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uXuf

4 Posts

16414

September 17th, 2005 20:00

Optiplex GX1 Hard Drive Support

By any chance, does the GX1 not support the newer hard drives? I have a 450 MHz GX1, and recently I bought a Seagate ST340015a (40 GB). The jumpers were set to cable-select. However, the system wouldnt install even Windows98! There is no problem with the hard drive, as I have checked by installing Win98 with that harddrive in another system. Now the GX1 runs too slow, however there are no errors, and certainly none fatal.
 
Do I have to rever to the 10 GB Maxtor harddrive? Does the GX1 not support my 40 GB Seagate?

Message Edited by uXuf on 09-17-2005 04:49 PM

peterfelgate_ce40d3

1.3K Posts

September 18th, 2005 20:00

What specific problem did you get installing Windows 98????  To answer generically, the GX1 on-board controller supports up to 120 Gbyte IDE disks.  Set the drive to cable select as well as all other IDE devices, make sure it is on the endmost connector of the IDE cable furthest from the motherboard; make sure it is detected and displayed correctly in the BIOS by setting the first device on the primary to AUTO (and all devices you don't have to NONE).  Make sure the speed is set to "Normal" and not "Compatible".  Post back with your exact problem for more help.

 

tobi.wan

1 Message

September 21st, 2005 12:00

I ran into the same issue. I contacted the online chat Dell support and they said they couldn't help me!!!

So I simply installed a 160 GB harddive. My linux system recognized the correct size. However, if the controller can only handle 120 GB, does this mean it will start overriding data as soon as I try to write above the 120 GB threshold?

Thanks.

uXuf

4 Posts

September 22nd, 2005 09:00

The system recognizes the Seagate 40 GB. However, evidently there is some problem that wouldnt let the system run to its full capacity. There are two 64 MB memory sticks installed, both are working fine. The hard drive is fine as far as I know. Everything is as it should be. Just the system is pathetically slow. Takes about 4 minutes to loadup 98. Previously, with the Maxtor 10 GB, it was working fine under XP. One last thing I am gonna do is to restore the factory settings from the BIOS, and see if that fixes the issue. Besides that, I am pretty stumped...

peterfelgate_ce40d3

1.3K Posts

September 22nd, 2005 11:00

Check that the processor speed in the bios isn't set at "compatible"; it should be "normal".  Try resetting the NVRAM to make sure all the hardware is redetected correctly. 

uXuf

4 Posts

September 23rd, 2005 11:00

Ummm, what exactly is the NVRAM and how do you reset it?

I think the Processor Speed was "Compatible". And as far as I remember the other option was "450 MHz". I would fix it tomorrow as the system is out of my reach today. Until then can you enlighten me on what exactly is supposed to happen if the speed is set to "compatible"?

speedstep

9 Legend

 • 

47K Posts

September 24th, 2005 00:00


Update the bios to A07 or higher for larger drives.


Bios past A07 will not work with newer processors.


Compatable is VACUUM TUBE mode and will take 25 years to install any OS.

The GX1 manuals and user guide state how much of this is done.



http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/ban_gx1/



Clearing the NVRAM is also something that is specifically addressed



http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/kb/en/document?dn=1035227

The keys are not allowed to be posted due to brackets round them. The system says disallowed tags.

Message Edited by SpeedStep on 09-23-2005 09:54 PM

uXuf

4 Posts

September 24th, 2005 08:00

Thanks for the info, SpeedStep. And thanks to peterfelgate too. The system works as expected now.

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