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Floppy Drive
I thought my floppy drive is down but I was happy when it worked on a different system. The green LED of the floppy drive is always on. It's enabled in the BIOS. I don't see any cable problems if any. When I type A: in the command prompt I get
[ The drive is not ready for use; its door may be open. Please check drive A: and make sure that a disk is inserted and that the drive door is closed. ]
I want to update my BIOS and my File System is NTFS. Windows XP Professional is the only operating system installed. I asked for others floppy drives and unfortunately they are not working. The good news is my floppy drive worked on the other system.
This question is all about a floppy drive [ The drive is not ready for use; its door may be open. Please check drive A: and make sure that a disk is inserted and that the drive door is closed. ] and nothing else. If you want to include something else that might be of any help to the readers.
Please help. Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye.
[ The drive is not ready for use; its door may be open. Please check drive A: and make sure that a disk is inserted and that the drive door is closed. ]
I want to update my BIOS and my File System is NTFS. Windows XP Professional is the only operating system installed. I asked for others floppy drives and unfortunately they are not working. The good news is my floppy drive worked on the other system.
This question is all about a floppy drive [ The drive is not ready for use; its door may be open. Please check drive A: and make sure that a disk is inserted and that the drive door is closed. ] and nothing else. If you want to include something else that might be of any help to the readers.
Please help. Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye.
SOLUTION
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SOLUTION
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SOLUTION
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SOLUTION
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f-king
Also make sure bios say´s it´s a 1.44mb floppy and not the older 5.25mb one
ASKER
Sorry friends. I got it fixed. And here is the result.
--------------------------
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/comp/fdd/failDrive-c.html
There is an apparent failure of the floppy disk drive
Explanation: There is a general failure of the floppy disk drive. This generally means either an error message appeared at boot time saying that the floppy drive failed, or other symptoms and analysis has led you to believe that the floppy drive may have failed. Failure usually means that the disk is not accessible or usable at all and does not respond to any attempts to use it. If the floppy drive is usable after booting the hard disk but just will not boot, look here.
Diagnosis: There are many different causes of apparent floppy drive failures. Floppy drives are very simple affairs and outright failure is quite rare--even in old drives. Most of the time it is simply a matter of incorrect installation or configuration.
Recommendation:
* First of all, if you have just installed this drive or have done any other work within the PC box, check this troubleshooting list of common problems.
* Check to make sure that drive has power. Check the power connection to the drive. If possible, try a different power connector.
* Make sure that the cable running to the floppy drive is connected properly and is not loose or crimped.
* If you are just installing this floppy drive, make sure you don't have the cable connected backwards. It is easy with many 3.5" drives to connect the drive backwards because the cable is keyed but the connectors aren't always. Also, don't assume where pin 1 is on the drive, since this tends to vary with different hardware. If the drive's activity light comes on as soon as the PC is booted and stays on, solid the whole time the PC is on, this is a dead ringer for a floppy cable that has been connected backwards to the drive.
* If you are using two floppy drives then you should try to debug them one at a time, otherwise they may conflict with each other and make debugging more difficult. If two drives work separately but not together on the same cable, this usually means you are either using the wrong kind of floppy cable (make sure it has a twist in it) or one of the drives has had its jumpers changed from the default.
* If your floppy cable has five connectors, remember that these are in two pairs of two connectors (each pair being a pin header connector and a card-edge connector, to allow you to connect to either type of drive), one on each side of the twist in the cable. You cannot use both connectors on the same side of the twist in the cable. The A: drive is the one after the twist.
* Make sure that the floppy disk controller is enabled in the BIOS setup.
* Check the BIOS setup and make sure that the correct drive types are selected for the A: and B: drives. Choosing the wrong type of drives can cause a failure to be reported.
* If you have a 5.25" drive that is not working, check the drive for physical interference. These drives are large and I have seen problems like cables hanging down into the mechanics of the drive and impeding its operation.
* If you cannot get the drive to work, the best way to check it is to swap it with a similar drive in another PC. If your drive works in the other PC but its doesn't work in yours, then you likely have a configuration problem. If the opposite happens then your drive is either bad or misjumpered. It is often easier and cheaper just to get a new drive.
* You may have a problem with the floppy disk controller. Try troubleshooting it here.
--------------------------
Now my floppy has gone wild. It was working when I tested it on the other system. For some reason it got screwed and I am getting track 0 errors. I used flobo bad sector repair tool and it didn't work. I downloaded another application which is demo and allows to check the phisical drive errors ( can't be fixed! ) and there are none. So I am having track o logical bad sector problem. I want an XP Professional compatible software to repair the logical bad sectors of this floppy. I visited several pages downloaded several softwares and there is always something missing. One software called MyFormat is for 98/Me ... It's too difficult for me to give all the details. It already took hours and the above link [
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/comp/fdd/failDrive-c.html
] was hard to trace back.
Please help. I lost several floppies before but this is the first time I have one single floppy
left and resources ( knowledge )that push me to fix it. Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye. I have no more points left and I will be adding them everyday.
--------------------------
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/comp/fdd/failDrive-c.html
There is an apparent failure of the floppy disk drive
Explanation: There is a general failure of the floppy disk drive. This generally means either an error message appeared at boot time saying that the floppy drive failed, or other symptoms and analysis has led you to believe that the floppy drive may have failed. Failure usually means that the disk is not accessible or usable at all and does not respond to any attempts to use it. If the floppy drive is usable after booting the hard disk but just will not boot, look here.
Diagnosis: There are many different causes of apparent floppy drive failures. Floppy drives are very simple affairs and outright failure is quite rare--even in old drives. Most of the time it is simply a matter of incorrect installation or configuration.
Recommendation:
* First of all, if you have just installed this drive or have done any other work within the PC box, check this troubleshooting list of common problems.
* Check to make sure that drive has power. Check the power connection to the drive. If possible, try a different power connector.
* Make sure that the cable running to the floppy drive is connected properly and is not loose or crimped.
* If you are just installing this floppy drive, make sure you don't have the cable connected backwards. It is easy with many 3.5" drives to connect the drive backwards because the cable is keyed but the connectors aren't always. Also, don't assume where pin 1 is on the drive, since this tends to vary with different hardware. If the drive's activity light comes on as soon as the PC is booted and stays on, solid the whole time the PC is on, this is a dead ringer for a floppy cable that has been connected backwards to the drive.
* If you are using two floppy drives then you should try to debug them one at a time, otherwise they may conflict with each other and make debugging more difficult. If two drives work separately but not together on the same cable, this usually means you are either using the wrong kind of floppy cable (make sure it has a twist in it) or one of the drives has had its jumpers changed from the default.
* If your floppy cable has five connectors, remember that these are in two pairs of two connectors (each pair being a pin header connector and a card-edge connector, to allow you to connect to either type of drive), one on each side of the twist in the cable. You cannot use both connectors on the same side of the twist in the cable. The A: drive is the one after the twist.
* Make sure that the floppy disk controller is enabled in the BIOS setup.
* Check the BIOS setup and make sure that the correct drive types are selected for the A: and B: drives. Choosing the wrong type of drives can cause a failure to be reported.
* If you have a 5.25" drive that is not working, check the drive for physical interference. These drives are large and I have seen problems like cables hanging down into the mechanics of the drive and impeding its operation.
* If you cannot get the drive to work, the best way to check it is to swap it with a similar drive in another PC. If your drive works in the other PC but its doesn't work in yours, then you likely have a configuration problem. If the opposite happens then your drive is either bad or misjumpered. It is often easier and cheaper just to get a new drive.
* You may have a problem with the floppy disk controller. Try troubleshooting it here.
--------------------------
Now my floppy has gone wild. It was working when I tested it on the other system. For some reason it got screwed and I am getting track 0 errors. I used flobo bad sector repair tool and it didn't work. I downloaded another application which is demo and allows to check the phisical drive errors ( can't be fixed! ) and there are none. So I am having track o logical bad sector problem. I want an XP Professional compatible software to repair the logical bad sectors of this floppy. I visited several pages downloaded several softwares and there is always something missing. One software called MyFormat is for 98/Me ... It's too difficult for me to give all the details. It already took hours and the above link [
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/comp/fdd/failDrive-c.html
] was hard to trace back.
Please help. I lost several floppies before but this is the first time I have one single floppy
left and resources ( knowledge )that push me to fix it. Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye. I have no more points left and I will be adding them everyday.
How did you fix it?
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
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To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
ASKER
I fixed it and bought a new floppy. I tried to update BIOS and I got errors couple of times and all are different. It's AMI BIOS. In the MotherBoard book it says it uses Award BIOS but it's AMI BIOS. Pretty confusing, isn't it? The AMI Flash says there is no support for it. My BIOS is AMI [ AMI BIOS - Not a complete AMI MotherBoard ]. And the Chipset manufacturer is ECS [P6 series - P4VMM2 model and there are PCB 1.0, 3.0, 5.0, 7.3 and 8.0 - Not a complete ECS MotherBoard - again hijacked!? ] It's [ www.kobian.com - When I run the mobo test - AMI gave the result as the PCB tag is missing. It showed the result as P4VMM2* Tag is missing.] Kobian - Mercury [ KOB P4M266 NDFS Mx Release ] - The final hijacker. I got lots of/loads of info on the BIOS bla blah thingy.
I am confused of one thing for sure. I am sure that the flash utility must be Award Flash and the BIOS file must be KOB's BIOS file. Actually it's like TINA [ There is no alternative ]. I studied that I have change the flash settings to the program mode and this is what freaked me out because it's not given in many help files and sites. There are many changes varying from one model to the other.
I think I have all that is required but I am not sure about the Flash ROM jumper settings and CMOS jumper settings. Here is what I think. I think the [ Flash ROM voltage - VCC is set to 5v - no changes needed!? ] Flash ROM size setting has to be changed to 4M [ Program Mode!? ] from the 2M setting before the BIOS is upgraded. The CMOS [ Type - 3-pin ] jumper is set to 1-2: Normal. I think after changing the Flash ROM size to 4M I have to upgrade my BIOS using Award Flash and KOB BIOS and then Power off the system after the process of upgrading the BIOS is completed and then clear the CMOS 2-3: Clear and then set it to 1-2: Normal after few seconds and then start the computer with a happy face and new BIOS.
Please help.
All in a nut shell!?
It's AMI BIOS logo. Ok.
It's Award BIOS [ The motherboard book says " This mainboard uses Award BIOS" ]. Ok.
It's KOB- Via chipset- Mercury mainboard. Ok.
The flash utility is Award. Ok.
The BIOS is from http://www.kobian.com/ . Ok.
--------------------------
Flash ROM size setting? Not OK.
Clear CMOS? Not Ok.
--------------------------
Not Ok...
When to change and when to revert the original setting? If I already know the answer as stated above [ !? ] a simple answer of yes or no would end this question [ Q_21215623 ].
Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye. Please help.
:-)
I am confused of one thing for sure. I am sure that the flash utility must be Award Flash and the BIOS file must be KOB's BIOS file. Actually it's like TINA [ There is no alternative ]. I studied that I have change the flash settings to the program mode and this is what freaked me out because it's not given in many help files and sites. There are many changes varying from one model to the other.
I think I have all that is required but I am not sure about the Flash ROM jumper settings and CMOS jumper settings. Here is what I think. I think the [ Flash ROM voltage - VCC is set to 5v - no changes needed!? ] Flash ROM size setting has to be changed to 4M [ Program Mode!? ] from the 2M setting before the BIOS is upgraded. The CMOS [ Type - 3-pin ] jumper is set to 1-2: Normal. I think after changing the Flash ROM size to 4M I have to upgrade my BIOS using Award Flash and KOB BIOS and then Power off the system after the process of upgrading the BIOS is completed and then clear the CMOS 2-3: Clear and then set it to 1-2: Normal after few seconds and then start the computer with a happy face and new BIOS.
Please help.
All in a nut shell!?
It's AMI BIOS logo. Ok.
It's Award BIOS [ The motherboard book says " This mainboard uses Award BIOS" ]. Ok.
It's KOB- Via chipset- Mercury mainboard. Ok.
The flash utility is Award. Ok.
The BIOS is from http://www.kobian.com/ . Ok.
--------------------------
Flash ROM size setting? Not OK.
Clear CMOS? Not Ok.
--------------------------
Not Ok...
When to change and when to revert the original setting? If I already know the answer as stated above [ !? ] a simple answer of yes or no would end this question [ Q_21215623 ].
Thanking you again. See you later. Goodbye. Please help.
:-)
ASKER
==============
* If you are just installing this floppy drive, make sure you don't have the cable connected backwards. It is easy with many 3.5" drives to connect the drive backwards because the cable is keyed but the connectors aren't always.
--------- Also, don't assume where pin 1 is on the drive, since this tends to vary with different hardware. If the drive's activity light comes on as soon as the PC is booted and stays on, solid the whole time the PC is on, this is a dead ringer for a floppy cable that has been connected backwards to the drive.
==============
==============
* If your floppy cable has five connectors, remember that these are in two pairs of two connectors (each pair being a pin header connector and a card-edge connector, to allow you to connect to either type of drive), one on each side of the twist in the cable.
---------- You cannot use both connectors on the same side of the twist in the cable. The A: drive is the one after the twist.
==============
:-)
* If you are just installing this floppy drive, make sure you don't have the cable connected backwards. It is easy with many 3.5" drives to connect the drive backwards because the cable is keyed but the connectors aren't always.
--------- Also, don't assume where pin 1 is on the drive, since this tends to vary with different hardware. If the drive's activity light comes on as soon as the PC is booted and stays on, solid the whole time the PC is on, this is a dead ringer for a floppy cable that has been connected backwards to the drive.
==============
==============
* If your floppy cable has five connectors, remember that these are in two pairs of two connectors (each pair being a pin header connector and a card-edge connector, to allow you to connect to either type of drive), one on each side of the twist in the cable.
---------- You cannot use both connectors on the same side of the twist in the cable. The A: drive is the one after the twist.
==============
:-)
ASKER
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When I have enough points, I will distribute among you.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
:-) Thanks.
When I have enough points, I will distribute among you.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
:-) Thanks.
ASKER
Here is my own problem that no longer exists. Not exactly. It still is here and the link is below.
My question [ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21215623/Floppy-Drive.html ]
Other questions
[ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21215623/Floppy-Drive.html ]
and
[ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21218798/a-small-problem.html ]
My question [ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21215623/Floppy-Drive.html ]
Other questions
[ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21215623/Floppy-Drive.html ]
and
[ https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21218798/a-small-problem.html ]