Re: Adding a SATA hard drive

Hello Anna,

"Anna" <myname@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:OEjTejkCGHA.3812@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

> Philip:
> First of all, the 137 GB large-capacity drive limitation isn't your
> problem, so forget about that MS KB article. It's a virtual certainty your
> motherboard supports large-capacity disks, i.e., > 137 GB and you're XP OS
> contains SP1 and/or SP2. Those are the two basic conditions for the system
> to recognize drives > 137 GB.

It looks as though everything's OK in that direction anyway, thanks - my
ATAPI.SYS file is revision

> It most certainly sounds like a SATA driver issue; either the driver
> wasn't initially installed properly or, somehow the wrong drivers were
> installed. You say "that the disk used to supply the drivers for my
> motherboard wasn't the correct one for the mainboard...". That is most
> peculiar. Are you saying the Foxconn installation CD that came with your
> motherboard was the wrong one, at least with respect to the SATA drivers?
> How did you learn this?

By inserting the CD in the CD-ROM drive - I get the message 'This
Utility CD can't support your mainboard'. I got around behind the problem by
using Explorer to allow manual installation and crossing my fingers - but
it's becoming clear that I should have asked for a workable disk at purchase
time (sheer impatience to get going after a 6-week holdup, with the board
sitting on the shelf leering at me - not an excuse, not even much of a
reason).


> Re your final question. Yes, you're correct that a SATA HD can be used in
> a non-RAID environment.

Thanks - I was beginning to think that I might have to shell out more
cash on a second 300 GB drive, to go with the existing unit.


> Frankly, this situation re the installation of SATA hard drives is a
> plague brought about by the industry itself. Why a straightforward
> standardized method of installing a SATA HD in a non-RAID environment,
> (similar to the one inherent in installing PATA-IDE drives), wasn't
> developed by the industry is both a mystery and a curse. All one has to do
> is peruse newsgroups like this one to see the plaintive calls for help
> from users who are experiencing difficulty in this area. There should not
> be this level of difficulty and confusion. But we don't seem to have any
> other choice but to live with it, at least for the moment.

It's still a growing industry, with everyone vying for pole position -
so such confusion is understandable. It's still a pain, though :o)


> Philip, you've got to read your motherboard's manual and hopefully find
> clear & detailed instructions in that manual re the installation of SATA
> hard drives. Unfortunately the process, let alone clear instructions,
> seems to differ from motherboard to motherboard as noted above.

That's the main problem here - the manual is good, but it stops short of
a 'recipe' for installing the SATA drive and its drivers, and then
configuring the disk for use. I CAN get various utilities to begin
formatting the drive - but each time I try it the formatting process appears
to reach 100% (indicated), only to return a message which amounts to 'format
was unsuccessful'. It's pretty irritating - like seeing a part on a stores
shelf and being able to point to it, but having to quote a part-number to
the storeman before you can take delivery!

> Anyway, good luck and please keep us informed of your progress and how you
> resolved the problem.
> Anna

Thanks - I'll get there in the end, and then I'll post a recipe for how
I did it - as payback for help received.

Cheers,

Philip
>
>


.

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