IDE Bios configuration with SATA drive?

[3in4]

I have a P4P800, in my bios, it has a setting for IDE Configuration. Once I go into it, it looks like this:

Onboard IDE Operate Mode:
[Off]
[Enhanced Mode] <--- selected.

Enhanced Mode Support On:
[S-ATA]
[P-ATA]
[S-ATA + P-ATA] <--- selected.

My question is about the Enhanced Mode Support. My only hard drive is a WD 160GB SATA drive, partitioned like 5 times. It
boots from this drive as well (obviously if its the only HD). I also have a DVD-rom as IDE1 Master, and a DVD-Burner as IDE1
Slave. I figured if I am running both SATA and IDE devices that I should select [S-ATA + P-ATA], but [S-ATA] was actually the
default choice. Furthermore, my system seems to boot much faster and perform slightly faster if only [S-ATA] is running.

If I choose [S-ATA] only, is it slowing down my IDE DVD drives? The manual doesn't really explain the diff, and when you
should use one of the other.

Seems most of you know way more about this stuff than I do, I would appreciate some insight.

Thanks,

Dennis

 

[Paul]

I have a P4P800, in my bios, it has a setting for IDE Configuration.
Once I go into it, it looks like this:

Onboard IDE Operate Mode:
[Off]
[Enhanced Mode] <--- selected.

Enhanced Mode Support On:
[S-ATA]
[P-ATA]
[S-ATA + P-ATA] <--- selected.

My question is about the Enhanced Mode Support. My only hard drive is
a WD 160GB SATA drive, partitioned like 5 times. It boots from this
drive as well (obviously if its the only HD). I also have a DVD-rom
as IDE1 Master, and a DVD-Burner as IDE1 Slave. I figured if I am
running both SATA and IDE devices that I should select [S-ATA + P-ATA],
but [S-ATA] was actually the default choice. Furthermore, my system
seems to boot much faster and perform slightly faster if only [S-ATA]
is running.

If I choose [S-ATA] only, is it slowing down my IDE DVD drives? The
manual doesn't really explain the diff, and when you should use one
of the other.

Seems most of you know way more about this stuff than I do, I would
appreciate some insight.

Thanks,

Dennis

The manual has a couple of sections on setting up the disks. However,
after visiting Abxzone and searching around, I'm getting the distinct
impression that the BIOS has "too many options". In other words, one
of the BIOS controls seems to be redundant.

If you follow the manual, the [P-ATA] and [S-ATA+P-ATA] modes
are for use with the Legacy (or Compatible) Mode of operation.
With an older OS, if you want disk drives to be supported without
a hassle, the SATA drives are made by the hardware to appear as if
they are on a PATA port. Windows is hardwired for IRQ14 and IRQ15
and PATA interfaces, so having the Intel Southbridge map the SATA
drives, to take the place logically of some PATA slots, means you
can install an older Windows OS without a problem. The restriction
by doing this, is only four drives can be used, when the wiring
supports six drives.

http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=608984#post608984

In Enhanced mode, really what is happening is, all six slots are
available. Four PATA drives and two SATA. There really shouldn't
be a "choice" to make for the mode of the drives in this case, and
the manual recommends the [S-ATA] setting. In Abxzone, they comment
that the other choices are slower, and possibly slower transfer
modes are being selected for some reason. I cannot determine, without
reading a few thousand more posts on Abxzone, just what the other
modes might be doing. At the very least, the [S-ATA] choice, when
using Enhanced mode, seems to be the fastest one.

Since the disk modes for the most part seem to be mutually
exclusive of one another, that makes the Enhanced versus Legacy
setting kind of redundant.

I don't think these new settings are covered over here yet, but
maybe you can find them. I didn't see them when I took a quick
look:

http://www.rojakpot.com/FreeBOG.aspx

HTH,
Paul

 

[3in4]

Thanks man, I'll put it on [S-ATA] only

I have a P4P800, in my bios, it has a setting for IDE Configuration.
Once I go into it, it looks like this:

Onboard IDE Operate Mode:
[Off]
[Enhanced Mode] <--- selected.

Enhanced Mode Support On:
[S-ATA]
[P-ATA]
[S-ATA + P-ATA] <--- selected.

My question is about the Enhanced Mode Support. My only hard drive is
a WD 160GB SATA drive, partitioned like 5 times. It boots from this
drive as well (obviously if its the only HD). I also have a DVD-rom
as IDE1 Master, and a DVD-Burner as IDE1 Slave. I figured if I am
running both SATA and IDE devices that I should select [S-ATA + P-ATA],
but [S-ATA] was actually the default choice. Furthermore, my system
seems to boot much faster and perform slightly faster if only [S-ATA]
is running.

If I choose [S-ATA] only, is it slowing down my IDE DVD drives? The
manual doesn't really explain the diff, and when you should use one
of the other.

Seems most of you know way more about this stuff than I do, I would
appreciate some insight.

Thanks,

Dennis

The manual has a couple of sections on setting up the disks. However,
after visiting Abxzone and searching around, I'm getting the distinct
impression that the BIOS has "too many options". In other words, one
of the BIOS controls seems to be redundant.

If you follow the manual, the [P-ATA] and [S-ATA+P-ATA] modes
are for use with the Legacy (or Compatible) Mode of operation.
With an older OS, if you want disk drives to be supported without
a hassle, the SATA drives are made by the hardware to appear as if
they are on a PATA port. Windows is hardwired for IRQ14 and IRQ15
and PATA interfaces, so having the Intel Southbridge map the SATA
drives, to take the place logically of some PATA slots, means you
can install an older Windows OS without a problem. The restriction
by doing this, is only four drives can be used, when the wiring
supports six drives.

http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=608984#post608984

In Enhanced mode, really what is happening is, all six slots are
available. Four PATA drives and two SATA. There really shouldn't
be a "choice" to make for the mode of the drives in this case, and
the manual recommends the [S-ATA] setting. In Abxzone, they comment
that the other choices are slower, and possibly slower transfer
modes are being selected for some reason. I cannot determine, without
reading a few thousand more posts on Abxzone, just what the other
modes might be doing. At the very least, the [S-ATA] choice, when
using Enhanced mode, seems to be the fastest one.

Since the disk modes for the most part seem to be mutually
exclusive of one another, that makes the Enhanced versus Legacy
setting kind of redundant.

I don't think these new settings are covered over here yet, but
maybe you can find them. I didn't see them when I took a quick
look:

http://www.rojakpot.com/FreeBOG.aspx

HTH,
Paul