Be familiar with the components of a conventional hard drive system and the anatomy of a hard drive. Most of today’s hard drive systems consist of an integrated controller and disc assembly that communicates to the rest of the system through an external host adapter. The hard disk drives consist of many components that work together, some in a physical sense and others in a magnetic sense, to store data on the disc surfaces for later retrieval.

Get to know the newer solid-state drives. SSDs continue to grow in popularity and will likely replace conventional drives as they become more reliable and less expensive.

Know the technology of floppy drives. Become familiar with the various floppy diskette capacities and the technology behind these drives.

Understand the details surrounding optical storage. From capacities to speeds, you should know what the varieties of optical storage offer as well as the specifics of the technologies this storage category comprises.

Be able to differentiate among removable storage options. There are numerous tape and solid-state storage formats as well as a host of external and hot-swappable drives. Know the names of the options in each category.

Know about power supplies and their connectors. Power supplies are made in AT, ATX, and proprietary form factors. Regardless, they must offer connectors for motherboards and internal devices. Know the differences among the connectors and how power supplies are rated. Also understand why AC adapters are related to power supplies.

Know how to remove, install, and configure storage devices. Know the difference between the data and power connectors used on storage devices. Be aware of the master/slave relationship used with PATA devices and know the strategy for setting them. Know what it means to partition and format a hard drive. Be aware of the physical differences in storage device form factors.

Know how to remove, install, and configure power supplies. Know the difference between the modern motherboard power headers, and be aware of when an adapter might be required. Know the two most common device connectors coming from the power supply. Be familiar with how to fasten power supplies to the chassis as well as how to unfasten them.