Help please to install windows xp 64 on SATA hard disk

Question

Desperate for help

I bought a new Dell workstation T7400 with windows vista 64 as first OS. I am trying to install windows xp 64 bit (as second OS multi boot) . I have partitioned my SATA 750 GB to partitions using windows vista disk management tool. I have encountered the known problem of windows xp cannot see my hard drive. So I have done all the steps of pressing F6 and loaded SATA drivers with a floppy drive. I am still getting the same problem and windows cannot detect my hard drive. Please help!!!!!!1

Workstation T7400

windows Vista 64 bit

SATA 750 GB with 4 NTFS partitions.

ESB2 Intel chipset

2 Xeon 3.16 processors

32 GB RAM

CLaGTech · Answer

When configuring a dual boot system, you should always install the older operating system first. In your case, Windows XP then Windows Vista. I believe F6 is only used if you are implementing RAID or dynamic disks. Reformat your hard drive and create a primary partition for Windows XP, then when the installation is complete use the Windows XP disk management tool to create a second primary partition to install Windows Vista. Make sure that the file systems are compatitble, ie. both NTFS or both FAT32.

Hope this helps,

Chris

CLaGTech · Answer

By the way, you will lose all of your data.  Be sure to backup any data on some other media before reformatting.

diy2000 · Answer

thanks ClaGTech. but it seems that this is not the problem .:smileysad: On my other computer (laptop) i have installed windows xp as a second os after vista was insalled on it. The problem is that  during the insallation process from the CD windows xp can not see the hard drive at all . I get the message  'windows xp could not find a hard drive in your system'.:smileysad:

CLaGTech · Answer

What are the specs of the hard drive?  I had a similar problem when I dual booted Windows Server 2003 and Windows Vista.  Turned out that the Windows Vista disk management utility was causing problems with the way the disk was read in 2003.  Have you tried leaving some unpartitioned space on the drive and booting from the Windows XP CD?

C3PO5 · Answer

SATA 750 GB with 4 NTFS partitions.

Hi diy2000

How many partitions do you have on your

hard drive now ?

I see it says {4} are you using one of them for XP ?

Your drive can only have 4 partitions to start with in

other words windows can only manage 4 and no more .

I am sure this is not the problem with it not

seeing the drive to start with tho !

You have to download the sata driver R173415.exe to the desktop

then click it and let it extract to a folder it should be like

C:\dell\driver\R173415\ you would go to this folder and copy

all of the files to the root of the floppy drive !

So when you use F6 it will use the drivers on the floppy drive

and it should see the drive after this !

Good Luck

diy2000 · Answer

thanks C3PO5. yes i have 4 partitions done using vista disk tool. in realtion to the F6 procedure you suggetsing i have done all this several times buit still having the same problem 'Windows did not find any hard disk drive installed in your computer':smileysad:

diy2000 · Answer

ClaGTech thats is exactly what i am doing (booting from CD). The problem i am having is when booting from windows xp CD and when it comes to the stage to choose space for installation it cannot see the hard drive.:smileysad:

CLaGTech · Answer

Check the Hardware Compatibility List for Windows XP and make sure your particular hard drive is supported.   http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx

diy2000 · Answer

Thank you ClaGTech for help. I checked the website and it looks that my hard disk is ok for windows xp 64 but cannot work with windows xp 64 IA. Now i am not sure which one of those  is the windows i am trying to install the only thing i know that it is windows 64 bit.  Also i go back to your first reponse and it could be the reason that the hard disk was formated and partitoned using the newer windows vista and that is whay windows xp can not detect it. however i cannot thing this the reason as both windows use NTFS format. Also there is a suggestion that windows xp has a 137 GB max hard drive limit size beyond that it can not see the hard drive. i am still not sure which one  is the real reason in order to resolve the problem. my hard disk is  seagat ST3750640AS. many thanks

KryttosArcadia · Answer

most SATA drivers are not on the Windows XP Disk.

What you need to do is, on another system, download the drivers. Get a utility called Nlite.

basically you use this program to create a NEW Iso of Windows from the original disk, with your SATA drivers slipstreamed into the windows CD ISO. Then you burn the new ISO with the drivers.

Thats how i installed WinXP 64 on mine

diy2000 · Answer

THANKS KryttosArcadia . I did all of that before starting this thread. but it did not work:smileysad:

Larry R · Answer

What model Dell workstation do you have?  Your original post doesn't specify.  Also, which SATA drivers did you slipstream into the XP disk?

diy2000 · Answer

thanks DELL-Larry_R. I have Dell Precision WorkStation T7400. the drivers i used are from the Dell support webpage Intel Matrix Storage Manager (OS Pre-Install Driver Only) R173415.exe. Your help is really appreciated.

C3PO5 · Answer

Also there is a suggestion that windows xp has a 137 GB max hard drive limit size beyond that it can not see the hard drive.\

Hi

I can tell you for sure XP Pro 64 bit does not have hard driver max limit size .

I checked the website and it looks that my hard disk is ok for windows xp 64 but cannot work with windows {xp 64 IA}.

Then

again if you or trying to run { {XP 64 IA}} this is not going to work at all !

You need { {XP Pro 64 bit}} not XP 64 IA

The OEM

XP Pro 64 bit you buy from someone like newegg will have XP Professional 64 bit Edition right on the CD

and the box it came in .

If you have this {XP 64 IA} you have the wrong versions and it is not going to work !
Good Luck

Message Edited by C3PO5 on 07-24-2008 12:22 PM

Larry R · Answer

Ah, I was thinking that was the CPU. Thats what I get for not checking the list of systems first. ;)

Checking the downloads page for the downloads page for the Precision T7400 it looks like there is a pre-installation SATA driver as well as a post-install driver. Have you already tried using that when running Windows setup?

For reference, once you get it to see the hard drive, the list of drivers and the order they should be installed on that system is:

Dell Desktop System Software
Chipset
Video
Network Device
Integrated Audio
Trusted Platform Module Driver (optional)
Wave EMBASSY Trust Suite Application (optional)
Intel Matrix Storage Manager driver
Intel Matrix Storage Manager Application (optional)

As for the hard drive size limitation, I'm not sure what the default settings are in 64-bit, but for both Win2K and XP before SP2 (I don't remember if SP2 "fixed" it or not) there is a registry setting that enables Windows to see more than 128Gb (137,000,000 bytes) of disk space. A quick Googling brings up a number of pages of info about getting it to work.

Windows General

Help please to install windows xp 64 on SATA hard disk

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