 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
Windows Forum / Windows XP / Configuration / July 2007can't partition/format because windows setup doesn't get quite far enough
i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' means) windows xp failed during setup telling me there was something wrong with the drives and to run FDisk on them which i can't do (no floppy) - i understood the drives would be formatted but i can't partition/format because windows setup doesn't get quite far enough is there something wrong with the machine ( i have a week to return it) or does this sound familiar and is there a cure? >i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' > means) [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > machine ( i have a week to return it) or does this sound familiar and is > there a cure? If you do not know what SATA is, I recommend that you seriously consider paying some to install Windows for you. Below please find a link to Step-by-Step instructions for installing Windows XP, as well as links which will provide you with definitions of SATA. How to perform a clean install of Windows XP: Step-by-Step [courtesy of MVP Michael Stevens] http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html SATA: The definitive definition: http://www.serialata.org/ The Wikipedia definition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA Steve >>i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' >> means) [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] > > Steve Well actually he doesn't need to know what SATA means, but what he does need to know is does his motherboard need drivers so windows can be installed on them. If his motherboard has a third party SATA controller he will probably need them. The fact he is getting that far in the setup suggests he doesn't. To the OP; What's the exact message. Are you sure it says FDisk, and not CHKDSK. You don't say if these are "new" unused components or a "new" second hand machine. It sounds like setup is testing the drives for errors and finding something it doesn't like. You could use something like BootitNG and delete the existing partition, then try the install again - XP will allow you to create a new partition during setup. If you know what brand the drives are you can usually download some bootable test disks to check the drives. Does the XP setup disk have SP2 integated? (could make a difference) If you can't answer, or don't know how to find the answers for these questions, take it back to the person you purchased it from and ask them to install XP. >>>i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what >>>'sata' [quoted text clipped - 63 lines] > to > install XP. I agree, maybe the poster doesn't know how to word/describe the problem. | >>i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' | >> means) [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] | | What's the exact message. Are you sure it says FDisk, and not CHKDSK. it actually says - "Check for viruses on your computer. Remove any newly installed hard drives or hard drive controllers. Check your hard drive to make sure it is properly configured and terminated. Run chkdisk/f to check for hard drive corruption, and then restart your computer." | You don't say if these are "new" unused components or a "new" second hand | machine. it's a refurbished machine | It sounds like setup is testing the drives for errors and finding something | it doesn't like. i tried changing the drive type from 'raid' to 'ide' and windows did get as far as letting me partition the drives but only recognised them as having 130 gig ish - i'm beginning to wonder whether Win XP supports drives this size (320gig) - i know you're thinking why was is set to raid anyway - and i don't know why and i don't have a raid driver which i've found out it would need | You could use something like BootitNG and delete the existing partition, | then try the install again - XP will allow you to create a new partition | during setup. If you know what brand the drives are you can usually download | some bootable test disks to check the drives. | | Does the XP setup disk have SP2 integated? (could make a difference) no - it's Win XP Pro (no service packs) Your Winxp cd is only detecting 130gb because its pre sp1 and as such doesnt support Big Lba. In order to utilise the entire hd, on installation, you would need to create a slipstreamed winxp cd containing latest sp > | >>i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what > 'sata' [quoted text clipped - 81 lines] > > no - it's Win XP Pro (no service packs) I hope you're right - i'm going to read how to create an Sp2 slipstreamed CD and maybe that would work | Your Winxp cd is only detecting 130gb because its pre sp1 and as such doesnt | support Big Lba. [quoted text clipped - 86 lines] | > | > no - it's Win XP Pro (no service packs) > | >>i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what > 'sata' [quoted text clipped - 51 lines] > make sure it is properly configured and terminated. Run chkdisk/f to check > for hard drive corruption, and then restart your computer." That's what I thought, I don't think you any major problem, what you have is a misconfiguration in your BIOS. For some reasons, your BIOS is seeing your HD geographic map different from what you are telling it, check jumpers, avoid manual config, use their autodetect, if you have any other non SATA HD involved with your configuration properly as mentioned. >i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' > means) [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > is there something wrong with the machine ( i have a week to return it) or > does this sound familiar and is there a cure? Dobey pointed something out that I overlooked. Note the spelling difference between fdisk and chkdsk Depending on the PC, SATA has multiple ways to be setup. The original was SATA as the tertiary controller, with the first two ide controllers as primary and secondary. Only two can function at any one time. The way to get the SATA to boot is to remap it as the primary ide controller, leaving the ide enabled, and nothing connecting to the primary ide controller. This is done in the bios. The second is a regular SATA controller taking the lead, or perhaps no ide onboard at all. The third is a SATA RAID controller. Which do you have? Dave Crossposting to a Japanese-language newsgroup elimintated. Did WinXP come pre-installed on the machine or did you purchase it without an Operating System? Assuming the latter, where did you get the copy of WinXP that you're attempting to install?  Signature~Robear Dyer (PA Bear) MS MVP-Windows (IE, OE, Security, Shell/User) AumHa VSOP & Admin; DTS-L.org > i have a new machine with x2 300 gig sata drives (i don't know what 'sata' > means) [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > is there something wrong with the machine ( i have a week to return it) or > does this sound familiar and is there a cure? |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2010 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.