Hard Disk Re-Partition on 8400

Question

All,   I just got my Dell 8400.  I want to repartition the hard drive using Partition Magic so that I can install other Operating Systems that I need for school without losing the installed stuff that came with the PC.  Here's the problem.   Dell created 4 Primary partitions on the hard drive.  The approx. 71 MB partition is first (I think this is the PC restore program itself), followed by my Windows XP MCE partition of approx 220GB, then the approx 4.7GB PC Restore Partition (I think this is where the Drive image is stored), then an unallocated 7.8 MB partition.  All of these partitions are labeled as primary in Partition Magic.  If I decrease the size of the XP MCE partition and create an extended partition (which must be primary) I will have five primary partitions (which isn't allowed).    I did it anyway and there was no problem booting into XP MCE.  The Primary partitions for the PC Restore are both hidden so they should not interfere with installation of XP Pro and 2003 Server.  However, when I tried to install XP Pro the system tells me there is no Hard drive connected.  Things that make you go hmm?    I know the system can see the hard drive, otherwise my XP MCE wouldn't be able to boot up.  I also know that Partition magic was able to repartition the Hard drive the way I told it too because the Partition is showing 140GB in XP MCE now.  Do I need to change a partition to Logical?  Delete a partition?  I don't want to lose the PC Restore utility.  Is there a way to work this out?  Maybe combining the unallocated space with the Restore Utility space to free up a primary partition?  What's on that space anyway?

shesagordie · Answer

fulch92a.   Check this out.     http://www.djdenham.com/8400%20Special.htm   Using Partition Magic will change the MBR and make the PC Restore utility unusable, therefore you you might as well erase it. The small 71mb partition is Dell's Hidden EISA Partition that has diagnostics. . Bev. Message Edited by shesagordie on 03-31-2005 03:10 PM

fulch92a · Answer

shesagordie,   Can you tell me how to gain access to the information on these two partitions?  It may be too late to keep it, but maybe I can get something off of them that will help me (ie, the drivers that should have come with the system).    Do I need to keep the EISA partition?

lennoxhd · Answer

I just remembered that your C drive is likely to be partition 2 in your boot.ini. I was prepared to edit the boot.ini if WinXp didn't boot after deleting the first partition but it did boot and the boot.ini still said partition 2. In fact I changed the boot.ini to 1 instead of 2 and then WinXP wouldn't boot.

Brian

lennoxhd · Answer

Unallocated space, even though called a Primary Partition, isn't counted as one of the four you are allowed. I deleted the diagnostic and restore partitions. Diagnostics can be run from the Dell CD and I do daily Drive Images anyway.

Brian

fulch92a · Answer

I'm going to try to use XOSL to unhide the partitions to see what's on them.  I will probably wipe out the restore partition if nothing on it is usable and add it to the partition I'm going to use for 2003 Server.  As for the Diagnostics partitions, sounds like a good place to install XOSL or BootMagic.

Storage, Drives & Media

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