New computer not working. Grr!

[Backdated]

You must get the BIOS to see the drive correctly before attempting any installations.

It isn't reading the replacement drive right (it think's it's a LSXTOR instead of a Maxtor). I switch the IDE cables and it recognizes the drive properly, and we install WinXP.

Get it to the stage where POST correctly reports it and we'll go from there.

I AM at that part. Please read the entire post. Reading only part of it isn't helpful. ;_;

There is absolutely nothing in any of your posts anywhere to suggest the system is correctly set up at the hardware level!

Being facetious isn't helpful. ;_;

[Shana-chan]

You must get the BIOS to see the drive correctly before attempting any installations.

It isn't reading the replacement drive right (it think's it's a LSXTOR instead of a Maxtor). I switch the IDE cables and it recognizes the drive properly, and we install WinXP.

Get it to the stage where POST correctly reports it and we'll go from there.

I AM at that part. Please read the entire post. Reading only part of it isn't helpful. ;_;

There is absolutely nothing in any of your posts anywhere to suggest the system is correctly set up at the hardware level!

Being facetious isn't helpful. ;_;

That's not true. The very next sentence after the one you read states that the drive is being read properly. Here's the quote:

I switch the IDE cables and it recognizes the drive properly, and we install WinXP.

Edit: I'm not trying to be rude or defensive, but this whole situation is quite frustrating, and having people read between the lines and not what I actually wrote doesn't help the problem any. ^^;

[Shana-chan]

Christmas? Is it not still under warranty?

I custom made the computer, it's not a premade. :/ So there is no warranty for the whole thing. And I could only return parts until 30 days, and it's very muchly past 30 days..

[stikflote]

it might have been under warranty but its not now,    its been messed about with

[Shana-chan]

it might have been under warranty but its not now,    its been messed about with

It was NEVER under warranty. It's a custom built computer that I put together myself. I bought all the parts and put them all in the tower. It's not a premade, and it doesn't have a warranty. :/

[Duncan_McGregor]

\Ö/

1. This is a 250 GB drive. How big was the one you had before and how big was the original?

This is a brand new system, and both harddrives were the same size (same brand and type, different/newer model).

2. What are you using to partition the drive with, XP?

When we actually got it to run XP, we were using that. What we use at the base (non-OS stage) is the actual Windows setup program.

3. Has the XP CD got SP2? (If not you could slipstream it with SP2 and RyanVMs update pack using nLite.)

No, it has SP1, but it worked on the whole drive on the first drive, and only this drive completely refuses to work above a 60GB partition. What's nLite? @_@

4. Has the 2000 CD got the latest Service Pack?

No, and service pack 4 completely screws up our systems.

5. Have you had a look in Device Manager to see if the controllers are running on UDMA or PIO?

I haven't, however the BIOS says 'UDMA6' in the model name for the harddrive.

6. How are the three partitions formatted?

Well, right now they're not. :/ It's pretty dead.. When they were partitioned, it was 60GB, 60GB, and then the remainder (125 or so?). The first partition was formatted in the Windows setup, and the rest were in XP. They were all NTFS format.

7. Have you run a memory diagnostic test and the drive makers diagnostic tests?

I haven't, but I have been checking all the drives and memory chips and making sure they work properly (checking in Windows, moving them around physically, and checking in the BIOS) and they all work fine. The only real problems were having is with the harddrive.

When we were running XP, however, the OS would NOT let us install anything properly, and everything was taking forever to load. When we ran Win2K, everything installed fast and easy, and ran in good time.

Update on our situation: we formatted the drive last night, put in a 60GB partition using the Windows installer, and installed Win2K. It worked well for a while. Then we installed Service Pack 3 (because 4 messes up our video and game codecs for some reason) and it did the black screen thing again.   This is getting really bothersome. I even reseated the RAM, and put it in a different slot, and blah, and still nothing! I'm checking the jumpers today, and after that... well, I might get a sata adapter and see if that makes it run better or not.

ASRock 775V88 VIA PT880 Motherboard Review

Large Hard Drive Support  (48 bit LBA)

How is the RAM, is it one 1024 MB module and which color slot is it in? If it is two 512 MB modules which slots are you using? (Normally two of the same color.)

Which anti-virus program are you using?

OK, on nLite. nLite is essentially a slipstreamer and OS pre-install set up program which allows you to make a new, up-to-date, installation CD with which to do an unattended install.

You can set a number of personal preferences and your ProductKey so that the .ISO file produced by nLite will produce the OS of your dreams with all the junk removed. (If you are into removing junk.)

For example you use your XP SP1 CD and add SP2 and RyanVMs update pack (English) then put your personal settings and preferences in and add your ProductKey. nLite will then produce an .ISO file and all you have to do is to burn a CD-ROM(ISO) to a good quality CDR using NERO. (Recorder>Burn Image...)

Quite often the newly burned CD will install easily where the original gave problems, but the original CD has to be scrupulously clean and no fingerprints on the surface anyway when using nLite.

If you want a simpler way of doing things you can use AutoStreamer so you don't have to add all the service packs and updates from the update site every time the install goes wrong.

Click ze \Ö/ link below and then click SLIPSTREAM SERVICE PACKS.

[GX1_Man]

Edit: I'm not trying to be rude or defensive, but this whole situation is quite frustrating, and having people read between the lines and not what I actually wrote doesn't help the problem any.

I have re-read this whole thread and it is confusing based on the information you have provided and your notion of how things are supposed to work. You have been told that things are not correct at the hardware level, and that the installation has been hosed, but are resistant to the help offered. You persevere in trying to set it up the way you think it should work even though that has never worked. You later added that switching out an IDE cable did in fact improve things, but you still have not run basic diagnostic software on the drive. nLite will not help this situation at all. Don't look for a solution there.

Let's start again.

1) Cable the drive as a Master and make sure it shows up in BIOS correctly.
2) Run hard drive diagnostics from the manufacturer's web site.
(if this shows problems, stop here.)
3) Delete ALL partitions on the drive.
4) When booting from the XP CD Create 3 partitions if that's what you want, then choose to format and install on C ( Do not not use MaxBlast or other third party tools. You do not need those. This will also allow your hard drive partitions to be C, D and E instead of what you now have.)
5) If you want Windows 2000 also on that system load it first!

We are not trying to be argumentative. It seems that when advice is offered we get a lot of "Yes, but..." instead of taking the the advice that was given. Keep your mind open.

[Duncan_McGregor]

nLite will not help this situation at all.

nLite gives the opportunity to cool down and do something else whilst the mind takes in what might have gone wrong.

However I am interested to know at what stage the firewall is installed and at what stage the anti-virus program is installed, updated, and run, because all too often people rush in and update the operating system before installing any protection.

Hence...

If all of the service packs and updates are assembled on another, virus-free computer, and ready present for installing on good quality slipstreamed CDs  there is more likelihood of doing things in the right order.

Without even connecting to the internet and risking infection, you can do all of the setting up of the system and then make a drive image so that most of the labour is preserved.

This way takes preparation, is part of preventative thinking, instead of the usual slap-dash wait until it breaks down thinking, and will save a LOT of unnecessary frustration if planned properly.

In professional engineering terms it is the difference between planned preventative maintenance and operation and 'breakdown maintenance'.

I have worked myself nearly to death (should have tried harder, I know) doing breakdown 'maintenance' on badly run situations and had a marvellous experience, working with other professionals when systems were planned properly and maintained properly and there are millions more who know that proper planning and preventative maintenance is the best way to go.

But these were entire shipboard systems and very much more sophisticated than these things which are mainly in use as 'geeks' toys.

Otherwise I agree with you.

What the *censored* is a 'geek' anyway?

[Shana-chan]

Edit: I'm not trying to be rude or defensive, but this whole situation is quite frustrating, and having people read between the lines and not what I actually wrote doesn't help the problem any.

I have re-read this whole thread and it is confusing based on the information you have provided and your notion of how things are supposed to work. You have been told that things are not correct at the hardware level, and that the installation has been hosed, but are resistant to the help offered. You persevere in trying to set it up the way you think it should work even though that has never worked. You later added that switching out an IDE cable did in fact improve things, but you still have not run basic diagnostic software on the drive. nLite will not help this situation at all. Don't look for a solution there.

Let's start again.

1) Cable the drive as a Master and make sure it shows up in BIOS correctly.
2) Run hard drive diagnostics from the manufacturer's web site.
(if this shows problems, stop here.)
3) Delete ALL partitions on the drive.
4) When booting from the XP CD Create 3 partitions if that's what you want, then choose to format and install on C ( Do not not use MaxBlast or other third party tools. You do not need those. This will also allow your hard drive partitions to be C, D and E instead of what you now have.)
5) If you want Windows 2000 also on that system load it first!

We are not trying to be argumentative. It seems that when advice is offered we get a lot of "Yes, but..." instead of taking the the advice that was given. Keep your mind open.

Look, I HAVE been doing everything that everyone has suggested. We haven't been able to get it up and running long enough to run any sort of diagnostics. I don't appreciate you treating me as though I'm an idiot because I'm telling people what's wrong and why it didn't work when I DID do it.

Everytime someone suggests something, if IT'S POSSIBLE TO DO AT THIS POINT IN TIME I do it. I can't run a diagnostic when I don't have an operating system. I've tried every possible combination in cables, jumpers, settings, placement, ETC, things that I can do at the point in operation that I am at now, and nothing has worked so far.

I've been working on this PARTICULAR harddrive for two weeks, thus I HAVE done everything that people have suggested so far.

I've done every one of those steps except for the diagnostics, because I don't have an operating system on it, and it won't stay on. If you give me a link for a BOOT DISK file that will run those diagnostics, I will run it, however, we don't have anything like that.

[Backdated]

I'm outa here!

[Duncan_McGregor]

I've done every one of those steps except for the diagnostics, because I don't have an operating system on it, and it won't stay on. If you give me a link for a BOOT DISK file that will run those diagnostics, I will run it, however, we don't have anything like that.

If you have a floppy drive, or CD-ROM drive, you don't need an operating system to run diagnostics.

Click on the link below and then on BOOTDISKS and visit the drive manufacturer's site for a drive diagnostic bootable floppy image file.

[Shana-chan]

How is the RAM, is it one 1024 MB module and which color slot is it in? If it is two 512 MB modules which slots are you using? (Normally two of the same color.)
 
Which anti-virus program are you using?

It's one 1024 MB module, and it was in the DIMM 1 slot, but is now in the DIMM 3 slot, which are both blue.

We're not currently using an anti-virus anything because we can't get the OS to load without cutting it into 60GB partitions (we reformatted and are trying to load WinXP on the whole drive since we were able to before getting the replacement drive), so we haven't had a chance to load an anti-virus program. However, we use Grisoft free version when we do have an anti-virus program, and we also use Firefox set up so it doesn't download anything, so that popups and sites can't load programs on our computers (the virus was received on the first harddrive from a file that he willingly downloaded and didn't check before he opened it, because it was a self-extracting file).

For example you use your XP SP1 CD and add SP2 and RyanVMs update pack (English) then put your personal settings and preferences in and add your ProductKey. nLite will then produce an .ISO file and all you have to do is to burn a CD-ROM(ISO) to a good quality CDR using NERO. (Recorder>Burn Image...)

Oh, I didn't know there was a thing. We'll give that a try as well (I didn't know what nLite was @_@).

However I am interested to know at what stage the firewall is installed and at what stage the anti-virus program is installed, updated, and run, because all too often people rush in and update the operating system before installing any protection.
 

We have a router that has an automatic firewall on it (doesn't catch everything, but it helps), and when we use XP it usually has the firewall automatically installed. We never catch viruses from websites, only when we download corrupted files.

I have worked myself nearly to death (should have tried harder, I know) doing breakdown 'maintenance' on badly run situations and had a marvellous experience, working with other professionals when systems were planned properly and maintained properly and there are millions more who know that proper planning and preventative maintenance is the best way to go.
 

I agree, and I do my best to keep my hubby's system protected, but sometimes hubris gets the best of even the safest people. ^^

[Shana-chan]

I've done every one of those steps except for the diagnostics, because I don't have an operating system on it, and it won't stay on. If you give me a link for a BOOT DISK file that will run those diagnostics, I will run it, however, we don't have anything like that.

If you have a floppy drive, or CD-ROM drive, you don't need an operating system to run diagnostics.

Click on the link below and then on BOOTDISKS and visit the drive manufacturer's site for a drive diagnostic bootable floppy image file.

Okay. ^^ I've only had to run diagnostics once (about 7 years or more ago), so I didn't know where/how they were supposed to be done. Maybe the MaxBlast bootdisk already has a diagnostic on it?

[Shana-chan]

I'm outa here!

Hehe. XD Sorry I'm frustrating you guys, but I'm just as frustrated, believe me. However, acting like I don't know anything about anything, and acting like I haven't done anything, doesn't help. I honestly have done everything that has been suggested, and I'm still doing and looking into them, so just try and help me figure out if there's something else wrong.

I'm currently getting what I need to run diagnostics. When I get the results I'll let everyone know.

[Backdated]

I'm outa here!

You've been watching too many American television series.

I don't watch TV, American or otherwise.