Boot Disk Failure Insert System Disk and press Enter

[Merzbow]

Alright, I searched your forums before I asked, and everything I found wasn't any help. Since it was always someone with Windows or another OS already installed on the computer.

 

Anyway, I bought the parts, and built a computer a couple days ago. I had power issues with it shorting on my case, but I fixed that. Now, everything starts up, I go through the BIOS screen, it says some DMI thingy then gives me ,"BOOT DISK FAILURE INSERT SYSTEM DISK AND PRESS ENTER"

 

Now, I've tried putting in my XP CD I've got from my other computer. I've also tried the motherboard CD. I don't have a linux CD or I would have tried that too. But nothings worked.

 

The BIOS is set up to boot from CDROM then HDD.

 

If anyone could help me, since I'm not sure what to do.

Thanks in advance~

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help Merzbow

 

The " Boot Disk Failure" message indicates to me that the bios is trying to boot from the hard drive that has no operating system on it.

Have you set the hard drive on IDE 0 or 1 as Primary Master, by this I mean have you set the jumpers as Master?

 

When you install XP you need to have it boot from the cdrom initially and then once installed change the boot order to IDE 0 or the first SATA drive if applicable.

 

Make sure you Save the changes before exiting the bios.

[Merzbow]

I'm not quite sure what you mean by setting the jumpers. The only ones I had were for power/reset switch, and the USB ports in the front of the case.

 

Other then that, all I had to do was put the red SATA cable in the mother board and SATA HDD.

 

If you'd be kind enough to try and explain it to me differently, it'd help. But I'll take a look in the case again for anything I switched around accidentally.

 

Oh, and thanks for the welcome.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Your welcome Merz

 

Seeing as you have a SATA drive then can you do as I explained previously ie;

 

Set the bios to boot from the cdrom and install XP

 

Once installed change the boot option back to the Sata.

[Merzbow]

The BIOS is set to boot from CD first. But, even with that, it still tells me the Boot Disk Failure.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Merz

 

It will say boot disk failure as there is no operating system installed yet.

You have to make sure that the option to boot from the cdrom is saved in the bios usually by pressing F10

 

If your pc can't boot from the cdrom then either the cd is goosed or the optical drive is.

[Merzbow]

Alright, the CD-ROM Drive works, and the CD works as well.

I continue to get the Boot Disk Fail thing.

And the CDROM is saved as the 1st Boot thing in the BIOS.

[hardware_dave]

Does the bios show the cdrom in the list of detected drives ?

 

Is your cdrom sata ?

 

Motherboards with multiple sata and pata can be a pain to setup, you could try disabling all boot devices except cdrom and try boot other.

 

Dave

[Merzbow]

How do I figure out if the BIOS shows the cdrom in the list of detected drives?

 

I doubt my cdrom is SATA. Since it's rather quite old.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Have a look at this Boot section in the bios setup Merz

 

The very top one is the option to boot from the cdrom.

 

Once XP is installed go back into the bios and move the hdd to the top of the list or in other words the first boot option.

 

http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z144/Wolfeymoles-Pics/FPCH%20files/vm-bios-cdrom-boot.png

[RandyL]

Hi everyone. Nice screenshot Wolfeymole.

 

I have to agree. The issue has to be one of not reading the drive. If the bios recognizes the CD drive and it is listed as the first boot option in the bios then it should work.

 

Unless, just maybe, perhaps.

The XP CD from your "other" computer is an OEM disk and not a full retail CD.

The CD is damaged.

The CD drive is dirty or damaged.

 

It could be the last one even though it shows in the bios because you also stated;

"I've also tried the motherboard CD. I don't have a linux CD or I would have tried that too. But nothings worked."

 

If it was me I would try replacing or swapping the CD drive with another computer to see the effects on both. I have seen faulty drives even when they were new.

 

Just guessing and trying to help;

RandyL

[hardware_dave]

Some motherboards have a built in sata to pata adaptor for pata cdroms, this makes the cdrom look like a sata device. I had lots of fun getting it to boot from cdrom <grin>.

 

You should not need to change thr boot order after installing windows, the windows disk will prompt you to press any key to boot from cd if it detects any sort of bootloader on the MBR, and boot from the hard disk after a few secs if you dont press a key.

 

I have also seen mortherboards that will let you set the cdrom as the 1st boot device if you dont have a cdrom !

 

Your bios should show detected hard disks / cdroms on the first page of the bios.

 

If you are using a pata cdrom (wide flat cable about 2in wide) it should have a jumper on the back, ma/sl/cd (master / slave / cable detect).

 

Set the jumper to master and make sure it is on the last connector on the cable.

 

Since your hard disk is sata, you may have some sata options in the bios. Try setting the sata controller to auto or sata primary master.

 

Dave

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Thanks Randy, good post mate.

 

Dave, the reason I said to switch back to the hard drive as the first boot device was to save time when the pc is looking for an operating system to boot from.

 

If the cdrom is set as the first boot device upon installation and the disk and drive are good then the pc will detect the NT Loader and proceed to install once "Press any Key to Boot from CD" is pressed.

 

What must be stressed here though is that on subsequent reboots as the operating systems installs you will again be asked to "Press any Key" etc.

 

DO NOT PRESS ANYTHING

 

Just let it install and once installed then re-set the 1st boot option back to the sata drive.

As my screen shot shows the boot order is;

CD

Floppy Drive

Hard Drive

LAN (Network)

 

This boot order wastes time in locating the OS

 

Just exactly what does it say on the XP disk that you have Merz?

[Merzbow]

Okay Wolfey, I still can't find if it's detecting the CD-ROM drive other then that's it at the top of my Boot Order, and I found "Drive A: 1.44M, 3.15IN" in the Standard CMOS Features of my BIOS. That may not be it at all, but hopefully it is. :D

 

Randy, I did swap the CD-ROM Drive with the one in my Dell Dimension 4100 that I know works. Still it doesn't want to work. And the CD is, "Reinstallation CD Microsoft Windows XP Including Service Pack 2"

 

Hardware Dave, my CD-ROM drive is PATA. It's got the 2-inch cable coming outta it that connects it to my motherboard. I'll take a look for this jumper setting.

And, there's only a couple SATA options. 95% of the options regard IDE. I did enable RAID functions though.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Drive A: is your floppy disk drive Merz and no good for booting XP from.

Did you get a floppy sata raid driver with the hard drive?

[Merzbow]

Okay, I'll disable the RAID then. XD

 

But uh, so, you said Drive A is Floppy, is the computer somehow thinking that my CD Drive is a Floppy Drive? Because, there were some other options under Drive A: other then just the 1.44M, 3.5in. I can go get them if you think they'll be of help.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Please tell me everything you can Merz.

It may well be that this sata drive needs the raid driver/s installing before you can install XP.

It really should be impossible for your computer to see the floppy drive as anything but a floppy drive as a floppy drive uses a smaller IDE cable on a different motherboard connector.

[Merzbow]

RAID's disabled so that shouldn't matter anymore.

 

Other then that...

The other options for Drive A: and Drive B: are:

360k, 5.25in

1.2M, 5.25in

720k, 3.5in

2.88M, 3.5in

 

The only other bit of information in that sections was

IDE Channel 0 Master [None]

IDE Channel 0 Slave [None]

IDE Channel 2 Master [ ST3250410AS]

IDE Channel 3 Master [ None]

 

Does that help you at all?

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Set the floppy drive to 2.88mb, 3.5inch

 

It looks like your cdrom is set as secondary master on IDE 2

[Merzbow]

I thought the IDE Master things were Hard Drives, not CD-ROM drives?

 

I'll change the floppy to what you said and try it. I'll let y'know how it turns out.

 

 

 

 

 

--Changing the floppy thing didn't have any impact. ><

[Guest Wolfeymole]

A cdrom can be set as Primary Slave, Secondary Master and Secondary Slave Merz.

Do you know the make and model of your motherboard so I can see what I'm looking at please.

[Merzbow]

Sure do Wolfey.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148262

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134487

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138077

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814133203

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817163067

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147064

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103774

 

Those are the parts I'm using, along with my CD-ROM Drive from my Dell Dimension 4100.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

I'm getting a 404 error on those links Merz unfortunately.

[Merzbow]

Gir. They worked for me earlier today. ><

 

AMD 64x2 4000+

BIOSTAR NF520-A2 AM2 NVIDIA nForce 520 MCP

1GB DDR2 800

250GB Seagate Barracuda

GeForce 8400 PCIEx16

400W PowerMAX

[hardware_dave]

ST3250410AS thats a Barracuda 7200.10 SATA 3.0Gb/s 250-GB Hard Drive

 

Looks like your cd rom is not detected.

 

You should have a config section for the ide interfaces, make sure they are all set to auto.

 

Make sure the cdrom is set to master.

 

If you have two pata connectors on the mother board, make sure the cdrom is on the primary or 1st.

 

The other floppy settings are for old floppy drives and some strange variants very few people have ever seen.

 

Dave

 

 

Dave