Hard disk drives not recognized by BIOS

[yeti]

I am having a problem booting my Dell Dimension 8250.  
I am running Windows XP Home.
After a couple of years, when I boot a get an error "Pimary Drive Not Found, Secondary Drive Not Found"  "F1 to continue or F2 to Setup"

F1 gets the same message.  F2 goes to Setup.

If I make any change to the configuration and even change it back to the original, I press ESC  and Save and Exit the PC boots correctly with not problem.

I I restart the PC I have not problem, but if I power it down I have to go through Setup again to get it to boot.  

I thought that it may be an error in the BIOS, but I downloaded and installed the latest from Dell and I still have the problem.

Any suggestion will be greatly appreciated.

Yeti

[merlin_2]

check the ides cables.........or download a diagnostic program like sisoftsandra........what does the* disk management program* tell you about your hard drive

*control panel/admin tools*

[SmurfanCoke]

If the PC is a couple of years old, could it be the CMOS backup battery?, just an idea..

[merlin_2]

Good thought......Quote: As msoft says anything is possible....yes just rip people off.....by upgrading to winxp.....software of old msoft will some be readunant? to a mass even more wealth.......bgates is time to spend the cash on the needy.....you will not live long enough to spend it unless you are planning to end up like Robocop.....

[Raptor]

Properly set Master and Slave jumper. Also check to see if IDE cables are connected properly.

[Computer_Commando]

If the PC is a couple of years old, could it be the CMOS backup battery?, just an idea..

It's a good idea, that's what I was thinking.  The CMOS battery should last 5-10 years, but maybe you have a bad one.  Did you check the diagnostic lights on the back of the tower?
Advanced Troubleshooting