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Dell OptiPlex GX260
Service Manual
Small Form-Factor
Computer
Small Desktop
Computer
Small Mini-Tower
Computer
Hard Drive
Front-Panel Inserts
Floppy Drive
CD/DVD Drive
- Disconnect the power cable and hard-drive cable from the drive.
Removing Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | hard-drive cable |
- Press in on the tabs on each side of the drive, slide the drive toward the
I/O panel, and remove it from the computer.
Removing the Hard Drive
- Unpack the replacement hard drive, and prepare it for installation.
- If your replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached,
remove the rails from the old drive by removing the two screws that
secure each rail to the drive. Attach the bracket rails to the new drive
by aligning the screw holes on the drive with the screw holes on the
bracket rails, and then inserting and tightening all four screws (two
screws on each rail).
Drive Bracket Rails
1 | drive |
2 | bracket rails (2) |
3 | screws (4) |
- Install the hard drive into the computer by gently sliding the drive into
place until you hear it securely click.
 |
NOTICE: Match the colored strip on the cable with pin 1 on the drive (pin 1 is
marked as "1").
|
- Connect the power and hard-drive cables to the drive.
Attaching Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | hard-drive cable |
- Check all connectors to be certain that they are properly cabled and
firmly seated.
If you are installing a new floppy or CD/DVD drive rather than replacing a drive, remove the front-panel insert.
Front-Panel Insert Removal
- Disconnect the floppy-drive cable from the system board connector
(DSKT).
- Remove the power cable from the interposer board.
- Disconnect the CD/DVD drive cable and the power cable from the
CD/DVD drive.
- Remove or raise the drive by pressing the green tabs on either side of
the drive and lifting the drive up.
- Remove the floppy-drive cable from the floppy drive.
- Remove the interposer board from the floppy drive by pressing the
tab and rotating the interposer board.
Removing the Interposer Board
1 | floppy-drive cable |
2 | tab |
3 | interposer board |
4 | system board floppy-drive connector (DSKT) |
- To release the floppy-drive cable from the connector, slide the
lever until it is fully extended, and then lift the cable away.
Removing the Floppy-Drive Cable
1 | floppy-drive cable |
2 | lever |
- Remove the floppy drive from its sled by pulling the sled tab out while
pushing the drive up and then sliding the drive out of the sled.
Removing the Floppy Drive
- Snap the replacement drive into the sled and ensure that it is secure in
the sled.
- Connect the interposer board to the floppy drive.
- Slide the floppy-drive cable into the connector.
- Close the lever so that the cable is secure in the connector.
- Line up the hole on the bottom of the interposer board with the
notch on the connector, and snap the interposer board onto the
drive.
- Gently slide the drive into the computer until the tabs securely click
into position.
Attaching the Floppy-Drive Cable
1 | connector notch |
2 | interposer board alignment hole |
3 | floppy-drive cable |
4 | lever |
- Attach the power cable to the interposer board on the floppy drive.
- Attach the CD/DVD drive cable and the power cable to the CD/DVD
drive.
- Connect the floppy-drive cable to the DSKT connector on the system
board.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
- Disconnect the power and audio cables from the interposer board.
- Remove the interposer board from the drive.
Removing the Interposer Board
- Press inward on the two tabs on the sides of the drive, and then slide
the drive upward and remove it from the drive bay.
- Unpack the drive and prepare it for installation.
Check the documentation that accompanied the drive to verify that the drive is configured for your computer. If you are installing an IDE drive, configure the drive for the cable-select setting.
- Gently slide the drive into place until the tabs securely click into
position.
- Connect the interposer board to the CD drive:
- Ensure that the interposer board tab fits securely under the notch
on the inside of the cover.
- Attach the power and audio cables to the interposer board.
Connecting the Interposer Board
1 | interposer board |
2 | notch on inside of cover |
3 | interposer board tab |
If your computer came with an IDE CD drive, use the spare connector on the existing interface cable. Otherwise, use the IDE interface cable provided in the drive kit.
- If you are installing a drive that has its own controller card, install the
controller card in an expansion slot.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
- If the CD/DVD drive bay was previously empty, remove the front-
panel inserts (see "Front-Panel Inserts").
- Close the computer cover.
- Attach the computer stand (optional).
Hard Drive
Front-Panel Inserts
Floppy Drive
CD/DVD Drive
- Your computer's hard drive may or may not have a plastic shroud cover.
(Operating the computer without a hard-drive shroud does not affect
its performance.) If your computer's hard drive does not have a shroud,
proceed to the next step. If your computer's hard drive does have a
shroud, remove it by pressing in on the indented tab at the top of the
shroud and lifting the shroud away
Removing the Hard-Drive Shroud
 |
NOTE: Your computer's
hard drive may or may
not have a plastic shroud
cover. Operating the
computer without a hard-
drive shroud does not
affect its performance.
|
- Disconnect the power and hard-drive cables from the drive.
Removing Power and Drive Cables
1 | hard-drive cable |
2 | power cable |
- Press in on the tabs on each side of the drive and slide the drive up and
out.
Removing the Hard Drive
- Check the documentation for the drive to verify that it is configured
for your computer.
 |
NOTICE: To avoid damage to the drive, do not set it on a hard surface.
Instead, set the drive on a surface, such as a foam pad, that will sufficiently
cushion it.
|
- Unpack the replacement hard drive, and prepare it for installation.
- If the replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached, see
step 2 in the previous section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Install the hard drive into the computer by gently sliding the drive into
place until you hear it securely click.
 |
NOTICE: Match the colored strip on the cable with pin 1 on the drive (pin 1 is
marked as "1").
|
- Connect the power and hard-drive cables to the drive.
Attaching Power and Drive Cables
1 | hard-drive cable |
2 | power cable |
- Check all connectors to be certain that they are properly cabled and
firmly seated.
- If your computer has a hard-drive shroud, replace the shroud by
inserting the two tabs on the bottom into the holes in the computer
and snapping the top into place. (Operating the computer without a
hard-drive shroud does not affect its performance.)
- Close the computer cover.
- Attach the computer stand (optional).
If you are installing a new floppy or CD/DVD drive rather than replacing a drive, remove the front-panel inserts:
- Facing the front of the computer, use your fingers to remove the front-
panel cover.
Removing Front-Panel Inserts
- Press the inserts until they pop free of the front-panel cover.
- Disconnect the power and data cables from the CD/DVD drive located
above the floppy drive.
- Disconnect the power and floppy-drive cables from the back of the
floppy drive.
- Disconnect the floppy-drive cable from the system board connector
(labeled DSKT).
Removing Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | floppy-drive cable |
3 | floppy-drive connector (DSKT) |
- Press inward on the two tabs on the sides of the drive, slide the drive
upward, and remove it from the floppy-drive bay.
Floppy Drive Removal
- If the replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached, see
step 2 in the previous section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Gently slide the drive into place until the tabs securely click into
position.
- Attach the power and floppy-drive cables to the floppy drive.
- Connect the other end of the floppy-drive cable to the connector
labeled DSKT on the system board.
Attaching Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | floppy-drive cable |
3 | floppy-drive connector (DSKT) |
- Reconnect the power and data cables to the back of the drive installed
in the CD/DVD drive bay located above the floppy drive.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
- Close the computer cover.
- Attach the computer stand (optional).
- Disconnect the power, audio, and CD/DVD drive cables from the back
of the drive.
- Disconnect the other end of the CD/DVD drive cable from the system
board connector (IDE2).
Removing Power, Audio, and Drive Cables
1 | audio cable |
2 | power cable |
3 | CD/DVD drive cable |
4 | IDE2 connector |
- Press inward on the two tabs on the sides of the drive, and then slide
the drive upward and remove it from the drive bay.
- Unpack the drive and prepare it for installation.
Check the documentation that accompanied the drive to verify that the drive is configured for your computer. If you are installing an IDE drive, configure the drive for the cable-select setting.
- If the replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached, see
step 2 in the previous section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Gently slide the drive into place until the tabs securely click into
position.
- Connect the power, audio, and CD/DVD drive cables to the drive.
- Connect the other end of the CD/DVD drive cable to the IDE2 system
board connector.
Connecting Power, Audio, and Drive Cables
1 | audio cable |
2 | power cable |
3 | CD/DVD drive cable |
4 | IDE2 connector |
- If you are installing a drive that has its own controller card, install the
controller card in a card slot.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
- If the CD/DVD drive bay was previously empty, remove the front-
panel inserts.
- Close the computer cover.
- Attach the computer stand (optional).
Hard Drive
Adding a Second
Hard Drive
Front-Panel Inserts
Floppy Drive
CD/DVD Drive
- Disconnect the power and hard-drive cables from the drive.
Removing Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | hard-drive cable |
- Press in on the tabs on each side of the drive and slide the drive up and
out.
Removing the Hard Drive
- Unpack the replacement hard drive, and prepare it for installation.
- Check the documentation for the drive to verify that it is configured
for your computer.
- If the replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached, see
step 2 in the previous section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Install the hard drive into the computer by gently sliding the drive into
place until you hear it securely click.
 |
NOTICE: Match the colored strip on the cable with pin 1 on the drive (pin 1 is
marked as "1").
|
- Connect the power and hard-drive cables to the drive.
Attaching Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | hard-drive cable |
- Check all connectors to be certain that they are properly cabled and
firmly seated.
- Remove the two green plastic rails from the inside of the hard-drive
bay by gently pulling the rails up and out of the bay.
- Attach the rails to the hard drive using the two screws attached to the
rails.
Ensure that the rail tabs are positioned at the back of the hard drive.
 |
NOTICE: Do not install any drive into the lower hard-drive bay until you have
removed the green drive rails from the inside of the hard-drive bay.
|
- Remove the first hard drive from the upper bay and install it in the
lower bay:
- Disconnect the power and the hard-drive cables from the back of
the first hard drive.
- Press in the two green rail tabs and pull the first hard drive out of
the upper bay.
- Gently slide the first hard drive into the lower bay until you hear a
click.
- Reconnect the power and hard-drive cables to the back of the first
hard drive.
- Gently slide the new hard drive into the upper bay until you hear a
click.
Installing a Second Hard Drive
1 | rail tabs (2) |
2 | second hard drive in upper bay |
3 | first hard drive in lower bay |
4 | hard-drive bay |
- Connect a power cable to the drive.
 |
NOTICE: Match the colored strip on the cable with pin 1 on the drive.
|
- Locate the extra connector on the drive cable that is attached to your
first hard drive and attach the connector to the second hard drive.
Your computer uses cable-select drive cables. This means that the device connected to the end connector of the drive cable is the master device and the device connected to the middle connector is the slave device. Be sure that the jumper setting on the new device is set for "cable select" (see the documentation that came with the drive for information).
Attaching Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | second hard-drive cable (secondary drive) |
3 | first hard-drive cable (primary boot drive) |
If you are installing a new floppy or CD/DVD drive rather than replacing a drive, remove the front-panel inserts.
- Open the cover to a 90-degree angle and release the insert tabs from
inside the computer.
Releasing the Insert Tabs
- Press the insert until it pops free of the front-panel cover.
Removing the Front-Panel Inserts
- Disconnect the power and floppy-drive cables from the back of the
floppy drive.
- Disconnect the other end of the floppy-drive cable from the system
board (labeled DSKT).
Removing Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | floppy-drive cable |
3 | floppy-drive connector (DSKT) |
- Press inward on the two tabs on the sides of the drive, slide the drive
upward, and remove it from the floppy-drive bay.
- If the replacement drive does not have the bracket rails attached, see
step 2 in the previous section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Gently slide the drive into place until the tabs securely click into
position.
- Attach the power and floppy-drive cables to the floppy drive.
- Connect the other end of the floppy-drive cable to the connector
labeled DSKT on the system board.
Attaching Power and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | floppy-drive cable |
3 | floppy-drive connector (DSKT) |
- If you are installing a new floppy drive rather than replacing a drive,
remove the front-panel inserts.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
- Disconnect the power, audio, and CD/DVD drive cables from the back
of the drive.
Removing Power, Audio, and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | audio cable |
3 | CD/DVD drive cable |
- Press inward on the two tabs on the sides of the drive, and then slide
the drive upward and remove it from the drive bay.
- If you are installing a new drive, unpack the drive and prepare it for
installation.
Check the documentation that accompanied the drive to verify that the drive is configured for your computer. If you are installing an IDE drive, configure the drive for the cable-select setting.
- Connect the new drive to the set of rails that are attached to the inside
of the cover. If a set of rails is not attached inside the cover, contact
Dell.
- If you are installing a replacement drive, see step 2 in the previous
section for instructions on attaching rails.
- Gently slide the drive into place until the tabs securely click into
position.
- Connect the power, audio, and CD/DVD drive cables to the drive.
Connecting Power, Audio, and Drive Cables
1 | power cable |
2 | audio cable |
3 | CD/DVD drive cable |
- If you are installing a new CD/DVD drive rather than replacing a drive,
remove the front-panel inserts.
- If you are installing a drive that has its own controller card, install the
controller card in a card slot.
- Check all cable connections, and fold cables out of the way to provide
airflow for the fan and cooling vents.
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