Are old IDE drives compatible with ATA-2 (EIDE, Fast-ATA) interfaces?
Yes, this should work fine. To be used in an advanced mode, the drive has to support the ability to transfer data at the fast rate. Also, the controller needs to be able to run at fast mode speed. Older drives can work with ATA-2 interfaces, provided these interfaces have the intelligence to query the drive as to its maximum transfer rate. There is a drive command (Identify Drive) that gets a sector’s worth of data which holds all types of drive information, including the data transfer rates. The controller MUST be able to identify this for the drive to work properly. Blind PIO Mode 3 (programmed to fast mode without querying the drive) in an older drive that can’t support it will end up corrupting data, hanging the drive, and just making a mess of things. But, most controllers out there have some intelligence built in. If you intend to put an older drive on the same cable as an ATA-2 drive, you may want to verify that your interface is capable of using independent timing for master an
