Motherboard or Hard drive problem??

Digger · 9th Dec 2002, 11:53 PM

Hi,Last night when I shutdown everything seemed fine at first, but the computer shut off and then back on then it lost the hard drive. I tried a few things but was p****d and went to bed LOL. When I got up I went into the BIOS and did the Auto-detect on the hard drive and now its working. My question is do you think the drive or motherboard is going south or did the computer have a fit of stupidity? I appreciate any comments.

System:Gigabyte GA 7VTXE+,MSI GeForce 2 MX-400,WD 60GIG 7200RPM, Athlon XP 1700,USR 56K PCI hardware modem,Memorex 48X CD-Rom, Lite-on 24x10x40 CDRW

Chai · 10th Dec 2002, 02:47 PM

This sort of funny things happened to me before. If you're worried about your HDD going bonkers, you should start backing up your stuff.

PY 222 · 10th Dec 2002, 04:50 PM

Some questions. How long have you had your harddrive? And has this ever happened to you prior to that specific night?

If your hardrive is old, then maybe its time to change

Chai · 10th Dec 2002, 05:23 PM

By looking at his system spec, it certainly doesn't look like more than 1 yr old.

peaz · 10th Dec 2002, 08:04 PM

well, i had this detecting hard disk problem also. Now set to Auto and it works like a charm...

Ken's theory on this problem:

Hard disk did not spin up fast enough before boot sequence starts...

Well, mine sometime does not spin up at all until a soft reset!

I'm guessing power supply problems. But no money to get a good one now. sigh

Adrian Wong · 11th Dec 2002, 01:02 AM

Hmm.. if your hard disk cannot spin up fast enough (before IDE initialization starts), you can delay IDE initialization via the BIOS option - Delay IDE Initial.

Just increase the time from the default of 0 seconds until you hit a sweet spot where it allows enough time for your hard disk to spin up before initialization starts. Remember to test each time increase with a cold boot. Hot booting will not show you the effectiveness of the increased delay since your hard disk will still be spinning.

Hope that helps you some!

Digger · 11th Dec 2002, 02:07 AM

Digger · 11th Dec 2002, 04:05 AM

First, thanks for your replies. I built the system around February so everything is still under warranty and i'm putting my important file on CDR'S right now. Everytime I start now I have to go in the BIOS and do the auto detect the HDD. I'll keep trying a few things to see if I can pinpoint the exact problem. Please keep the suggestions coming. When I find out the real cause I'll let you know.
Thanks

Adrian Wong · 11th Dec 2002, 07:45 PM

Hmm... if you don't me asking, is it possible that your CMOS battery is out of juice or not connected properly? Do your other BIOS settings revert to default whenever you power off and on again?

Digger · 12th Dec 2002, 01:26 AM

Hi Adrian, All the other settings stay the same. The tech at the local computer store said to flash the BIOS and see if that would help. I did that last night and the flash was succsessful but I still have the problem. He also said that I try and put the drive on the secondary IDE controller to see if its a bad controller I plan on trying that sometime today.Someone also suggested a bad power supply I think that will be the last thing i try.Let me know if you have any other ideas.
Thanks, Digger

9th Dec 2002, 11:53 PM	#1 (permalink)
Digger Newbie Join Date: 20 Oct 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 17 Reputation: 0 Rep Power: 0	Motherboard or Hard drive problem?? Hi,Last night when I shutdown everything seemed fine at first, but the computer shut off and then back on then it lost the hard drive. I tried a few things but was p****d and went to bed LOL. When I got up I went into the BIOS and did the Auto-detect on the hard drive and now its working. My question is do you think the drive or motherboard is going south or did the computer have a fit of stupidity? I appreciate any comments. System:Gigabyte GA 7VTXE+,MSI GeForce 2 MX-400,WD 60GIG 7200RPM, Athlon XP 1700,USR 56K PCI hardware modem,Memorex 48X CD-Rom, Lite-on 24x10x40 CDRW

10th Dec 2002, 02:47 PM	#2 (permalink)
Chai Administrator Join Date: 6 Oct 2002 Location: Maranello Posts: 28,124 Reputation: 4649 Rep Power: 82	This sort of funny things happened to me before. If you're worried about your HDD going bonkers, you should start backing up your stuff. __________________ Chai (Contributor & Forum Admin) http://www.techarp.com/

10th Dec 2002, 04:50 PM	#3 (permalink)
PY 222 DF King Join Date: 10 Oct 2002 Location: Look behind you! Posts: 3,080 Reputation: 24 Rep Power: 11	Some questions. How long have you had your harddrive? And has this ever happened to you prior to that specific night? If your hardrive is old, then maybe its time to change __________________ Signature is currently disabled. Please contact the Administrator for more information.

10th Dec 2002, 05:23 PM	#4 (permalink)
Chai Administrator Join Date: 6 Oct 2002 Location: Maranello Posts: 28,124 Reputation: 4649 Rep Power: 82	By looking at his system spec, it certainly doesn't look like more than 1 yr old. __________________ Chai (Contributor & Forum Admin) http://www.techarp.com/

10th Dec 2002, 08:04 PM	#5 (permalink)
peaz ARP Webmaster Join Date: 13 Oct 2002 Location: http://atpeaz.com/ Posts: 8,595 Reputation: 1673 Rep Power: 32	well, i had this detecting hard disk problem also. Now set to Auto and it works like a charm... Ken's theory on this problem: Hard disk did not spin up fast enough before boot sequence starts... Well, mine sometime does not spin up at all until a soft reset! I'm guessing power supply problems. But no money to get a good one now. sigh __________________ Ken Ng Tech ARP Follow me at Twitter Blogs @ http://www.atpeaz.com/

11th Dec 2002, 01:02 AM	#6 (permalink)
Adrian Wong Da Boss Join Date: 10 Oct 2002 Location: In front of my ASUS F8V notebook! Posts: 33,137 Reputation: 3730 Rep Power: 78	Hmm.. if your hard disk cannot spin up fast enough (before IDE initialization starts), you can delay IDE initialization via the BIOS option - Delay IDE Initial. Just increase the time from the default of 0 seconds until you hit a sweet spot where it allows enough time for your hard disk to spin up before initialization starts. Remember to test each time increase with a cold boot. Hot booting will not show you the effectiveness of the increased delay since your hard disk will still be spinning. Hope that helps you some! __________________ Dr. Adrian Wong Tech ARP \| Blog @ Tech ARP \| The Free Trade Zone DYKT : The only offshore account I have is at the sand bank? We need PROGRAMMERS and TECHNICAL WRITERS! Contact us if you are a hot shot programmer or technical writer! My items for sale : 50x SD Card \| Memory Stick PRO \| Cyclone Energy Saver \| Seiko SS watch \| Tiger/Carlsberg beer jugs \| Travel Speakers \| Motorola V600 \| Nokia N90 SOLD! \| New Lowepro Mini Trekker AW Other items for sale @ the FTZ : Zalman CNPS9500 LED @ $20 \| Zalman CNPS7700 Cu @ $20 \| Zalman CNPS7000 Cu @ $20 \| Swarovski bracelet watches \| Dell 17" LCD \| Hi-Fi speakers \| English DIVX movies \| HP LaserJet toners! \| Office chairs

11th Dec 2002, 02:07 AM	#7 (permalink)
Digger Newbie Join Date: 20 Oct 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 17 Reputation: 0 Rep Power: 0

11th Dec 2002, 04:05 AM	#8 (permalink)
Digger Newbie Join Date: 20 Oct 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 17 Reputation: 0 Rep Power: 0	problem First, thanks for your replies. I built the system around February so everything is still under warranty and i'm putting my important file on CDR'S right now. Everytime I start now I have to go in the BIOS and do the auto detect the HDD. I'll keep trying a few things to see if I can pinpoint the exact problem. Please keep the suggestions coming. When I find out the real cause I'll let you know. Thanks

11th Dec 2002, 07:45 PM	#9 (permalink)
Adrian Wong Da Boss Join Date: 10 Oct 2002 Location: In front of my ASUS F8V notebook! Posts: 33,137 Reputation: 3730 Rep Power: 78	Hmm... if you don't me asking, is it possible that your CMOS battery is out of juice or not connected properly? Do your other BIOS settings revert to default whenever you power off and on again? __________________ Dr. Adrian Wong Tech ARP \| Blog @ Tech ARP \| The Free Trade Zone DYKT : The only offshore account I have is at the sand bank? We need PROGRAMMERS and TECHNICAL WRITERS! Contact us if you are a hot shot programmer or technical writer! My items for sale : 50x SD Card \| Memory Stick PRO \| Cyclone Energy Saver \| Seiko SS watch \| Tiger/Carlsberg beer jugs \| Travel Speakers \| Motorola V600 \| Nokia N90 SOLD! \| New Lowepro Mini Trekker AW Other items for sale @ the FTZ : Zalman CNPS9500 LED @ $20 \| Zalman CNPS7700 Cu @ $20 \| Zalman CNPS7000 Cu @ $20 \| Swarovski bracelet watches \| Dell 17" LCD \| Hi-Fi speakers \| English DIVX movies \| HP LaserJet toners! \| Office chairs

12th Dec 2002, 01:26 AM	#10 (permalink)
Digger Newbie Join Date: 20 Oct 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 17 Reputation: 0 Rep Power: 0	Problem Hi Adrian, All the other settings stay the same. The tech at the local computer store said to flash the BIOS and see if that would help. I did that last night and the flash was succsessful but I still have the problem. He also said that I try and put the drive on the secondary IDE controller to see if its a bad controller I plan on trying that sometime today.Someone also suggested a bad power supply I think that will be the last thing i try.Let me know if you have any other ideas. Thanks, Digger