Best IDE Configuration

[sean1313]

Hello all!

Basically to start off, after I/O errors from my DVDR Drive (and other bugs), I did a format on my HDD and reinstalled my OS. I believe my problems were due to my IDE configuration.

Firstly, I noticed in IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers in Device Manager list:

*PRIMARY IDE CHANNEL
*PRIMARY IDE CHANNEL
*SECONDARY IDE CHANNEL
*SECONDARY IDE CHANNEL
*STANDARD DUAL CHANNEL PCI IDE CONTROLLER
*VIA BUS MASTER IDE CONTROLLER

Why do I have 2 of primary and secondary IDE channels? Should I disable 1 of each?

I have a:

Acer Aspire T135
AMD Sampron 3300+
2.0 Ghz
2 GB RAM
Windows XP Home
Gigabyte K8VM800MAE Motherboard

I have 2 HDDs. The 160 GB HD is my system HD and the other is a 40 GB. I have one Ativa DVDR Drive also.

So the best config is:

IDE O:
Primary: 160 GB HD (Master)
Secondary: 40 GB HD (Slave)

IDE 1:
Primary: DVDR Drive (jumper to Master or Cable Select?)
Secondary: Empty

40 pin cable or 80 pin?

Any help would be greatly appreciated! I just want my DVDR Drive to work reliably!

Thanx
Sean

[Geek-9pm]

You use of the terms "primary" and "secondly" are confusing. Is that  the exact wording in the BIOS?
The setup you have appears to be alright.
The 80 wire cable is preferred, and is required for cable select.
The 40 sire IDE must have the individual drives set to "Master"  or "Slave".
In some cases drives from different manufactures have confusing jumper options. You almost have to stand on your head to read them.
Here is a very good guide here on this forum.
http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000413.htm
Please read it over and if there is something not clear, please come back here.

[patio]

Your machine has 2 IDE slots on the MBoard...
Each slot will carry a Primary and secondary drive...
The HDD's should be on the 1st channel which you have...
The Optical drive should be Primary...jumpered as Master and connected to the end of the ribbon cable on the 2nd IDE slot.
Far as i can see it looks like your good to go...

[sean1313]

Thanx for the help!

I opened it up and made the changes. Here is where I am at.

The 160 GB System HD is on Sata 0 with the jumper on Master. Sata 1 is empty.

The 40 GB HD is on IDE 1 with the jumper on Slave. Used an 80 pin cable with it connected to the end and not middle. I used an 80 pin since the base on the motherboard for IDE 1 was blue and IDE 2 was black. The 80 pin cable had a blue connector.

The DVDR Drive is on IDE 2 with the jumper on Master. Used a 40 pin cable with it connected to the end and not middle.

Sound good? Is there any settings I need to change in Windows, etc?

Thanx

[patio]

The 40G should be on the middle connector...other than that fine.

MB=========================================Slave=========Master.

[BC_Programmer]

The 80 wire cable is preferred, and is required for cable select.

the 80-wire and 40-wire conductor cables have exactly the same signal pins. the 80 wire variety has ground pins to even out signal jitter and so forth. It doesn't add any features aside from that.

Cable Select works fine with a 40-wire conductor cable.

The 40G should be on the middle connector...other than that fine.

I Disagree. From what I understand of the semantics the 40GB is on one IDE channel/Cable at the end connector and set to slave, and the Optical drive is on a 40-wire cable anbd set to master.

Now, the problem is that the ATA-5... (or is it 6.... whichever one introduced ATA-133) is rather clear on a limitation that a cable should not have a Slave drive with no master; results can be unpredictable.

Therefore my suggestion is to simply set the 40GB to master, and keep it connected to the end connector of the cable.

Regarding the original issue that absolutely nobody has addressed at all-

Firstly, I noticed in IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers in Device Manager list:

*PRIMARY IDE CHANNEL
*PRIMARY IDE CHANNEL
*SECONDARY IDE CHANNEL
*SECONDARY IDE CHANNEL
*STANDARD DUAL CHANNEL PCI IDE CONTROLLER
*VIA BUS MASTER IDE CONTROLLER

Why do I have 2 of primary and secondary IDE channels? Should I disable 1 of each?

One thing you can do is remove all of those, and reboot after you've removed them all. Windows should add only what you actually have. But, if the computer is working fine, you have no reason to change it. having a device ghosted in Device manager doesn't mean your PC is posessed or that it's going to explode or transmutate into a likeness of Jaleel White; unless you are having issues specifically related to the ghosted devices it's usually best to just leave it alone.

[Geek-9pm]

Just take out what BC_ a programmer said about IDE cables .
You can find answers to the question by doing a Google search on 80 pin  IDE cable.
FOR BC = 1 to 5
    The 80 pin cable is both  preferred and required.
NEXT BC
As to the Hardware manager, don't worry about how it identifies the interface. Unless there really is a duplication of drivers, which would result in a yellow triangle.

The two colors of the connectors on the motherboard are to help you find which connector is IDE 0 and IDE 1 on the motherboard. Not all motherboards are so nice.

[BC_Programmer]

Just take out what BC_ a programmer said about IDE cables .
You can find answers to the question by doing a Google search on 80 pin  IDE cable.
FOR BC = 1 to 5
    The 80 pin cable is both  preferred and required.
NEXT BC
.

yeha, OK, just a second, let me go yell at my 386 for working properly with Cable Select for 3+ years. a 80-conductor cable is preferred simply because it allows for IDE drives to operate at full speed.but it has the exact same number of active pinouts as the 80 conductor cable. Cable Select is implemented Purely between the drives and the IDE controller, and uses the same pins that are present on both an 80-conductor and a 40-conductor cable.

So, a "google  search" will say that I need a 80 conductor cable for cable select. Does it explain why cable select existed and worked fine for <years> before the 80-conductor cable and ATA-133 was introduced? Will it explain why my IDE drive from 1984 sports a Master, Slave, and Cable Select setting? were the creators of said drives merely psychic and able to predict that magical day when their function would become a reality with a cable that somehow sends extra data to and from the drives and yet uses the exact same number of active signal wires?

[Geek-9pm]

Let me Google that for you.
http://tinyurl.com/ye6h9ss

[patio]

The 40 GB HD is on IDE 1 with the jumper on Slave. Used an 80 pin cable with it connected to the end and not middle. I used an 80 pin since the base on the motherboard for IDE 1 was blue and IDE 2 was black. The 80 pin cable had a blue connector.

I Disagree. From what I understand of the semantics the 40GB is on one IDE channel/Cable at the end connector and set to slave, and the Optical drive is on a 40-wire cable anbd set to master.

It's on it's only channel and is the only drive present...

[sean1313]

I thought that you weren't supposed to have two HD's set to 'Master' regardless whether both are IDE or one was SATA (like me). Or is that only when it is with the System HD? I just left it as 'Slave' to be safe.

I also thought if you have only one thing on an IDE cable, to put it at the end regardless of Master/Slave setting. Anyways it doesn't seem to effect the HD, so I am leaving it on 'Slave'.

BTW...I burned a DVDR. No I/O error and it wrote at full speed, where before it would burn 8.0x max. 

Thanx for the help!

[patio]

SATA doesn't normally use jumpers...a SATA connection will always override an IDE and become master unless changes are made in the BIOS...
If the cabling is working as is then leave it be.