Serial ATA PCI Controller Card

Garyj881

Garyj881

Garyj881

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After having a few issues with my on board raid controller I am going to purchase a SATA PCI Controller Card but have a few Q's.

Now i know these come a with drivers so what would happen if i wanted to install my OS on one of my sata hdd's through the controller, as i wouldn't be able to install the drivers until my OS was installed.

This is where I'm confused 1. can't install th OS with the raid controller and 2. cant install the drivers for the controller until the OS is installed.

My OS is xp pro.

Any ideas?
 
WHAT?

Forgive me on this one, but Im lost as to what you want to do?

It seems that you might simply be confused as to how to install onto RAID using your onboard... You will probably be just as confused with a PCI Card.

What is it thats causing the problems, and moreover, what exactly are the problems?

Right then start at the basics, so here are a few notes for you.

1 - Using a Raid controler you need 2 drives.

If you want to MIRROR then they should be identical, however, if you want to stripe, they can be different, although most controlers do want them as identical as possible.

2 - When you install to RAID, you have to set them up in the controlers BIOS as RAID so they get treated as RAID and not as seperate Drives.

3 - When you install Windows, you are asked about adding drivers for the controler card before it even gets started properly... This is when it says to PRESS F6! - Its about this time, that you need to have the Floppy Disk with the drivers on it. Had you pressed F6 then you will be taken to a small sub-page that normally wont come up, where you can select the appropriate driver for your RAID controler. Windows will then ( Hopefully ) see the new RAID array ( Thats your 2 Hard Disks ) as one Hard Disk, and you can install as normal.

Give us information to go on and we can help you out, but what you put seemed very confusing to me.

Another thought... Do you think that setting up Windows on RAID would be a good idea for you?
 
Its a long one but i have been getting this error Event ID - 51 - An error was detected on device \Device\Harddisk0\D during a paging operation, which intermittently locks up my system so i tried another motherboard and hard drive with a different partition to find that im getting the same problem.

There isn't a known cure as far as im aware.
A few people have corrected the problem buy purchasing a separate sata controller card and thats what i aim to do.

I reformat my system probably every 4-6 months and wondered how i would install XP on a system through a controller that i couldn't load driver on until xp is actually installed.

Sorry i didn't want to ramble on but there was no short answer.
Just need to know how i would install xp on a sata drive through a sata controller that i can't install drivers on until the operating system is installed.


Gary
 
Last edited:
Chingoo said:
Simply use nLite and slipstream the SATA controller drivers into your XP disc.
Your SATA hd's will now be detected when setting up Windows.

Sorted......
Click to expand...

so if i order a card , when it comes use nlite to put the drivers on the disc.

Super, that sounds too easy, thanks
 
Yeah, it really is THAT easy.

I failed miserably to get many many RAID controler drivers working even though it half-asred starts off the intall on the RAID array and then decides that I didnt have the drivers after all ( Even though I was able to access the array and format it etc )

I ended up trying out chucking ALL my RAID drivers into an installation CD and now I dotn have that issue anymore.
 
It should come with a floppy, just key F6 at the windows installation with your floppy inserted and follow the method to install the driver. Make sure your motherboard is set to boot from CD-ROM then SCSI or PCI add in cards or whatever your BIOS calls such devices or else it'll likely try to boot from the onboard SATA or IDE.
 
Justintime said:
It should come with a floppy, just key F6 at the windows installation with your floppy inserted and follow the method to install the driver. Make sure your motherboard is set to boot from CD-ROM then SCSI or PCI add in cards or whatever your BIOS calls such devices or else it'll likely try to boot from the onboard SATA or IDE.
Click to expand...

blah.... :p

Only amatures install floppys in compters these days!! lol
I stopped installing them in my customers rigs for a good few years now.

As stated just get nLite and then slipstream all the motherboards latest drivers into your XP disc with it. Easy as ABC :D
 
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