Need HDD Help!

[zike_42]

I dont know and even the tech guys at the company i bought it at know so here it goes:
I just bought a new computer and i turned it on and everything was fine. BUT then it just turned off and when i turned it on it didnt get to startup.  it just said "cannot find a start up file" its corrupt or missing.  so i put the xp disk in and it went to the setup and went fine but when it was finishing it said that it cant find the hard drive and stopped installing.  this is all before the stage where you can use your mouse in the black screen with white writing stage.  so my conclusion is that the computer cannot find or doesnt recognise the hard drive.  please help me, i have tried everything i can think of.

[pcdoc4christ]

Zike:

Two things to try:

Unplug the personal computer (PC) & open up the case.  Check the cable (the one with 40- or 80-wires) connected to the hard drive to see that it has not come loose.  Try disconnecting where it connects to the hard drive & reconnecting it again.  Then try disconnecting where it connects to the motherboard & reconnecting it again.  Make sure not to reverse the cable or bend any wires.  The red line indicates where to connect pin number one.

Next, check the Molex connector (the one coming from the power supply with red, yellow & black wires) to make sure it is firmly connected to the hard drive.

Then, put the cover back on the case & power up the PC.  The computer BIOS (i.e. the firmware on the motherboard) should detect the hard drive.  

If you still get the error, try turning the power off, unplugging the PC, & opening up the case.  Then, unplug the Molex connector from the hard drive & plug a different Molex connector from the power supply in its place.  (Make sure not to plug it in upside down!)  Close the cover, plug in the PC & try to power up the machine again.  

If that doesn't work, let us know.  We'll try resetting the BIOS to the defaults.

Regards,
Doc