HDD detection problem

[Matt Lobegeiger]

Hi,
Just installed windows XP home onto a new 160gb Western Digital IDE HDD. The
bios detects the HDD correctly but windows only shows it as being 128gb.
Windows is fully updated with SP2 etc.

I've searched around the internet for this problem but haven't found
anything so far.

Any ideas?

matt

 

[Thomas Wendell]

Was SP1 or Sp2 incorporated on the XP installation CD or installed after
XP? If the later, you now have some 36GB unused space because the installing
XP didn't recognize the full disk, check DiskManager (Start->Run
diskmgmt.msc).
XP hasn't got the tools to resize partition, so you need 3rd party software
for that, like PartitionManager or BootItNG
(both available as trial versions)



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[Star Fleet Admiral Q]

You need several things in order for Windows to see a hard drive greater
than 128GB, as follows:
1) WinXP SP1/SP2 integrated (included) into the install CD (not installed
after XP is installed)
2) The I/O controller, whether built in to the Motherboard or as a 3rd
Party add in card in one of the card slots must be 48-bit LBA capable.
3) The BIOS/CMOS of the computer must be 48-bit capable.

If any of the three are not in compliance, then XP can only see the 1st
128GB/137GB (depending on whether you use base 10 or base 2 number system).

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[Yves Leclerc]

This sound like you had used a XP Home install CD that did not have any
service pack installed onto it. Only starting with Service Pack 1 (Sp1),
would XP correctly format hard drives that are greater than 128/137GB in
capacity. Now you have two options:

1) Buy a partition management utility (like Partition Magic) and expand the
existing partition. Back up your important files.

2) Download the full network version of the Service Pack 2 and use
"Autostreamer" so as to create an new CD image of the XP Home install CD.
This will place SP2 into the install process and create a CD image, which
you can burn to a CD with Roxio or Nero. Then, reformat and re-install your
XP.

 

[Guest]

This could probably be a new thread but...

Every solution I see to this involves having an install disk with SP2
integrated. I moved from 80G to 160G drives with nary a problem. This was
with XP Pro installed and SP2 already updated. I added the 160G drive, made
sure all the stuff my drive would support was turned on in bios and copied
everything over to it with a Western Digital utility, then I pulled the old
drive.

Just wondering...

 

[Anna]

This could probably be a new thread but...

Every solution I see to this involves having an install disk with SP2
integrated. I moved from 80G to 160G drives with nary a problem. This was
with XP Pro installed and SP2 already updated. I added the 160G drive,
made
sure all the stuff my drive would support was turned on in bios and copied
everything over to it with a Western Digital utility, then I pulled the
old
drive.

Just wondering...

Mark H.
There are basically two requirements for the XP OS to recognize
large-capacity drives, i.e., 127-128 GB (binary)/137 GB (decimal), as
follows:
1. The motherboard's BIOS must support large-capacity disks - virtually
every MB manufactured over the past three or four years meets this
requirement; frequently a BIOS upgrade is available for older MBs., and,
2. XP had to be installed with SP1 and/or SP2 at the time of the drive's
installation.

So you can see why the full capacity of your 160 GB drive was recognized by
the system. You installed the drive at the time you had SP2 installed and
your motherboard obviously supported large-capacity disks. That's it. Had
nothing to do with the WD utility in copying over files to the new disk.
Anna

 

[Matt Lobegeiger]

Thanks for the help guys. I ended up just creating a new partition for the
phantom space. Is all good now.

matt