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[zagor]

Two weeks ago for my huge .ape archive I bought a brand new 180 GB Western Digital HD. (I already got two 80 GB disks)
I'm using 1.8 Ghz Pentium 4 under Windows XP Home.
By the time I didn't know that Windows doesn't  recognize disks over 137 GB in normal circumstances. So I used Western Digital's special program and installed the disk as 180 GB. The disk was ok. The day after installation, the disk was gone! I couldn't see the disk. After a while 'my computer' found 'there was an unformatted drive'.
I thought the reason was 137 GB problem. So I formatted disk with WD's utility as two partition one was 120 GB and the other is 60 GB. But yesterday I loose the 120 GB partition again.
Luckily I have all the backup files.
So, do you know a better and stable solution for the 137 GB problem, I want to use the disk one partition.
Thanks a lot.

[JimH]

Have you tried the Western Digital site?  Or a search on google?

[KingSparta]

>> So I used Western Digital's special program
>> and installed the disk as 180 GB.
go buy a new controler ATA133 and it will work

[phelt]

Anyone:
I don't have a lot of experience with XP - does it use FAT32 or NTFS by default? Just wondering if this has anything to do with format.

zagor:
One issue that I have seen repeatedly with the new larger-capacity drives is with BIOS drive recognition. If software fixes don't help, try searching for a BIOS update for your motherboard. This may be found in the support section of the computer maker's site (if it's Gateway, Dell, etc). If your computer is built by a smaller shop you would probably need to get any updates from the manufacturer's site.
I would like to stress that BIOS updates are something to research first (what drive sizes are supported by your current BIOS version, what BIOS settings are recommended the drive manufacturer) and perform only if necessary.

[xen-uno]

phelt > XP - does it use FAT32 or NTFS by default

NTFS in NT, W2k, XP....and no, problem is not format related (at least for NTFS....or in any case since the 160 is not the boot drive)

zag...Did you you get into the system BIOS after installing the HD? It is necessary. Get into it and check your IDE HD parameters. It should be set to Auto. Save and exit BIOS (even if you didn't make any changes). I almost sure that will take care of it.

As phelt said, check for flash BIOS updates....and if you haven't, install XP SP1

Xenno

[khaos100]

>> So I used Western Digital's special program
>> and installed the disk as 180 GB.
go buy a new controler ATA133 and it will work

The controller shouldn't make a difference.  With what he's running, it's at least an ATA100 and will run at that bandwidth just fine.

I guarantee it's the mobo BIOS that needs to be updated.  I've seen exactly what he's talking about on a 2k system with a 120GB drive.

FAT32 has the 137GB limit. NTFS has some humongous number attached to it, something like 2 terabytes.

Also, XP can be installed using either the FAT32 or NTFS format. On a retail machine running the Home edition, you may not be guaranteed they used NTFS.  Go into My Computer and right click on the HD and click properties.  It will list what the format is next to File System:

[Markeau]

For XP (and other OS's) on Intel mobo's the Intel Application Accelerator (IAA) has support for >137GB (or whatever), then also on Intel's IAA FAQ there is a special warning for WD drives which basically says to use IAA 2.3 (beta) ... if using another mobo then check with the mobo or IDE controller mfgr for the proper drivers, BIOS, etc.

[KingSparta]

The controller shouldn't make a difference.  With what he's running, it's at least an ATA100 and will run at that bandwidth just fine.

I guarantee it's the mobo BIOS that needs to be updated.  I've seen exactly what he's talking about on a 2k system with a 120GB drive.

FAT32 has the 137GB limit. NTFS has some humongous number attached to it, something like 2 terabytes.

Also, XP can be installed using either the FAT32 or NTFS format. On a retail machine running the Home edition, you may not be guaranteed they used NTFS.  Go into My Computer and right click on the HD and click properties.  It will list what the format is next to File System:

ATA100 Does Not Support A 160Gig Drive, Unless You Use The Software That Comes With The Drive. And When You Do That Sometimes You Can Have Problems.

System Bios Can Not Always Be Upgraded To Support Larger Drives.

[khaos100]

Would you explain to me then why WD sells a 180GB ATA100 drive?  

http://www.wdc.com/products/products.asp?DriveID=37

The 100 is simply bandwidth and has nothing to do with capacity.  I can hook a 100 drive to board that only supports 66 and that drive will access using the 66MHz bandwidth.  Even if I hook it up to a 100 supported board but used only a 40pin cable, the drive will run only at 66.

The mobo and OS will decide the capacity limit.

I do realize that the separate 133 controller on a PCI card will allow for bigger hard drives to be seen, but you can run into a multitude of performance issues with those cards.  The attempt to see if your board can handle the drive via a possible BIOS upgrade first is the better idea.  If it can't, then yes, a pci 133 controller card will work, but not because of it being 133, but because the card is able to handle larger capacity drives which has nothing to do with the bandwidth.