Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!batcomputer!cornell!vax5.cit.cornell.edu!bqsy1
From: bqsy1@vax5.cit.cornell.edu (Andrew R. Orndorff, Cornell University)
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.misc
Subject: Re: FDISK
Message-ID: <1991Apr1.150658.3787@vax5.cit.cornell.edu>
Date: 1 Apr 91 15:06:58 EDT
References: <1991Mar23.041821.29165@cs.mcgill.ca> <15744@mendip.UUCP> <5955@tra
Distribution: comp
Organization: CIT, Cornell University
Lines: 46

>   I've been successful so far in resuscitating the dead system, ravaging
> two other PC's for spare parts, but the hard drive still will not work.
> I low-level formatted the drive on a PC compatible using MSDOS 3.2, then
> booted up under PC-DOS 3.3 and formatted the drive as bootable.  I then
> transferred the drive to the PC, and tinkered with jumpers until the
> 1701 error went away. It refuses to boot.
>
>   I've tried swapping HD controllers, motherboards, memory cards.  I've
> even got the Sams Photofacts for this thing, but it apparently was not
> written with the HD in mind; nothing refers to it.  The system will not
> boot from the hard drive, and FDISK reports "Cannot read fixed disk."
> What am I missing? Besides "junk the machine and buy a 386," any advice to
> give me?
>
> Eric
> --
> Eric Sheppard      Georgia Tech    |   "Of course the US Constitution isn't
> Atlanta, GA                        | perfect; but it's a lot better than what
> ARPA: ce1zzes@prism.gatech.edu     |             we have now." -Unknown
> uucp: ...!$allegra,amd,hplabs,seismo,ut-ngp!gatech!prism!ce1zzes

       Having recently been through a similar experience myself, maybe I
can suggest a possible reason for your frustration.
       I'm not sure how newer controllers may work, but my HD controller,
circ 1987 WD, won't recognize any HD drive unless I've low level formatted
the drive on that controller. It's not the fact that the drive is
formatted, it's that the controller ROM needs the appropriate parameters
for controlling the drive, like number of cylinders and heads, and the
correct interleave. Without this basic information, the controller can't
read any data from the disk and marks that drive in the ROM as unavailable.
Using FDISK in this situation usually returns something like 'No fixed disk
available' or 'No drive C', whatever - you get the idea.
       Since you are using a PC (I'm assuming older model from what you
describe) you'll want to use whatever controller is matched to that system
to low level format that drive.
       Or, if someone has done this somewhere, find a program that can
alter the drive parameters in the controller ROM to the correct ones for
that drive, low level format the drive on another system, and transfer it to th
PC.

--
       Andrew Orndorff
       CIT, Research & Analysis
       Cornell University
       Internet: bqsy1@vax5.cit.cornell.edu
       Bitnet:   bqsy1@crnlvax5