andy

Thanks Dalo First of all I didnt even know it makes a different using the PS2 and usb keyboards. Now my PC does respond to the F keys. Here is what happens now: on start up I still get this message: Press F3 to enter Configuration Utility Drive Number: 0 WDC ...etc Strike the F1 key to continue, F2 to run setup utility and it beeps TWICE I followed your advice and in BIOS, the boot sequence is now shown: 1. onboard SATA Hard Drive onboard or USB CD-ROM Drive onboard IDE Hard Drive (not present) USB Device WDC WD2500JB-00GVA0 onboard or USB Floppy Drive (not present) BUT still the same message each time i restart the PC. THe good thing is now at least I can Press F1 and get the PC to work. If nothing else I can do then I can live with a little hassle like that.

Hi, Thanks for trying to help me out. The latest when i tried to start the pc is now: No beep at all. The Power light and Hard drive light both came on and after a short moment, the Hard drive light went off leaving only the power light steadily on green. "Floppy diskette seek failure Sil 0680 ATA/133 Controller BIOS Version 3.2.10 Copyright © 1997-2003 Silicon Image, Inc. Press F3 to eneter Configuration Utility Drive Number : 0 WDC WD2500JB-00GVA0 234475 MB" And the cursor blinking under neath but pressing any key would not do anything at all. My C drive is a new Hitachi drive which had been installed with the original CD and updated when it was working, before the problem started. A 2nd Western Digital drive is one that is shown above. Would that shed any more light?

yes i think it beeps twice. the thing is when i left it for a couple of days and it started, still with the same message, but when i press F1 it works. When i tried shutting it down and re-start, sometimes it does and sometimes it doen't. When it does, it continues after i press F1. When it doesn't, there is no response after i press F1. The problem seems very intermittent. I thought it might be something loose but all connections seem ok. what else should i check?

The fan runs normally. Everything inside the PC looks clean and free from dust. I tried to put the original drive back and the exact same thing still happens. It freezes on start up @ the "Floppy diskette seek failure" message and the F keys would not work. Could there be something terminal or anything else I can check? Thanks in advance

But it seemed to be working for a few hours after I installed it and updated windows and others stuff i had on the old drive, except that i had to press F1 every time it restarted. Many thanks for trying to help anyway

none of the F keys do anything now except F2 key when pressed it shows "Entering set up" @ top right cornner but then after that it freezes with the same "Floppy diskette seek failure"

it says: OPERATING SYSTEM ALREADY INSTALLED ON YOUR COMPUTER Reinstallation CD Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Including Service Pact 2

Cant get into bios or set up now because none of the keys respond

Oh I disconnected the power cable, took out the old Maxtor drive and put in the new Hitachi drive. I then put in the reinstallation CD (came with the PC)and changed the boot sequence to CD rom and from there i formated the drive and completed the installation. During the installation and after, each time the pc restarted, i had to press F1 to continue but everything seemed to work normally. I then powered it down last night and came back from work today to find it wouldnt start. It freezes after "Floppy diskette seek failure" and pressing F1, F2 or any other keys would not do anything.

I am new here and desparetly looking for help with my PC problem. It's a Dell Dimension 4700 running XP. My original SATA drive was small and I changed it for a larger one. After installing the new drive I kept getting the "Floppy Diskette Seek Failure; Strike F1 to continue, F2 to run set up". The PC never had a floppy drive, however. But when i pressed F1 it started up ok. However, when i turned it on today, ALL i get is the message "Floppy diskette seek failure" and the cursor keeps blinking and it stops right there. Pressing any key doesnt do anything. I have searched but did not find anything of that sort Did i destroyed the PC? or is there anything I can try to rescue it? Many thanks in advance Andy