Formatting a Hard Drive during installation

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I'm installing Windows XP Pro. I'm using a WD250G SATA hard drive. I've
installed the controller drivers for the motherboard (F6) option. I then
chose to format the drive (one large partition). I chose the "non" quick
option.

How long should this take, in general? Based on the first 25%, it is going
to take 10 hours. (I'm building a pretty fast system (specs below), would
that impact the format time?)

I ask because I'm having issues with the install. I've had a few STOP
errors. I believe it was related to the fact that I did not install the SATA
drivers the first few times. (A usb keyboard did not register the F6 button
being pushed, so I was never asked to insert the floppy that came with my
mobo).

Now, I want to make sure the drive is fully primed for a new install.

Thanks.

cpu - intel core 2 x6800 (2.93ghz)
mobo - dfi infinity 975x
ram - 2g (1g each) corsair ddr2 800mhz
video - nvidia quadro fx1500
 
blueice007 said:
I'm installing Windows XP Pro. I'm using a WD250G SATA hard drive.
I've
installed the controller drivers for the motherboard (F6) option. I
then
chose to format the drive (one large partition). I chose the "non"
quick option.

How long should this take, in general? Based on the first 25%, it is
going
to take 10 hours. (I'm building a pretty fast system (specs below),
would that impact the format time?)

I ask because I'm having issues with the install. I've had a few STOP
errors. I believe it was related to the fact that I did not install
the SATA drivers the first few times. (A usb keyboard did not register
the F6 button being pushed, so I was never asked to insert the floppy
that came with my mobo).

Now, I want to make sure the drive is fully primed for a new install.

Thanks.

cpu - intel core 2 x6800 (2.93ghz)
mobo - dfi infinity 975x
ram - 2g (1g each) corsair ddr2 800mhz
video - nvidia quadro fx1500
Click to expand...

A full format during the operating system install on a large drive
should take maybe 10-15 minutes. Something is most definitely wrong on
your computer. Use a regular ps/2 keyboard and don't have any
peripherals attached. Test your RAM and your hard drive.

http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Hardware_Tshoot

Malke
 
Thanks for the quick response.

Hmmm...I thought something was wrong. Is there some way to test the ram on
this system? Everything appears okay in the bios. My other system won't
take this ram.

My gut (and the various errors I've seen) lead me to believe that the
problem is the harddrive. Even though it was working in my other sytem, I
think something happened during the various install attempts.
 
http://www.memtest.org/

blueice007 said:
Thanks for the quick response.

Hmmm...I thought something was wrong. Is there some way to test the ram on
this system? Everything appears okay in the bios. My other system won't
take this ram.

My gut (and the various errors I've seen) lead me to believe that the
problem is the harddrive. Even though it was working in my other sytem, I
think something happened during the various install attempts.
Click to expand...
 
blueice007 said:
Thanks for the quick response.

Hmmm...I thought something was wrong. Is there some way to test the
ram on
this system? Everything appears okay in the bios. My other system
won't take this ram.

My gut (and the various errors I've seen) lead me to believe that the
problem is the harddrive. Even though it was working in my other
sytem, I think something happened during the various install attempts.
Click to expand...

That's why I gave you the link in my previous post. Those are general
hardware troubleshooting steps, including how to test the RAM and the
drive.

Malke
 
Malke said:
That's why I gave you the link in my previous post. Those are general
hardware troubleshooting steps, including how to test the RAM and the
drive.

Malke
--
Elephant Boy Computers
www.elephantboycomputers.com
"Don't Panic!"
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User
Click to expand...

Remember, the OP said "I chose the "non" quick option." I have seen this
option on a large drive take as much as an hour or longer to complete since
it is checking the entire drive for errors instead of just laying down the
FAT or File tables. Yes there may be other problems with his system but I
think he should try the install with the "fast" format option. If that goes
OK, problem solved.
 
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