Master not found, what now? 5

[javierdl]

Can anyone tell me why my only HD is not being found?
I have already put a different one thinking the problem was the HD itself. Now it seems the problem may be with the cables or the motherboard, wouldn't it?
Both HDs are totally accessable as slaves on another pc.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Jim

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[paparazi]

Two differant hard drives that are both detected on another board.
You've already tried a new cable and set both individually as master? but still no joy?
Are you sure you have set the bios Primary Master to Auto detect HDD's?
Only thing left is a bad motherboard if you have tried the above.
Martin

We like members to GIVE and not just TAKE.
Participate and help others.

 

[javierdl]

Mmmm
I haven't tried another data cable, and I'm not sure the Primary Master is set to Auto detect HDD's, so I'll go through this now

Thanks a lot Paparazi,

JDL

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[cdogg]

A couple other suggestions:

1) Set the hard drive as slave on the Primary with no other devices attached

2) Set the hard drive as master and/or slave on the Secondary with no other IDE devices in the system connected

3) Try resetting the BIOS to its default settings

4) Check to make sure the drive is getting power - try a different connecter from the PSU


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[javierdl]

I have done most of your suggestions so far, and I will get to that eventually, but for now I just need to know:
Does it matter where in the data cable we put the Master? (in the end, or in the middle).

Thank you,

JDL

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[Freestone]

As general practice, the one and only device on an IDE cable should be placed at the end of the cable to help prevent noise. But if you are using Cable Select on the drive, then the Master drive is placed at the end of the cable, slave drive in the middle.

 

[javierdl]

Ok.
Then I infer that if I've defined with the jumpers which one is the Master and which one is the slave, it doesn't matter where they go, correct?

Would you say one way is better than the other? (Cable Select vs not cable select)

thanks,

JDL

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[Freestone]

When using both Master and Slave drives, then no, it doesn't matter where on the cable they go, but placing the Master at the end always ensures its proper placement if the Slave is ever removed.

Personally, I stick with Cable Select as it is easier to swap drives around, or in and out of a system without worrying about jumpers. Note that both devices have to support Cable Select, otherwise you must use Master/Slave jumpering.

Some reading about IDE cable select is here (actually a good site for much information):

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confCS-c.html

 

[cdogg]

Just want to point out that like the article above says, make sure you are using 80-wire cables. The "Cable Select" option has a greater chance of success that way.

There's certainly nothing wrong with using cable select, but I prefer to stick with Master and Slave. You never know when you might be working with a device that doesn't play well with another on the same cable, especially with cable select.

...but placing the Master at the end always ensures its proper placement if the Slave is ever removed

Interesting, I've never had that problem. If a drive is designated as Master, it shouldn't have a problem anywhere on the cable regardless if a Slave drive is present or not. At least not in my experience...


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[Freestone]

When using both Master and Slave drives, then no, it doesn't matter where on the cable they go, but placing the Master at the end always ensures its proper placement if the Slave is ever removed..."

Was a continuance to my previous post,

"As general practice, the one and only device on an IDE cable should be placed at the end of the cable to help prevent noise."

See

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/conf_Cable.htm

next to last paragraph.

 

[Freestone]

I will note my above link is for a 40-conductor cable. For 80-conductor, see

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confCable80-c.html

section Connector Assignments and Color Coding:

 

[cdogg]

Great info, thanks for the links!



~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[javierdl]

Hey Freestone, those are some pretty good articles on IDE/ATA cables. Very educational.
One thing I need to know now though (and didn't see there), is:
when having only one HD and one CDrom drive, does the HD have to be the Master always? Or can it be the slave too?

thanks,

JDL

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[Freestone]

A hard drive can be jumpered for slave, but the Primary IDE Master position is normally occupied by a hard-drive as that is usually the first boot device, after perhaps removable devices. Drive lettering assigned by the OS is also affected by the Master or Slave assignments.

Here's some more reading from the guide:

Single, Master and Slave Drives and Jumpering:

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confJumpering-c.html

follow up with:

Performance Factors and Tradeoffs in Configuring for Multiple Devices:

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/conf_Performance.htm

then Recommended IDE Device Configurations

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confRecommendations-c.html

 

[javierdl]

Man! THat PCGuide.com is so good!

JDL

http://www.sunnylandbaja.com

 

[cdogg]

Reading that first link in Freestone's last post, something caught my eye:

"For performance reasons, it is better to avoid mixing slower and faster devices on the same channel..."

In other threads on this site, I've long used this link from the same site (PCGuide.com), which actually explains how outdated that statement really is:

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/confTiming-c.html

One thing you have to remember about that site is that many of its articles were written 5 years ago or more. Quite a few others were added to the site over the years. The link I just posted about Independent Drive Timing was probably written well after that first link about jumpering master and slave drives.

Moral of the story is to tread cautiously on subjects like "performance" or "compatibility". BIOS's, IDE controllers, chipsets, etc., aren't static components. A lot of improvements have been made over the years to combat the type of problems that PCGuide.com has done an excellent job of documenting. Other advice in general dealing with how something works or what it does (such as the Master and Slave concept), won't change which still makes that site very useful.


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[Freestone]

cdogg,

Thanks for including that link. I had read that section while composing my last post and meant to include it as the last link, but got distracted. Easy enough at my age, and by a 14-month old son ;-)

And thanks too for reminding us of the age of some of the articles in the guide.

Dell

 

[cdogg]

Dell,

Actually, I wouldn't have remembered about mentioning IDT if you hadn't posted those links in the first place!

Thanks for acknowledgements, but I think I hardly deserve that much credit. It was your links that drove the direction of this thread!!