Hard Disk controller error

[Borgholio]

Windows XP automatically switches my drives from DMA mode to PIO mode once
in awhile. When it does, I get the following errors in my event log:


The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk0\D.
A parity error was detected on \Device\Ide\IdePort0.


Is this an error with my onboard IDE controller, the hard drive, my IDE
cable, or a combination of the three? Also, which drive is it? Harddisk0
suggests that it's my primary (C) drive, but then it has the \D which
suggests my secondary (D) drive.

 

[GSV Three Minds in a Can]

Windows XP automatically switches my drives from DMA mode to PIO mode once
in awhile. When it does, I get the following errors in my event log:


The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk0\D.
A parity error was detected on \Device\Ide\IdePort0.


Is this an error with my onboard IDE controller, the hard drive, my IDE
cable, or a combination of the three? Also, which drive is it? Harddisk0
suggests that it's my primary (C) drive, but then it has the \D which
suggests my secondary (D) drive.

The device names are all truncated (to 20 characters?) so I'm always as
confused as you about whether Harddisk0\D is really D, or if it was
going on to say 'Drive0'. I suspect the latter - I suspect that device
manager down at this level probably doesn't know about volume letters.

It could be disk, cable, or controller .. but since any modern HDD
checks the data at its end (and retries, relocates the sector, whatever,
on errors) it's more likely to be the cable or the controller. You are
using a proper 80 wire cable, yes? If you turn on SMART, and use
www.aida32.hu to look at the disk (and its SMART status) are there any
errors recorded by the disk's firmware?

You could try swapping things around to see if the error moves with the
disk, the cable, or the controller channel (although if this is the boot
drive, you can't put it on channel 2 unless D: is also on channel 2, as
slave).