hot computer

[Ed Fenwick]

Ok, that is not what I had in mind, but........
Ed

 

[blert]

Of course, you can try. You can cancel installation if it is not going down the path you expected (up to a point).

If you want to keep the old drive 'as is' and try to get files off of it later then try this...
Remove old drive and install the new one. Leave the old one out for now. Install Windows. When it is time to input your login credentials use the exact same ones as you had on your old installation (both username and password). Then power off and put the old drive in. Now when you boot you may be able to access your files on your old drive. If it gives you trouble you can go into the settings of the old drive and reset permissions so you can take control of all the files. I can't guarantee it will work but if it doesn't then at least the old drive is still intact and you can attempt to recover files off of it or boot back to it and copy them onto a USB drive..

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Sounds like a good idea blert. I may have to read your post 3-4 more times to get it right but worth a try. I will move what I can over to the external drive first though.
PTL Ed

 

[Ed Fenwick]

ongoing with this thing. a friend came over with a cloning device. We set up to clone the original drive to the 500G drive. It would only go to 75%. I put both in the computer and the 500G doesn't show! I put the 500G in the #1 slot and it won't boot!. So I am back where I started with a bogus (I think) 500G hard drive. Only $10. so it is ok, but.............

 

[blert]

Well, it could be that the drive is borked, it could be that it is fine. Since it only completed the clone to 75% I would not expect to be able to boot from the drive because it is incomplete and therefore not a valid partition. Also, cloning a drive that is possibly janked up will just result in a bunch of file errors on the clone and quite possibly wouldn't boot anyway. Just put the new drive in the machine, leave the old one out, and install the OS. Stress the machine some to make sure it is stable and then worry about the old drive.

If you don't have Windows installation media it doesn't matter as long as you have a valid activation code. Just use or download the version you need and use your valid activation code when prompted.

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Thanks blert, I hope that you are right about the drive being janked up. I returned it and got another, this one doesn't work either. Even with the old drive being the only one installed, I still have to tell it which drive to boot with. I have the 7 installation disk but if the machine won't recognize the drive, I can't install anything.
With all this trouble, I must be doing something right elsewhere. God bless you for your help, Ed

 

[blert]

Ok, so let's see if I am understanding correctly...
You put the old drive back in, no other drives. It does boot to it but you have to choose a boot device after POST.
...if this is correct it's not a big deal and just requires a boot priority change in BIOS.

The only way to know for sure if it's the drive or not is to test it.

If you can boot to your old drive...
Open a command prompt:
Win+R -> type "cmd <enter>" -> type "chkdsk <enter>" (no quotes).
Chkdsk is not the best drive scanner but it can work, just do not use the "/f" option at this time or it will try to fix the drive and you will lose data. It's also pretty slow.

If I misunderstand you and you can't boot to the old drive then let me know so we can hammer out why.

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Thanks for the hammer offer. I can boot to the old drive, I just have to tell it which beforehand (F12) How do I get to the BIOS? F12 offered a check of the drive as an option. The drive passed!
I don't understand why the new (used) drive won't show on the computer. The first one worked until the cloning then didn't show at all.
TKS Ed

 

[blert]

Spam the 'F2' or <del> key during POST. It's a different key across most motherboards. It should tell you on the screen during POST. Look for a boot priority menu. Set it to the appropriate devices.

The "new" drive most likely didn't show up as a valid partition after the cloning failure so it wasn't recognized. Did POST show that the drive device was found but just couldn't boot to it?

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Yes, I set it to the appropriate device but every time?

The cloned drive did not show after the cloning, the next drive they gave me still doesn't show.

 

[blert]

No, you shouldn't have to do it every time. There may be a setting in BIOS that says something to the point of "ask every time". You would have to look around. You can't really hurt anything by looking around in BIOS. It should be fairly explanatory, just don't change any settings that make no sense to you. 'HDD0' (that is a zero) should be the first boot device (unless you want it to try and boot the cdrom first, or you have it physically set up differently in the machine).

As far as the other drives not being recognized by BIOS... how are they physically hooked up in the machine? Are they on IDE (wide cable that can attach two drives), SCSI, SATA?
If they are on IDE then there are jumpers on the drive used to set which is the "master" and which is the "slave" (yes, those are the appropriate terms and single drives should be set to "master" or "single" if it is has that option). Jumper settings should be printed on the drive label. The jumper settings matter as well as which plug on the cable they are attached to.

 

[Ed Fenwick]

OK blert, I found the BIOS and set the old drive as #1 and the new one as #2 It still says that the new drive is Disabled?
I will shut down , reboot, and see if it works.
I am still cleaning my ST so I'll get back later on.
Thanks Ed

 

[blert]

How many HDD ports are there on the motherboard?

 

[Ed Fenwick]

BIOS fix worked, machine boots to the old drive.
When you say HDD ports, do you mean slots to physically insert the drive, or how many slots to plug the smaller (data) cable into?
I will get to check disk next.
Ed

 

[Ed Fenwick]

also, the drives are hooked up to IDE cable. The old drive is attached to the shorter one 'cause it will not reach the new drive.
I must remove them to see which is the master and slave.
Thanks Ed

 

[blert]

Yeah. If you are using IDE then there is likely the problem. If two drives are one cable then one must be set to "master" and one to "slave" and then it also matters where it is on the cable. It's been so long since I have messed with IDE but I think the "master" needs to be on the end of the cable and the "slave" needs to be on the middle plug (might be the other way around, I can't remember).
Best option if you are using IDE and have two drives... set both to master and put one on each IDE channel, then slave your cdrom to your secondary drive.

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Ok, blert, the drives have no way to set master or slave. I put the new one in the old one's place and loaded Windows 7 with the BIOS. It loaded ok but I am having a tough time getting things loaded.
So I put the old one back in the second drive slot. At least I can do what I need until the new drive is fully loaded. I do appreciate your help and I am sure that I can satisfy this thing with the new drive. VERY SLOW and still shows HOT though.

 

[blert]

Not able to set master/slave? If they are IDE drives then they have to have the jumpers. They will be located on the back panel usually between the power socket and the drive cable socket. It is usually a set of four jumper pairs.
See pics here...
https://www.easeus.com/computer-instruction/install-ide-hard-drive.htmThe position and orientation will differ by manufacturer but there should be a label somewhere on it describing the jumper settings.
Since the specs on the net say your rig has SATA I am going to assume that it has 80pin UDMA IDE interface. If that is the case you could also use "cable select" instead of "master/slave". Both drives need to be set to "cable select" and it will automatically set them based on where they live on the cable (on the end:master, in the middle:slave).

"Very slow"? Like hard drive operations are slow or the whole system feels sluggish compared to a previous time?

"Still hot"? Hmmmm.... have you always monitored the temps or just recently because you have been having issues?

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Aloha, still getting files and programs switched over.
I guess that it is hard drive slow, not sure.
When I upgraded ASC it showed me the temps. That is when I started worrying.

 

[blert]

Ok, the temps are likely fine then. I wouldn't worry about them too much so long as the machine is stable.

As for the slow hard drive...
Do you have 80pin IDE connectors and cables? If so then check this:

- Open Control Panel.

- Open Device Manager.

- Expand IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers.

- Right-click on any label that says "Channel ..." and click Properties.

- Click the Advanced Setting tab.

- Under "Device Properties", make sure the Enable DMA check box is checked.

- Click OK.