The hard drive may be defective It can and does happen. Every disk drive
makes some noise and users get accustomed to it. However, the spindle motor
or the drive bearings can wear out and seize up.
Drive incompatibilities If two drives will not work with each other in any
configuration or combination as master and slave, there is something wrong
with the drives. Try replacing one or both and retesting.HerearesomeofthecommonPOSTandsystemerrormessagesforharddiskproblems: Hard disk configuration error Typically indicates an incorrect CMOS
configuration or a loose, missing, or incorrectly installed data cable.
Hard disk 0 failure Disk0 is the master drive on the primary IDE/ATA
channel. This message indicates an incorrect CMOS configuration or a bad
connection to the power supply.
Hard disk controller failure Indicates power or data cable connection
problems. Check the data cable connection and the power connectors on
the drive and the hard disk controller.SCSI Hard Disk Drives
SCSIharddiskdrivescanhavemanyofthesameproblemsasanIDE/ATA,especiallyre-
lating to power and drive failure. However, SCSI drives do not use masters and slaves
and are uniquely identified to the system.
Here are some things to look for when troubleshooting a SCSI hard disk drive: CMOS setup The hard disk drive settings in CMOS should be set to None
or Auto-detect. The SCSI host adapter provides BIOS-level support to the
hard disk drive.
SCSI device drivers Because SCSI devices require device drivers, make
sure the latest drivers are installed. Visit the manufacturer’s Web site to
download the latest device drivers for the PC’s operating system.
Host adapter and hard disk IDs The SCSI host adapter is always designated
as Device 7 on the SCSI bus and the first SCSI hard disk drive (the boot disk)
on the bus should be assigned SCSI ID 0. If two or more SCSI hard disks are
installed on the same bus, which means on the same SCSI cable, each must
have a unique SCSI ID number. The ID is set through a jumper on the device.
Termination If the SCSI hard disk is the only internal device or if it is the last
device on the SCSI bus, it must be terminated. Use a multimeter to verify that
the termination block is good.IDE/ATA and SCSI Drives Together
A PC that has both SCSI and IDE/ATA hard disk must have a BIOS that supports both
types of drives and allows the SCSI to be designated as the boot device, a choice you want(^632) PC Hardware: A Beginner’s Guide