Uninstall/Reinstall HD Need Help

[Ted Birckhead]

My WD HD is stuck in PIO mode. Although it indicates DMA if available it
indicates PIO mode and all attemps to change it do not work. XP help on MS
website states:
"Windows XP will turn off DMA mode for a device after encountering certain
errors during data transfer operations. If more that six DMA transfer
timeouts occur, Windows will turn off DMA and use only PIO mode on that
device. In this case, the user cannot turn on DMA for this device. The only
option for the user who wants to enable DMA mode is to uninstall and
reinstall the device."

I see the uninstall option for the HD, but if I click it what are the
conseqences? If I then reboot will the HD be reinstalled with no damage to
the data etc on the drive?

Many thanks for any help.

Ted--

 

[lorisarvendu]

My WD HD is stuck in PIO mode. Although it indicates DMA if available it
indicates PIO mode and all attemps to change it do not work. XP help on MS
website states:
"Windows XP will turn off DMA mode for a device after encountering certain
errors during data transfer operations. If more that six DMA transfer
timeouts occur, Windows will turn off DMA and use only PIO mode on that
device. In this case, the user cannot turn on DMA for this device. The only
option for the user who wants to enable DMA mode is to uninstall and
reinstall the device."

I see the uninstall option for the HD, but if I click it what are the
conseqences? If I then reboot will the HD be reinstalled with no damage to
the data etc on the drive?

Many thanks for any help.

Ted--

Yes, just open up Device Manager, right-click on the drive & choose
Uninstal from the menu. Windows will then say it needs to reboot to
continue. Let it reboot. When it starts up again it will
automatically redetct the drive during bootup and (providing you log
back in as either Administrator or someone in the Administrators
group), all you'll see is a message box "Windows XP has finished
installing new devices." inviting you to reboot your computer to
complete the install.

If you log in as a non-privileged user you'll probably get a message
saying Windows can't install new devices, please log in as
administrator.

It will cause no damage whatsoever. I've just done it now on my own
system, in order to clarify the exact sequence of events.

If you're getting transfer errors, a new HDD cable might be worth
investing in. I've been out to jobs with weird & wonderful errors,
and the two (strange) solutions I often encounter are new PSU or new
HDD cable. Especially if it's an 80-pin cable because they don't seem
as robust as the old 40-pin ones.

DaveB