Hardware Installation:::...

Probably the first step for most will be to install the optical drive. To do this you need to remove the curved corner panel which includes the optical drive door mechanism. To do this you need to first remove the two hex (Allen) head screws on the side using the supplied Allen key.

Then you remove the single Allen head screw from the opposite edge of the same panel.

The whole panel then lifts away, exposing the simple mechanism which is used to transfer presses of the external eject button to the drive's eject button. Unlike some previous mechanisms which were fixed and likely to cause problems if they didn't properly align with the drive, the LC11 allows you to slacken a single screw and move the mechanism sideways by up to around 1cm. This won't help if the button is vertically misaligned but it's considerably better then nothing.

Rear Of CDROM Cover Panel

Here you can see the drive aperture once the front panel is removed. There's room for a single 5.25" optical drive and one of three 3.5" drives above it, though remember we're working upsde dow here so that's technically below it.

Optical Drive Aperture

It pays to remember you're working upside down when you fit the drive too or otherwise you'll end up scratching your head wondering where the mounting holes have gone.

Optical Drive Location

As you can see the drive is secured using the mounting holes on the underneath rather than the usual ones on the side. A magntic screwdriver is strongly recommended for the two screws on the opposite side to those shown below, which are a pain to get at.

Optical Drive Secured