I've just replaced an old hard drive with a new one. The old one was 2 gig and the new one is 20 gig. When I try to install Windows XP it tells me that I need to have a valid FAT or FAT32 drive, but I can't fdisk it because it says no fixed disks found. When I replaced the hard drive, I plugged the new one in exactly with the cords that were in the old one. Any ideas?

Thanks...

If your system is sooooo old that it had a 2GB hard drive, your bios probably won't find any drive as large as 20GB. Check to see if there is a bios update flash, or scrap the pentium 0 computer.

Your bios is probably too old to detect a drive of that size. My guess is that it only detects up to 8 gigs. You could either put the drive in a newer machine and by itself to fdisk it and create partitons smaller than 8 gigs and then put it in the other machine and install XP. Or you could see if their is a bios update for that motherboard. Don't use utilities such as max blast though. Personally i would just put it in another machine and do it that way.

I have a computer that had about an 850MB HDD. I replaced it with a 40GB HDD by running EZ-BIOS and it works fine. I would look into a bios update. Also make sure you meet the minimum requirements for WINXP.

Did you use 2 hard drives at the same time, or you just replace your new 20GB into your 2GB? What about the BIOS? Did it recognize your 20GB HD in BIOS? If it doesn't, then definiately you can't find your fixed disk. If you have the old Intel 430 chipset or 430xx, the biggest HD will support is 8.4GB. If you have 440LX, 440BX, 440EX, 440ZX, 440xx, you should able to upgrade to a 32GB HD.

1) make sure the hdd straps are set correctly.

2) run FDISK to partition new hdd - enable large disk support.

3) format hdd - if hdd larger than 2gb, fat32 has to be used.

4) if bios does not see all hdd capacity (often max of 8gb) then go to hdd makers website and download their drive manager program which overcomes this problem.

5) strongly suggest do not try to reflash bios as ise unnecessary and can cause major problems if failure occurs.

Good luck - keep us posted.

Hi all,

Thank you very much for your responses. The old hard drive is actually a 6 gig, not a 2. This new 20 gig is a hard drive that belonged to my dad but when he tried to use it he had problems, so he just packed it back into the box. Now he's given it to my sister to use. In the bios it gives me the option to boot to the hard drive but I'm not sure that means it's being detected. I'm thinking I haven't hooked it up correctly, although I just used the same cables as the old hard drive. Is there a place where I can see a diagram of how things are supposed to be hooked up inside? Once this hard drive issue is taken care of I have a burner to put in it, but I wanted to get rid of this problem before I started another...lol

Thanks all for your suggestions, you're very helpful!

TracyB99

First, if your dad had problems, keep in mind that it may be defective. However...

Go to the website of the MFR for a diagram and instructions. You should have a setup disk that will check the drive and your system for compatibility. If you do not have this disk, then download the software from the MFR website. All this info should be in the "Support" section.

If the drive is not recognized at all (and if it is not defective), I would guess the jumper may be set wrong. Some drives have a special setting to be the only drive on the channel. Look for proper jumper settings in the instructions.

If you need help, post the MFR and model of the harddrive and how you are placing other IDE deviices (primary master, primary slave, secondary master, secondary slave).

This is the message I'm getting with this hard drive in.....

windows 98 has detected that drive C does not contain a valid FAT or FAT32
partition,There are several possible causes.

1.The drive may need to be partitioned.To create a partition on the
drive,run FDISK from the MS-DOS command prompt.

2.You may be using third-party disk-partitioning software.If you are using
the type of software,remove the Emergency Boot Disk and restart your
computer,then follow the on screen instructions to start your computer from
a floppy disk.

3.Some viruses also cause your drive C to not register.You can use a virus
scanning program to check your computer for viruses.

The diagnostic tools were successfully loaded to drive C.

When I try to fdisk it then tells me that there is no fixed disk present. Is there some sort of software I can download to get partitions into this hard drive? I might be able to get it going from there..

Thanks!

TracyB99

Dear Tracy - referring to my earlier post.

The first thing to check is the hdd strap settings. These may be shown on the hdd label, otherwise go to the hdd makers website for the info.

Set the strap(s) for master or master with slave. Then connect the flat primary interface cable (either connector) and the power cable.

Alternatively set the strap(s) for cable select. You then must use the end connector for master and the middle for the slave device.

Now go to the bios and check the primary master is enabled and set for auto detect.

The bios should now (hopefully) see the hdd.

If still problems, check the hdd info to see if an enhanced interface cable is required.

Good luck - keep us posted.

The settings referred to above are called "jumper settings." This is usually the cause of your error message. What hdd do you have? What other drives do you have?

Post back with this info and I will give you the correct settings for your system / tell you where to find it.

An alternative you could try using instead of going with a BIOS upgrade would be to use an off-board IDE controller such as a Promise Ultra100 or Ultra133 controller. You would have to set your BIOS to boot a SCSI device. Since the drive is detected by the controller's BIOS, your system BIOS is not needed for larger drive detection.

Dear: TracyB99
You need to find out if this drive is Defective before you do anything else.

Find someone who has a "Newer" machine, and see if they will let you test your drive in it.
Open their case, and remove the cables for their hard drive. Mount your hard drive along side theirs, if their is room. Make absolutely sure that the jumper on your hard drive is set to "Master". Put in your floppy and boot up the machine. Run Fdisk and see what you get. If it finds the drive, then continue with creating the partitions.
Here is a link to show you how to partition the drive.
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=%2fsupport%2fwindows%2freadme%2fwinme%2fcleanhd.asp
Just make sure you don't go over 8 gigs for each partition, which i'm guessing is the most your motherboard will recognize.
Also when you create the Primary dos partition remember to say no when it asks if you want to use all of the available space for C:, you should set that to 8 gigs.
I don't know what problem your Dad was having with the drive, but if it shows up with partitions already on it then make sure you delete all of them and reboot and start over.
You could create a 8 gig primary=C: then in the extended partition you create a logical dos drive of 8 gigs=D:, and then another logical dos drive=E: with the remainder.
Your machine should then be able to see the drive properly. If it still can't see the drive correctly, then set the bios to manual for the Hard drive and enter the specs which should be on the drives label or get them from the manufacturers web site.
Of course if you can't fdisk the drive in the newer machine, then it's probably junk.
If that happens and you are still in the mood to try more, I would suggest trying to Low Level Format the drive using their LLF utility off of the drive manufacturers website. Make sure to use the one thats made for your drive.
Anyway, It's worth a try.

Oh yeah, as far as the cables go, just make sure the drive is connected to the end of the IDE Ribbon cable and also make sure that the red wire on that cable is connected to pin 1 on the Hard drive.

Thanks all for your replies. It turns out it wasn't set in the bios properly, so once that was done it was recognized.

Thanks again! You guys rock!

I have a different problem with my hard drive. I am running a low version of windows xp. I just got a new 120GB hard drive. I set it as a slave. When I boot up the computer, I press "del" and it takes me to the section that tells me about what is setup. Indeed my new hard drive shows up as the slave. But when I go into windows, it is not visible under my computer. So I check the device manager - and my new hard drive can be see there, and it says it is working.

So my question is this... how do I actually USE my new hard drive. It does not sow up under my computer, so I am not able to store things on it.

Please help.

-Sam