HowToFixComputers.com

Guest

For the many posts that have expressed frustration I make this
contribution. I too was equally frustrated after spending many hours
attempting to install a new Maxtor SATA drive in my Pavilion 630n (the
original drive failed). After approaching the task from every possible
angle using the 15+ years of experience working in the field I resolved
myself to chat online with a HP support technician. The chat session
(partial transcript below) was very enlightening as is revealed that HP
motherboards utilize a proprietary disk management partition. Basically
without the partition you cannot install XP even from the HP System
Recovery CD's (which also do not the disk management software). The end
of the matter is if you have a hard disk go bad in an HP Pavilion you
MUST use an HP authorized service center as the disk management
software is not publicly available. So regardless of whether your
system is under warranty or not you must pay HP to have it fixed. You
other option is to purchase a replacement non-HP motherboard.

Any attempts to install XP on a drive without the disk management
partition will result in file copy errors. At various points during the
XP installation the install will hang indicating that a particular file
could not be copied. The end result is the OS will not load
successfully.

Partial HP Transcript:

Jay Geraghty: checking hold on
Jay Geraghty: it is out of warranty I know that
Ralph S: In that case you may need to take the computer to a nearest
authorized service center.
Jay Geraghty: did that and they could not figure it out (Best Buy)
Jay Geraghty: about 6 months ago I had a similar problem and they
replaced the main board
Jay Geraghty: now I am having the same problem again??
Jay Geraghty: are these machines problematic?
Ralph S: You may need to take the computer to a HP Authorized service
provider so that they install a utilities in your computer and resolve
the issue.
Jay Geraghty: what utilities? are they not on the restore CD's
Ralph S: No, they can be installed by the authorized service provider.
Jay Geraghty: would you suspect the main board it light of the
symptoms?
Jay Geraghty: it light of it being out of warranty would I be better
off just getting a new machine or main board?
Ralph S: You can get a new motherboard.
Jay Geraghty: I have been reading similar problems online with other
Pavilion owners
Jay Geraghty: seems like a weak line of machines
Jay Geraghty: no real explaination of why this issue repeats itself
Jay Geraghty: have you seen this issue with other customers
Ralph S: No we have not seen this issue, this issue happened because
DMI utility is not installed in the new harddisk.
Jay Geraghty: the restore CD's don't install the util?
Ralph S: No, they will not install the DMI utility.
Jay Geraghty: can I download?
Ralph S: Sorry for the delay.
Ralph S: The utility is not available for download.
Jay Geraghty: so basically a hard disk cannot successfuly be installed
into an HP Pavilion without using a service provider
Jay Geraghty: because of the DIM util?
Ralph S: Yes. You are correct.
Ralph S: It is a disk management utility.
Jay Geraghty: WOW, that stinks - really restricts your customer base
wouldn't you agree?
Ralph S: I do understand. The HP authorized provider can install this
utility in your computer.
Jay Geraghty: yeah for $$ - so basically an individual cannot repqir
their own machine when it is out of warranty
Ralph S: yes, it can be rectified you need to install the DMI utility,
however only HP authorized service provider could do it. Once you take
the system to them they would install it.,
Jay Geraghty: okay, thx for your candid responses Ralph. It has been
very enlightening yet sad frown

Ben Myers · Guest

Odds very good are that you could also install XP from a Microsoft-hologrammed
XP install CD (or reasonable facsimile thereof) supplemented by a CD containing
the SATA drivers and other drivers required by that particular model. This
would be less expensive than having an HP authorized service center extort the
funds needed to install the proprietary HP DMI software.

Either way, you have to spend more money than anticipated to get the system back
in running condition. Also (I expect flames for slamming HP again!), the
competition in the form of Dell, Lenovo/IBM and Gateway DO make available any
software needed to set up a diagnostic partition, not required for successful
use of these brands, BTW. I admit that in the case of Dell, I had to figure out
(with the help of some Dellbots) how to set up and load the diagnostic
partition, and, of course, have a Dell XP restore CD in hand. There is a how-to
available on the web, not from official Dell sources. The different business
models used by HP, Dell, etc are irrelevant. What is relevant is that some
companies give (as in free of charge) their customers what is needed to get a
system back into working order, and this gives them a competitive advantage.

.... Ben Myers

On 30 Dec 2005 12:19:32 -0800, gx4dad@bellsouth.net wrote:

til · Guest

More great news from hp. I have been complaining about recovery disc
problems, for nothing! The very reason that I want them is for hard drive
failure and they won't work without utility software that I can't get . This
along with the driver difficulty makes it clear to me that hp does not want
me to be able to repair this machine.

Eric H · Guest

<gx4dad@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:1135973972.615095.233990@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...

Eric H · Guest

<gx4dad@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:1135973972.615095.233990@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...

Ben Myers · Guest

As I noted before, a Windows XP install CD plus the drivers on the HP web site
as identified by other people will enable you to get the system working again.
Exactly like it left the factory? No, but close enough.

As for hard drive diagnostics, I always advocate using the diagnostic software
available from the drive manufacturer's web site. For Toshiba drives, use the
Hitachi Drive Fitness Test, because Toshiba does not care enough about its
customers to supply a Toshiba diagnostic... Ben Myers

On Fri, 30 Dec 2005 22:28:59 -0800, "til" <til@lafn.org> wrote:

til · Guest

<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43b6f0ac.339949@nntp.charter.net...

Ben Myers · Guest

No. Install XP first, preferably with NTFS, which would make it impossible to
copy the drivers with DOS anyway. Then insert the CD with the drivers. Install
any chipset drivers FIRST, otherwise the install of the other drivers may not
work... Ben Myers

On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:42:22 -0800, "til" <til@lafn.org> wrote:

til · Guest

<ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers)> wrote in message
news:43b77b85.1082422@nntp.charter.net...

Ben Myers · Guest

To recap:

Windows XP runs best with an NTFS file system, which is more reliable than the
alternative FAT32. So, if you intend to reinstall Windows XP, first make sure
you have an NTFS partition. The Windows install CD can do this for you
automatically, early in the installation process.

If you create a DOS FAT32 partition for the drivers, and copy the drivers into
that area, you'll end up with a largely wasted FAT32 partition. Or you can
create a dual-boot system, booting either Windows XP or DRDOS. (How to do
dual-boot is beyond the scope of my response.)

But, honestly, there is nothing to be gained by having the drivers in their own
partition as long as you have a CD with the drivers on them.

If you intend to run F-Prot or any other anti-virus software from the DOS world,
you also need to have a DOS driver to read from and write to (to remove the
viruses) the NTFS partition. AFAIK, Sysinternals is the only company that sells
a DOS-mode NTFS file system driver. If you really and truly want to be able to
run A-V software from DOS, then set up the system from the outset with a FAT32
partition... Ben Myers

On Sun, 1 Jan 2006 13:06:16 -0800, "til" <til@lafn.org> wrote: