DeskStar 60GXP 40GB is now 33GB ?!

[raoulvolfoni.en.personne]

Hi all,

I have a very strange problem on my hard drive. One week ago, my PC
badly crashed and damaged the MBR. So I began to work on it to repair
the situation. Suddenly I noticed that the drive was now only 33GB
instead 40GB !!! I read couple of thread and forums and I tried many
tools without success. It is not a limitation of my BIOS, because I
used this drive since many year on this Mother Board.

What I tried without success :

Boot on a rescue CD like Hiren Boot CD, and tried many tools like
HDAT2, IBM Feature Tool, TAFT (The Ata Forensics Tool), etc etc.
- I tried to look see if there is an HPA zone on my hard drive. No HPA
zone.
- I tried to put the correct original size (80418240 sectors) with a
SET MAX ADRESS, without success, because the dris say to my computer :
my native size is 33MB, and I allow you to put 33MB max !
- I flash my BIOS + reset CMOS
- I update the hard drive Firmware
- Check the jumper => all the jumper are on master, and the drive is
the only one on the cable
- Try on another computer (différent mother board)
- Try to erase the MBR, reboot, let the BIOS discover the drive, and
reboot on CD to launch HDAT again...
- Try to launch an self test on the hard drive, everythings are ok
- Try a DCO (Device Configuration Overlay) restor configuration
- Try to connect the drive after boot (hot plug) and redetect the drive
on HDAT2
- Try to put the drive on ATA port (Standard controler, ATA 2)
- Try to put the drive on Ultra ATA port (Promise Controler, ATA 5)

I read this :
- http://www.foi.se/upload/rapporter/foi-computer-forensics.pdf
- http://www.hdat2.com/links.html
- http://www.altruists.org/projects/hw/hr/

My conclusion is :
The native size of the drive has changed ! And I don't know how it is
possible. And how I can modify this. I don't where and how the native
size of the drive is memorized. If you have an idea... because I've
tried everything...

Best regards.
(sorry for my english)

/Raoul

------------------------------------
My configuration :
- ASUS A7V with the lastest BIOS realease v1011
- IBM DeskStar 60GXP 4GV, with the lastest Firmware
- No others card plugged
- 128Mo RAM

 

[Rod Speed]

I'd go right back to basics. Wipe the drive with something like clearhdd.
http://www.samsung.com/Products/HardDiskDrive/utilities/clearhdd.htm
Now run Hitachi's Drive Feature Test and see what it says about the size of the
drive. If that says that its only 33G, you likely stuffed up the firmware yourself.

 

[Frazer Jolly Goodfellow]

Hitachi's Drive Feature Test

....wrong.

 

[raoulvolfoni.en.personne]

@mid.individual.net:

...wrong.

The problem is that I have many data on this hard drive... and I don't
want to erase it if possible.
I tried Hitachi's Drive Feature Test, and I tried to change the SET MAX
SIZE, but the drive is seen as a 33GB...

 

[Svend Olaf Mikkelsen]

Hi all,

I have a very strange problem on my hard drive. One week ago, my PC
badly crashed and damaged the MBR. So I began to work on it to repair
the situation. Suddenly I noticed that the drive was now only 33GB
instead 40GB !!! I read couple of thread and forums and I tried many
tools without success. It is not a limitation of my BIOS, because I
used this drive since many year on this Mother Board.

What I tried without success :

Boot on a rescue CD like Hiren Boot CD, and tried many tools like
HDAT2, IBM Feature Tool, TAFT (The Ata Forensics Tool), etc etc.
- I tried to look see if there is an HPA zone on my hard drive. No HPA
zone.
- I tried to put the correct original size (80418240 sectors) with a
SET MAX ADRESS, without success, because the dris say to my computer :
my native size is 33MB, and I allow you to put 33MB max !
- I flash my BIOS + reset CMOS
- I update the hard drive Firmware
- Check the jumper => all the jumper are on master, and the drive is
the only one on the cable
- Try on another computer (différent mother board)
- Try to erase the MBR, reboot, let the BIOS discover the drive, and
reboot on CD to launch HDAT again...
- Try to launch an self test on the hard drive, everythings are ok
- Try a DCO (Device Configuration Overlay) restor configuration
- Try to connect the drive after boot (hot plug) and redetect the drive
on HDAT2
- Try to put the drive on ATA port (Standard controler, ATA 2)
- Try to put the drive on Ultra ATA port (Promise Controler, ATA 5)

I read this :
- http://www.foi.se/upload/rapporter/foi-computer-forensics.pdf
- http://www.hdat2.com/links.html
- http://www.altruists.org/projects/hw/hr/

My conclusion is :
The native size of the drive has changed ! And I don't know how it is
possible. And how I can modify this. I don't where and how the native
size of the drive is memorized. If you have an idea... because I've
tried everything...

Best regards.
(sorry for my english)

/Raoul

------------------------------------
My configuration :
- ASUS A7V with the lastest BIOS realease v1011
- IBM DeskStar 60GXP 4GV, with the lastest Firmware
- No others card plugged
- 128Mo RAM

To get another view, you can get the Identify 1.2 program at

http://www.partitionsupport.com/utilities.htm

do in DOS:

identify pm fp-a.txt

and insert (not attach) the output from fp.txt here.

Also explain the jumper setting, not what the jumpers are set to, but
the location of the jumpers on the ':::: pins.

You also can do using Findpart for DOS:

findpart ide fp-b.txt