[The Skeptic]

Please let us know what happens. I doubt if there is any comfort in that but be sure that all of us have computer frustrations at this time or the other.

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Well.

I did a complete format of the hard drive. Reinstalled XP. Motherboard drivers, video card drivers. Connected to the internet, download some updates, but SP2 update will not download using the windows updater. It just sits there for a while, and after about 5 minutes or so just tells me that SP2 could not be downloaded. What the heck.

On my old drive (Where the dvd drives don't work) I can download anything no problems at all, so I know its not my network card or drivers or anything like that.

Dunno what to do except throw this computer out the window.

[z00ropa]

Well.

I did a complete format of the hard drive. Reinstalled XP. Motherboard drivers, video card drivers. Connected to the internet, download some updates, but SP2 update will not download using the windows updater. It just sits there for a while, and after about 5 minutes or so just tells me that SP2 could not be downloaded. What the heck.

On my old drive (Where the dvd drives don't work) I can download anything no problems at all, so I know its not my network card or drivers or anything like that.

Dunno what to do except throw this computer out the window.

[123Runner]

Go HERE to get XP sp2.

[z00ropa]

Well, I solved the downloading issues!

Turns out the nVidia software is bad, active armor control, I couldn't figure out how to shut it off, so I just uninstalled the firewall. Everything downloads fine.

I don't get asked to install my DVD drives at startup anymore, the DVD-ROM drive works fine, the DVD-RW drive still doesn't work. It it identified in My Computer as CD-Drive, device manager has it as the Pioneer DVR-111D drive that is, but if I put a disk in... nothing. It will freeze up My Computer if I even try to look what is in the drive.

At this point... I suppose it could be the drive, however it was working fine with iTunes when I was running off the old hard drive... go figure.

[z00ropa]

Someone shoot me. I get the new hard drive with a clean install of win xp working, but of course I can not access any of my files under my old account on what became the slave drive. Ok, no biggie, switch it back to master, new hard drive back to slave start the computer up...

wont get past verifying DMI pool data....

unhook the new hard drive (plugged in a slave), starts up. Try to hook up the new hard drive as master, stops at verifying DMI pool data.

WHAT THE HECK... so after 10 hours, I am back to where I started, DVD drives won't work, but now I am minus my second 160 gig hard drive. YAY go me!!!!!!!!

[The Skeptic]

Try to connect the old drive as master on the second flat cable (IDE 2). Connect it to the end connector and leave it alone on the cable (no cd/dvd drives). Use the new disk for bootup. If you can reach the files this way move them to the new disk, format the old drive and reinstall it as slave to the new disk.

Before doing this please try to jumper both disks as cable select.

[z00ropa]

I can connect the old drive as master and boot up just fine (on it now), but if I hook the new drive up as a slave hangs at verifying DMI pool data. If I make the new drive master same thing.

Why would that happen all of a sudden after switching them back and forth lots of times? Makes no sense to me.

[The Skeptic]

Does it also happen when you hook the new drive as a master with the old one disconnected? Please try to work it out with one disk at a time. Use just the new disk for the time being. Connect it as master and try. Connect it as cable select and try. Just leave the old drive out for the time being, and report if the computer booted with the new disk in master mode, and in cable select mode.

[z00ropa]

As of now. The computer will only work with old drive connected.

If I try to connect just the new drive... freeze at DMI pool data

If I try to connect new drive as slave to old drive... freeze at DMI pool data.

At first I thought maybe the cable is damaged, but then why does it work with the old drive. So maybe I physically damaged the new drive somehow?

[z00ropa]

New development.

I can hook the new hard drive up as the slave, enter the BIOS and instead of auto detect it, I select none. Computer boots up fine. Windows can see the drive.

Very strange.

[z00ropa]

Well I formatted the new drive I even ran flashed CMOS and installed the latest BIOS. Can't boot up past verifying DMI pool data with drive selected as slave in BIOS and auto detected. I can boot just fine when it is selected to NONE in BIOS, and can still see it, format it in windows. So I don't think the problem is with the cable.

Anyone have a clue?