mcp6453 said:
At what point does the 137MB HD size limit become an issue? I have an XP
machine with a 250 MB slave drive, and it works fine. An 80GB primary boot
drive is in the process of failing, and I am wondering whether to replace
it with a 120GB drive or larger. Could someone please explain the (BIOS?)
limitation as it affects XP?
Andy:
Perhaps I misunderstand you but when you say you "have an XP machine with a
250 MB (I assume you mean GB) slave drive, and it works fine.", does that
not tell you your system supports large-capacity disks, i.e., disks whose
capacity is greater than 137 GB? Again, I assume when you say "it works
fine", you mean the entire capacity of the disk (250 GB) is recognized in
the system, yes?
Hmmm. Now that I think about it maybe you do mean 250 MB!
It would be helpful if you would indicate whether your version of XP
includes SP1 and/or SP2. Also, the make and model of your motherboard and
its BIOS version.
Anyway, here's an overview of XP's recognition (or lack of!) of
large-capacity (137 GB and larger) disks...
There are two basic requirements for Windows XP to recognize the full
capacity of large-capacity drives, i.e., drives having a capacity greater
than 137 GB...
1. Your motherboard's BIOS must support large-capacity disks, and,
2. SP1 and/or SP2 has been installed.
Note that in every case your motherboard's BIOS must support large-capacity
disks. (I believe you received a response to your query stating that Windows
XP with SP1 and/or SP2 will support large-capacity disks even if your
motherboard's BIOS doesn't. This is simply not true.) If your MB's BIOS does
not presently support large-disk capability, perhaps the manufacturer has a
BIOS upgrade for that MB that will allow this capability. In the event your
motherboard does not support large-drive capability, you can purchase a
controller card such as the Promise ULTRA133 TX2 to support this capability.
They're not terribly expensive, running about $35. They're simple to install
and they're effective.
Art