I'm setting up an NT 4.0 Server from scratch. The computer has 30GB HD's with PIII 500. When I try to setup the NT OS the installation only recognizes 8GB of the 16GB wasting the remaining space. I know NT 4.0 has a 4GB limit on the OS but why can't I setup 2 partitions, one with 4GB and the other 14GB. Please help. thanks.....

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Willy - have you read the link (John Savill's)? It tells you how to handle the larger drives under NT4... Install NT to the 4Gig C: Primary partition -fat16/ntfs (presuming you do not want to allow for other OS in the future); follow John Savill's info re ATAPI.exe update (for drives over 7.8/8Gig); once NT installed OK, run Disk Admin to configure balance of drive as you wish. If you have even the slightest intention of dual/multi-boot in the future then perhaps follow the model below: Primary: c: fat16 = 250Meg = active = boot/startup files only; Extended: d: = fat16/ntfs4 (your choice) = 4Gig max = NT System files (the OS itself) + apps/utils; e: = data = ???Gig = ntfs4 only (if over 4Gig; fat16/ntfs4 if upto 4Gig)). and so on with balance of drive (extended partition) space. If you make C: around 250Meg and install an NT (as fat16 there initially), then via Disk Admin you can format the balance of the drive as ntfs - all one partition (Extended), or a couple or more logical-drives (each fat16/ntfs4 accordingly). You then install another version of NT into D: as ntfs4 (if over 4Gig and want it so) or as fat16/ntfs if upto 4Gig. Afterwards you have a dual-boot NT/NT; and you can either delete or retain the C: fat16 version - your choice. Having a version in C: does allow a way to recovery of data if the main version (in D: ) goes down... Similarly even if you don't install a fat16 version initially into C: you can do so at a later date - again if the main version goes down; it will as before allow you a way to recover data. Even if not intending a dual/multi-boot in the future that above model is worth considering? If only for the recovery option where you install a "recovery" version of NT into C: (fat16). As you have a large HD you could afford to make C: upto 500Meg; this would allow for a couple of basic apps/utils too in the event of a recovery installation? Also if you browse your through John Savill's faq's (installation section) you will find an "clear/standard guide" to installing NT (WS/Svr) - perhaps browse? You do 'not' have to be able to see the full drive capacity before installing NT; until you apply the ATAPI.exe (updated) you will not be able to. But NT can still go in regardless - with a limit of 8Gig (max) as the drive size detected. Once you have the ATAPI.exe installed (as a supplied 'driver' during setup, or via sp4 or later applied after installation) NT can see/handle the full drive capacity. Ideally you apply the ATAPI.exe (updated version) during setup - again as JS outlines. As long as you do not attempt to install NT to a partition/'drive' beyond the 4Gig mark (physically) on the drive, NT will/should go in OK. NT will not install if the partition to which it boots is further into the drive than 4Gig - i.e. total used/unused space ahead of it must be less than 4Gig - a.k.a. the NT boot-code boundary. If you browse your down through the following link's contents to specific OS's you will get links to details of all NT constraints... http://www.win.tue.nl/~aeb/partitions/partition_types-2.html Note: your math does not seem to add up? 8Gig + 14Gig = 22Gig; and you say you have a 30Gig drive. Also - initially you said you have a 14/15Gig drive, now it's 30Gig. What's going on here?

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Firstly, I don't have a misunderstanding of what you're trying to do. Understand that there is a built-in limitation for NT4 to only install on the largest possible FAT partition. The original disk mini driver, built into the original NT4 installation will NEVER recognize ALL of a disk larger that 8GB. It's just like srini and fritz stated in their responses. NT4 (even SP6a, Q299444, Q305929) doesn't list the correct size of an HDD over 8056 MB in Disk Manager. My 10 GB disks show up as 8056MB on the left hand side of Disk Manager. The right hand graphic for one of my disk's shows 3075MB and 6691MB for the two partitions (for a total of 9766MB). Did you try trvlr's link? I think that method only allows access to the whole disk, not change the viewed size. A work around would be to fdisk (remember to choose Large Disk support) your 1st 2GB active partition from a Win98 boot floppy and format it FAT. During the install of NT, if you choose NTFS, the drive would get FAT formated anyway, Then get converted to NTFS after reboot (that's just the way MS designed it). Then after installation of the OS, service pack it to SP6a (needed to read NTFS 5 to get it ready for the next phase). If you don't mind loosing the chkdsk ability (yes, I've read about NTFScheck at sysinternals, I've never gotten it to work for me), slave the NT4 HDD into a W2k machine, copy the total drive contents to the W2k disk. Then partition and format the NT4 HDD as one big disk (NTFS) via W2k's Disk Manager. Copy NT4 back down onto its HDD, and copy the W2k NTLDR and NTDETECT.COM as well. The original boot.ini file will be there. When you stick the HDD back into the NT4 server, it should boot up no problem. During bootup (with the /sos switch), there will be a message stating that NT4 cannot check the disk and to use the system that formated that disk to check the disk. The NT4 Disk Manager will STILL only show 8056MB on the left, but the disk size on the right will be correct (or the total of the partitions). This has been the only way to handle a single partitioned larger disk in an NT environment that I have found. As far as I'm aware, there is nothing illegal about this procedure. I would not recommend this method for a production server.

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Hi there! I do not understand why you are confusing partitioning a harddisk and simply size of a harddisk. I installed NT4 on a 16gig harddisk two years ago. NT4 could see the whole size of the harddisk.The OS ofcourse was installed on a 4gig partition. And the rest 12gigs partitioned in to logical drives. Last week I had a bluescreen. After I fdisk-ed the disk, I installed DOS on the computer. (Don't ask me why? I was just practising on it.) OK now I tried to install NT4 and it tells me what I wrote you again again. @michael - "The original disk mini driver, built into the original NT4 installation will NEVER recognize ALL of a disk larger that 8GB." I strongly despute that!!!! I had also the same problem on another computer that had LINUX on it. With the windows Nt4 CD installed Nt4. But NT could see only 8gig. the reason behind was LILO. After I fdisk-ed it with Win98 CD and installed NT4, NT4 could see the whole harddisk.

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I am not confusing partitioning with the simple drive size. What do you think that blue screen step is during the installation? It is the start of the partitioning of the drive. Which is controlled by the atapi(?) disk minidriver (unless you are using a SCSI or RAID controller: ie you pressed F6 to load a driver). It has been my experience, albeit with only IDE drives up to 20GB (SCSI up to 2GB), that during the NT4 INSTALLATION, NT doesn't see beyond 8GB. I went so far as to NTFS format a 20BG drive (1 active, primary partition) on another NT4 system (tried SP3, SP4 and SP6), NT wouldn't install because the end cylinder address was incorrect (out of range). Your experience has obviously differed, or what we are talking about are two different things. You're last statements regarding LILO and Win98 leads me to think that you were looking at a GUI screen and not the DOS phase Blue screen during an installation. Perhaps you're version of NT4 is different from the 200+ Workstation and Server, Microsoft US versions I've installed on various PCs and servers. I have seen some strange things done on a Compaq OEM version install.

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Hi Michael and the others !! I do not think that we are talking about two different things. I can tell only what I have experienced.The problem might be triggerd by the installation of DOS. BY the way I tried the Atapi.exe stuff.But to no avail. I hope we learn a lot more about NT4

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Installing DOS (max 2Gig) as fat16 first doesn't normally present a problem for installing NT (WS/Svr); you just end up with dual-boot - providing you don't reconfigure/reformat the C: primary partition during NT setup. I have a quad-boot (40Gig drive). Primary: c: = (1Gig) fat16 active Primary = boot/startup files + '98/NT 'cab' files.; Extended: d: = '98 (fat16 - 2Gig) - for legacy items only); e: = fat16 = data; f: = fat16 = data; g: = NTWS (fat16 = 4Gig) + sp6a; h: = NTSvr (fat16 = 4Gig) + sp6a; i: = W2K Pro (fat32 = 5Gig) + sp3. DOS 6.22 initially installed in C: and still there if need-be.. Balance of drive a mix of fat32/ unformatted space... Installed NT with updated ATAPI during setup; full drive seen... All installed OS see/access full drive capacity... NT as soon as ATAPI applied (during setup). One thought... is the bios etc. on this MoBo upto handling larger drives???

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Hi TRVLR: Yes, The Motherboard can handle larger drives. Otherwise I couldn't install NT on it and see all the 16gig(4gig Primary + 12gig Extended.)two years ago. But now all of a sudden NT tells me "I don't see an HDD more than 8gig" while the HDD is in reality 16gig. Just wait for your solution while launching my own research in the matter.

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What happens if you totally clear this drive and start afresh? Possibly use the Delpart.exe util (it will remove 'all' partitions) and then reconfig/reformat one way or another/re-install fresh (using whichever route appeals)? Or perhaps use the Mid-Level-Format util from the drive's website to reset the drive back to factory gate status (MLF util writes zeros to the drive - obliterating everything on it...). Then start afresh with a C: smallish primary etc. or whichever install route appeals? I confess I'm at loss to understand "what's a'goin on 'ere" based on info. to date.

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Trvle/Micheal, Please email me at jramos@ti.com i need your help if not a waste of time for you.

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Willy, What the guys are saying is true. You might have thought you saw 16gb when you installed NT 2 years ago but you DID NOT. You will only see 8 gb avail to partition. Since we utilize RAID HD's and place 6gb as the install partition I partition it for 6gb and leave the rest alone. Create it. Then install and format NTFS. Then when it comes up run SP4 or 6a. Then go to disk admin and configure the rest of your hard drive, whatever the size.....

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