Hard Drive size problem

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by mojorisin, Jul 20, 2006.

  1. mojorisin

    mojorisin Kilobyte Poster

    415
    17
    41
    Hi guys

    I have just added a new hard drive to a Win2k server the size is 250gb but it is only showing as 136gb in the bios and in windows

    jumper settings seem to be ok and i have updated the bios

    anyone have any ideas ?
     
    WIP: Microsoft 365 Identity and Services MD-100
  2. Smurf

    Smurf New Member

    2
    0
    20
    What service pack is installed on the system?
    It sounds like you do not have 48-Bit LBA support enabled.
    Service pack 3 and 4 add 48-bit LBA support which allows drives over 137GB to been seen correctly in windows.

    Edit: As it is seen as the same size in the BIOS i would suspect that your BIOS might not support drive capacities over 137GB.
     
    WIP: A+ Network+
  3. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

    6,624
    117
    224
    As a further comment - many older boards have the 128/136G limit, and in a lot of cases the manufacturers haven't bothered to issue a fix.

    If you can't get this fixed then you need to remove this drive, as nasty things can happen when the drive gets nearly full.

    Harry.
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+
  4. elli5on

    elli5on Kilobyte Poster

    340
    0
    33
    Im not 100% sure but i had an exact same problem, But cannot seem to remember how i corrected it.

    Try enabling HDD S.M.A.R.T capability in your BIOS, i think thats how i did it.
    But like i said, not 100%
     
    Certifications: A+ N+
    WIP: Thinking of MCDST
  5. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

    6,624
    117
    224
    Interesting. S.M.A.R.T. is normaly intended to check the HDD for incipient failures - rather than enable 48-bit working!

    Could be a weird BIOS side-effect.

    Harry.
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+
  6. Jakamoko
    Honorary Member

    Jakamoko On the move again ...

    9,924
    74
    229
    Incipient

    Damn, I love wurdz, and dat Harry sure got a purty mouth :tongue
     
    Certifications: MCP, A+, Network+
    WIP: Clarity
  7. r.h.lee

    r.h.lee Gigabyte Poster

    1,011
    52
    105
    mojorisin,

    What kind of hard drive controller is the hard drive connected to? What make and model motherboard does the server have?
     
    Certifications: MCSE, MCP+I, MCP, CCNA, A+
    WIP: CCDA
  8. mojorisin

    mojorisin Kilobyte Poster

    415
    17
    41
    Just a standard UDMA100 IDE Drive

    Motherboard not sure of manufacturer but it is an Award bios which i flash to a later model without any change

    It's a Seagate HDD

    Thanks for the pointers everyone will look into them :biggrin
     
    WIP: Microsoft 365 Identity and Services MD-100
  9. elli5on

    elli5on Kilobyte Poster

    340
    0
    33
    Interesting. S.M.A.R.T. is normaly intended to check the HDD for incipient failures - rather than enable 48-bit working!

    Could be a weird BIOS side-effect.

    Harry.


    Like i said, not 100%. Was playing around with the BIOS and that was one of the things i changed.... But as for the others :rolleyes:

    Craig
     
    Certifications: A+ N+
    WIP: Thinking of MCDST
  10. r.h.lee

    r.h.lee Gigabyte Poster

    1,011
    52
    105
    mojorisin,

    What model Seagate HDD? Find out the motherboard manufacturer and model. Saying that the BIOS is an Award BIOS doesn't help because Award makes BIOSes for many motherboards.
     
    Certifications: MCSE, MCP+I, MCP, CCNA, A+
    WIP: CCDA
  11. mojorisin

    mojorisin Kilobyte Poster

    415
    17
    41
    Sorry couldnt get into the server before but i have now removed it and the motherboard is a Biostar M7VKB model and apparently the board will only do UDMA 33/66 :( so wont get the full 100 from the drive even if it did see the proper size

    Looks like a new board / system :blink
     
    WIP: Microsoft 365 Identity and Services MD-100
  12. Boycie
    Honorary Member

    Boycie Senior Beer Tester

    6,281
    85
    174
    UDMA 100? I thought most new drives were ATA133?

    Si
     
    Certifications: MCSA 2003, MCDST, A+, N+, CTT+, MCT
  13. mojorisin

    mojorisin Kilobyte Poster

    415
    17
    41
    you can still get new UDMA100 drives aswell thought this would at least work with an older board but no joy

    Anyway the upshot is i have moved it to another server which i will use instead as this sees it no problem

    well apart fromt the fact that a 250gb drive now becomes a 232gb drive when formatted !!! :biggrin
     
    WIP: Microsoft 365 Identity and Services MD-100
  14. Boycie
    Honorary Member

    Boycie Senior Beer Tester

    6,281
    85
    174
    Glad you got it sorted. :thumbleft

    I have always wondered what happens to the space when you start partitioning it :)

    Si
     
    Certifications: MCSA 2003, MCDST, A+, N+, CTT+, MCT
  15. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

    6,624
    117
    224
    Classic problem there - you aren't comparing like with like.

    Drive manufacturers always use SI prefixes - i.e. k means 1000, M means a million etc. Because of old history many people tend to use the binary versions, even though drive sizes are not powers of two. Windows these days will give the size in *both* measurements. Check and you will find your 250GB drive is still 250GB! :biggrin

    Harry.
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+
  16. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

    6,624
    117
    224
    Not much - the partition tables and the boot sectors take very little! :biggrin

    Harry.
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+

Share This Page

Loading...
  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.