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If you need a second HD for your G5 and you can't afford a new SATA HD or an external firewire HD, you can use your an old IDE HD as an inexpensive internal storage solution.
What we need
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Screwdriver
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HDD Cable UDMA 133 (flat or round)
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Y-power Cable for 5.25'' drives
Step 1
Unplug all peripherals from your G5 except the current cable. Open the side cover and then remove the transparent plastic side cover. Touch the bottom of the tower just between the processor coolers and the fans to discharge any static electricity your hands may have. Now disconnect the current cable.
Step 2
Release the superdrive from its position by opening the two gray plastic locks on tis base, as shown in picture 1. Gently pull out the superdrive carefully not to stretch the attached cable. After releasing the superdrive from its bay, unplug the two cable attached to its back. The small one is for current and the larger for connecting the superdrive to the controller (HDD cable for short) as shown in picture 2.
Step 3
After releasing fully the superdrive, track the HDD cable through a hole in the back of the superdrive bay. It passes to the lower compartment of the tower where the PCI slot are located (pict. 3). Disconnect the HDD cable from the motherboard gently (pict. 4). Then release it through the hole. You won't need this cable anymore, so store somewhere.
Step 4
Connect the Y-power cable to the superdrive current cable (the smaller adaptor as shown back in picture 2). You cannot connect these cables in the wrong way and they must look as in picture 5.
Step 5
Connect the new HDD cable you've bought to the motherboard. Be sure you've connected the right end to the motherboard (there must be some mark or notice on one of the adaptors). If your HDD cable is approx. 40cm (16'') pass it through the hole at the back of the superdrive bay as the original cable was placed. If you have a longer cable (90cm/36''), you can pass it through the back of the tower as shown in pic 6.
Notice: Depending on the cable length, you should find the best place to put the cables. This is something that you should try at your own.
 
Step 6
There are 4 screws placed next to the drive bay fan. You should screw them to the sides of the IDE HD. Then slide the IDE HD in the hard disk bay just under the existing SATA HD. Do not push it till it locks in place and take care for the SATA cables just under the IDE HD (pic 7). Now plug the HDD cable adaptor to the back of the IDE HD (pic 8). Plug in one of the two current adaptors to the IDE HD, as shown in pic 9. Push the HD until it locks in place and drag the gray plastic locker downwards. Be cautious of the SATA cables just underneath the IDE HD.
Notice: You should know that the HDD cable adaptors are different. One should be marked as "Master" and the other as "Slave". You should connect the "Master" adaptor to the superdrive and the other one to the IDE HD.
 
Step 7
Plug the HDD cable "Master" adaptor to the superdrive. Also plug the current adaptor as shown in pic 10. Return the superdrive to its original position (the reverse procedure of step 1) and lock in place using the two gray plastic locks. Try to place the HDD cable in a way that leaves some free space. Especially if you use a flat HDD cable, there is some danger of covering the fan (pic 11).
  Step 8
It should look like picture 12. Put all side covers in place. Connect the screen cable. Press the power button. If everything went right you should either see the new HD on your desktop or the system should ask you to format the disk (depending on whether the HD was formated previously or not).
Some troubleshooting
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If the new HD does not appear on the desktop, run the Disk Utility (placed in the Utilities folder). Select the new drive and press the "Mount" button. If you still cannot find the HD, shutdown the computer and check all connections. If the problem persists, check the HD label for correct jumper position (Slave w/ master present or similar).
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If the new HD appears on the desktop and after double clicking it the computer freezes or shows the "rainbow ball", check the current adaptor of the HD.
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It is wise to use your computer's "Apple Hardware Test" disk. Run the extensive test to find out any problems that will not show up until it's too late for your data.
Good luck!!
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