Error 0200:Failure Fixed Disk 0

Question

I am working on a Dell Inspirion 2500 Notebook with Windows 2000 Pro. The 10gig IBM Hard Drive is failing and I am trying to replace it with a 60gig Seagate ST960815A.   The new drive is seen correctly in the BIOS, I have updated the BIOS to the latest one. When I try to boot I get an 'Error 0200: Failure Fixed Disk 0' - continue or - setup. Go into the BIOS and the drive shows up correctly. If I run the Dell diagnostics on the new drive it is not being seen.   If I install the old hard drive the 'Error 0200' goes away. The old hard drive is seen in the Dell Diagnostic routine but it fails the surface scan.   I believe that the old hard drives interface is ATA-5 and the new one is PATA. Should this make a difference???   Is the new hard drive compatable with this machine???   Thanks for Your Time.

ejn63 · Answer

Did you move the edge connector from the back of the original drive to the pins on the back of the new one?

momspc7 · Answer

If you are refering to the connector that slides over the pins on the hard drive, yes. The new hard drive is being seen correctly in the BIOS. It will boot using the Dell Diagnostics CD. But this CD does not see any hard drives. It will not boot using the Reinstallation CD for Windows 2000.   Thanks,

MickeSch · Answer

I´m trying to install exactly the same type of Seagate 60Gb disk in a Dell Insipiron 2500, and unfortunately I get the exact same error and symptom. Also running latest BIOS (15A).   Any information on this is greatly appreciated!

momspc7 · Answer

I just ordered a 30gig ATA-5 Hitachi Hard Drive. It should be here in a week to 10 days.I will post back if it works.

momspc7 · Answer

The 30gig Hitachi Travel Star ATA-5 worked. Seagate told me that the 60gig ATA-100 should have worked. I am assuming that it is a Dell Software issue that requires a hard drive similar to the original.

MickeSch · Answer

Glad to hear it worked out well for you! Today, I managed to get hold of an old (september 2002), but brand new, IBM Travelstar 40Gb disk, which worked well for me. And yes, I can use all 40Gb!

silversome · Answer

I'm having a similar problem with my Inspiron 2500.  My original 10GB HDD works fine with XP SP2 but I am trying to upgrade to WD 120GB.  This is the second drive I have tried (RMA'd the first one because I thought it was a bad drive).  Cannot run diagnostics other than disabled quiet boot, and get the above message.  HDD is seen in bios.  Unable to run XP CD.  Is there a size problem with this model Dell?  I'm not sure how to get the latest bios update, unless I'm supposed to do it when I have the old drive installed.  On the first WD120GB, I hooked the drive to a Vista PC and tried to format it, but was unable to do so.  I haven't tried that on the second drive.  Is it possible I have gotten two bad drives in a row?  I have swapped the pin adapter, the new drive is IDE, I'm using Genuine Windows Advantage XP (just purchased to upgrade from ME), and I've reinstalled many OS's.  I'm really stumped on this one though.  Any help is greatly appreciated.

momspc7 · Answer

With my limited experience with the 2500, you can only use a Hard Drive with an ATA-5 interface. This is probably going to limit you to 30 or 40 gig. If you need more storage space try going to an external Hard Drive that uses a USB port.   Good Luck

silversome · Answer

Thanks, I'll try a smaller drive and put this one in a case.

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