the network. These systems are all controlled by a single server that simply virtualizes a desktop system on the remote machine. The advantage to network booting over local hard disk booting is that everything can be controlled on a single server, along with full redundant back-ups. This removes hard drive failure as a possible way to lose a full machine and is a great way to facilitate the use of cheap, easily replaceable hardware.

(Via:https://www.techwalla.com/articles/what-will-a-computer-do-without-a-hard-drive)

 

But you can successfully boot using the external devices.

Peripheral devices are commonly used to boot diagnostic tools and other Live systems, operating environments that are loaded entirely into the computer’s RAM. Most modern machines can boot off of external hard drives, USB flash drives, and flash memory cards. In fact, many popular Cisco routers use flash memory cards as the boot medium or to extend storage for configuration files.

(Via:https://www.techwalla.com/articles/what-will-a-computer-do-without-a-hard-drive)

 

Operating without a hard drive is fine if you want to experiment or don’t find it important to have a hard drive. But if you have a hard drive and your files are important to you, we know just what you need. Visit this page to know more.