Boot problem

[Seeker]

Hello, everyone. Thank Google I've found you!:D

I am a recording songwriter. Two years ago I couldn't run a computer, now I've outgrown one. On a shoestring, I decided I could get more bang if I went DIY partly, so I bought a barebones unit. I went to load the OS, following sketchy instructions from my stepson, and all went well until it said "no HDD".

To the web went I, and read that SATA HDDs may need special drivers in XP. Okay, got 'em on the support CD, but now it won't boot. A call to another friend got me to the boot menu, and it started again. Just as I was watching something else, the "press F6' prompt faded, never to return. Now it won't boot again. I had supposed that the machine, having given me two chances, figures I'm too dumb to run it, and just won't boot!:confused:

Then I stumbled across this fountain of wisdom, and got new hope. In my browsings, I read that XP is very touchy about loading onto a drive that has files on it. Could the pieces from my abortive attempts be gumming up the works? And if so, how do I wipe a drive in a machine with no OS?:confused:

ASUS A8V-E SE
Western Digital Caviar HDDs-- 40 & 250
2.0g Athlon 64
Radeon 9250 vid

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am glad to have found such a friendly, helpful bunch.:D ;)

Oh, also tried clearing BIOS according to the instructions in the ASUS user guide--no change. Well, I did have to reset the clock...:bigggrin:

[Seeker]

Is the question too trivial, or did I violate some code of conduct that I can't even get a "Gee, I don't know"?

[edcentric]

Is you hdd SATA or PATA?
Make sure that only one is connected.
Have you installed the OS yet?

The no boot shouldn't be connected tot he drives. There must be something else wrong. A loose power connector, a shorted something somewhere.
When you push the power button the light and fans on the mobo should power up. if not I would start with the power button connections and all power connections.

[Pterocarpous]

Is the question too trivial, or did I violate some code of conduct that I can't even get a "Gee, I don't know"?
Hello Seeker. Welcome to Short Media!
Sorry no one got to you until today. You haven't violated any codes or anything. Usually, if a thread isn't responded to, the people who have viewed it either didn't understand what you were saying in your thread or they didn't think of anything helpful to contribute. Since it isn't productive to fill a thread w/ "I don't know"s, the thread ends up going unanswered. To call attention to your thread again in cases like this, just enter a new post w/ "bump" typed in it. You don't need to type anything else. That will put it back in the recent threads list and also alert people who view it this time that it has been overlooked or needs attention. :smiles:

[Pterocarpous]

...I bought a barebones unit. I went to load the OS, following sketchy instructions from my stepson, and all went well until it said "no HDD".

Exactly where were you in the process of installing your OS when you saw this message?
Were you into the Windows XP setup? (blue background screen)

...I read that SATA HDDs may need special drivers in XP.

SATA HDDs do need the drivers to be installed at the beginning of the OS setup.
This is because the drivers aren't built into the OS installation.
The drivers, if you're using the SATA ports on the motherboard, should have come w/ your motherboard.

...Okay, got 'em on the support CD, but now it won't boot. A call to another friend got me to the boot menu, and it started again...

I don't understand what you are trying to say here.
Which "boot menu" are you talking about?
What did you "get started" again.... the OS installation?

...Just as I was watching something else, the "press F6' prompt faded, never to return...

What do you mean it "faded"?
Did the whole screen fade?
Do you have another monitor you can try for the moment?

...Now it won't boot again...

Exactly what happens when you power on your computer?
Tell us everything.... what you see, hear, and even smell.
Please, be very detailed & specific when describing what you have observed and what you have done.

...I read that XP is very touchy about loading onto a drive that has files on it. Could the pieces from my abortive attempts be gumming up the works? And if so, how do I wipe a drive in a machine with no OS?...

W/out more information, it's impossible to tell what is going on.
Please, provide the details that I've asked for earlier in this post and I'm sure we'll be able to help you. :smiles:
BTW, you can "scrub" a HDD using a bootable floppy diskette or CD. However, if the system isn't seeing the HDD (look in the BIOS and see if it is being detected there) then neither will any utility that you would use to erase the drive.

[Seeker]

First off, sorry I got snippy. Iwas tired and frustrated, but that's no excuse for being rude. I know very well what it means to have no spare time, and I apologize.:o

The no driver message appeared right after the press F6 prompt. It "faded away" only in a poetic sense, I simply missed it. There's nothing wrong w/the monitor.

I have HDD drivers on the ASUS support CD that came with the mobo. The second time it started to boot, I had hit F8 on startup, and it took me to a boot menu. I set it to boot from cd-rom 1st, and it began to boot--all the way to the F6 prompt, which I missed.:mad:

Now, when I turn on the computer, I get the splash screen, then a flashing line in the upper left of the screen. It doesn't matter if I go into the bios and change boot sequence (press Delete) or change it in boot menu (press F8), it still ends up with the little flashing line. There are beeps on power-up, and the light that says HDD flashes. The HDDs are recognized in the bios, but not in the first menu. I have to go to Onboard Device Config to see them. (I am not using RAID, should they be set to IDE?):confused:

That's pretty much it. The process gets to the point where it should start loading the OS, and just sits there.:(

[Pterocarpous]

...First off, sorry I got snippy. Iwas tired and frustrated, but that's no excuse for being rude. I know very well what it means to have no spare time, and I apologize...

No problem, Seeker.
We all get cranky sometimes dealing w/ these infernal beasts...
...The no driver message appeared right after the press F6 prompt. It "faded away" only in a poetic sense, I simply missed it. There's nothing wrong w/the monitor.

Ok, when you post in your threads describing what you have observed or done, please, be literal in your interpretations or explanations.
Since we are limited to a one dimensional means of communication (the written word), this literal and exact method of communication tends to have the best results towards communicating clearly w/ one another.

...I have HDD drivers on the ASUS support CD that came with the mobo. The second time it started to boot, I had hit F8 on startup, and it took me to a boot menu. I set it to boot from cd-rom 1st, and it began to boot--all the way to the F6 prompt, which I missed...
Ok

...Now, when I turn on the computer, I get the splash screen, then a flashing line in the upper left of the screen. It doesn't matter if I go into the bios and change boot sequence (press Delete) or change it in boot menu (press F8), it still ends up with the little flashing line...

Do you mean that it won't boot to the CD anymore?
Change the boot sequence back to the CD 1st, then the HDD.
...There are beeps on power-up, and the light that says HDD flashes. The HDDs are recognized in the bios, but not in the first menu...

For this to have meaning to us ('...but not in the first menu...I have to go to Onboard Device Config to see them..'), we need to take a look at your motherboard manual re: your BIOS config pages layout.
I'll take a look at it in a bit here.

...I am not using RAID, should they be set to IDE?...

Not unless your HDD is an IDE drive.
Your HDD is SATA right?
If your HDD is an SATA drive, make sure "it's" set to IDE
I'm not sure what the "it" is that you referred to BTW.
I know you're referring to your BIOS but I don't know what setting you're talking about changing...
...The process gets to the point where it should start loading the OS, and just sits there...
Does it boot to the OS CD at all???

[Seeker]

The mobo is an ASUS A8V-E SE. No, it won't boot to Cd. I am trying to instal the OS. In the Onboard Device Config, I can toggle between IDE and RAID for the HDDs. I have been setting for boot from CD first, HDD second.

Do you have any idea how hard it is for a songwriter to be [U]literal[U]?:D

PS. how do I turn on the html (literal)?:confused:

[Pterocarpous]

The mobo is an ASUS A8V-E SE. No, it won't boot to Cd. I am trying to instal the OS. In the Onboard Device Config, I can toggle between IDE and RAID for the HDDs. I have been setting for boot from CD first, HDD second....[/QUOTE]

I haven't had a chance to look in your motherboard manual yet.
Please, do the following.
Look in the manual that came w/ your motherboard and look up the instructions on resetting your BIOS.
Follow those instructions.
This will restore the factory default BIOS configuration.
Then enter the BIOS and set the boot order to CD then HDD.
Turn off RAID (if that means choosing IDE rather than RAID, do that)
Try booting to your OS CD again.
...Do you have any idea how hard it is for a songwriter to be literal?:D ...
BTW, I'm quite aware of the linear vs. creative personality type. I feel your pain.. ;D (unfortunately, I'm the creatively challenged, linear thinker type...)

[Seeker]

I have already tried that (1st post, last line). That's what got me thinking that maybe I needed to clear the hard drive of the files from the failed attempts.

[Pterocarpous]

I have already tried that (1st post, last line). That's what got me thinking that maybe I needed to clear the hard drive of the files from the failed attempts.
Ahhhhhh! Sorry 'bout that!

Well, if you can't boot off of CD and you don't have a floppy drive, the HDD will have to be scrubbed in a different computer.

Still, the issue w/ not being able to boot from the CDROM drive takes precedence right now.

Exactly what happens when you boot w/ the OS CD in your CDROM drive and you DO NOT press any keys?

EDIT://
Does the green LED (on the CDROM drive) ever flash during this process?

[Kentigern]

[u]literal[u]

Should read [u]literal[ /u] without the spaces :) literally

[Seeker]

Exactly what happens when you boot w/ the OS CD in your CDROM drive and you DO NOT press any keys?

EDIT://
Does the green LED (on the CDROM drive) ever flash during this process?

Yes, the LED stays lit for a time, the flashes once or twice and stays off.

If I just power up w/the xp cd in the drive, it beeps 5 or six times and the little light that says HDD flashes w/the beeps, then there is a tone and the ASUS screen appears. Then it disappears, and there is a little flashing bar in the upper left of the screen. That's where it stays, nothing else happens.:(

This is with the boot sequence set to start w/cd-rom.

[Seeker]

ba-da bump!:D

A friend gave me something called the Ultimate Boot Disk 3.4. Is it worth a shot, or will it make things worse? Or is it one of those Schroedinger's Cat things where you only know it's dead if you open the box...:wink:

[Seeker]

Re-bump. Feelin' unloved and unwanted, folks....:(

[Donut]

Yes, the LED stays lit for a time, the flashes once or twice and stays off.

If I just power up w/the xp cd in the drive, it beeps 5 or six times and the little light that says HDD flashes w/the beeps, then there is a tone and the ASUS screen appears. Then it disappears, and there is a little flashing bar in the upper left of the screen. That's where it stays, nothing else happens.:(

This is with the boot sequence set to start w/cd-rom.

Does your manual list the bios "beep" codes? AFAIK, if posting correctly is should beep once.

[Seeker]

Does your manual list the bios "beep" codes? AFAIK, if posting correctly is should beep once.

I don't see beep codes in the manual, but is does beep once before the ASUS screen appears. The sounds I hears when the HDD LED flashes are more clicks, I guess, and then a single beep before the screen.:confused:

[Seeker]

Just a quick FYI--a utility (DOS) download from Western Digital did the trick!:D I'm on dialup, so it took over four hours, but it worked.:D

Now I have a problem with the CD/DVD drive, and have started a thread over on the Storage line, if anyone would care to take a stab....;)

[Donut]

Sorry I didn't get back, glad you got part of it fixed though.