I hate to admit this but I did not notice which way the hard drive went when I pulled it out.Does it matter which side goes toward the outside of the case?
I would assume the circuit board goes toward the inside?

it shouldn't matter as long as you have the cables plugged in correctly.

it's doesnt really matter, but I can assure you that the drive was bolted to the case with the circuit board towards the front and the cables facing up as they are now. You should see one of two things:

1) Holes on the front of the case that match the holes in the hard drive casing.

2) Some way to bolt the metal bracket (or some other metal bracket) to the side of the drive so that it can be hinged into the spot shown.

If you can give me the Dell computer model # I can get you step-by-step instructions on how to reinsert the drive as it was stock.

Shifty I could not remember which way the circut boards faced. I think I may have put it back in with the boards facing to the inside.

as long as it's permanently affixed and will not fall over or arc/spark against metal, you're good to go.