How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Hi all,
I configured my BIOS so it handles the SATA AHCI feature which allows SATA
disks to be hot-plugged on my computer. I also replaced my Windows XP disk
driver with the Intel AHCI disk driver so the AHCI can also be managed
under Windows XP.
I tested it and it works fine : if I boot my computer, login under Windows
XP, plug my SATA disk into the rack and start it, it is automatically
recognized by Windows like it is when you plug an USB device (but the disk
transfer speeds are much higher when using AHCI than when using USB).
If I turn the disk off and physically remove it, I can see the disk
immediately disappearing from the desktop explorer. But I am quite unhappy
with this. Because I am electrically stopping the device, I suppose some
data could be corrupted. I thought that the AHCI driver would add an
"Eject" feature on the right-click menu (like it is with USB devices or
flash disks) but I did not found any in my menu (only the "Format" item).
=> Do I have to configure Windows XP so I get an "Eject" item in the right-
click menu ? How could I do this ?
=> Is there another way to disconnect the disk "softly" before physically
disconnecting it ?
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Guilbert STABILO schrieb:
> Hi all,
>
> I configured my BIOS so it handles the SATA AHCI feature which allows SATA
> disks to be hot-plugged on my computer. I also replaced my Windows XP disk
> driver with the Intel AHCI disk driver so the AHCI can also be managed
> under Windows XP.
>
> I tested it and it works fine : if I boot my computer, login under Windows
> XP, plug my SATA disk into the rack and start it, it is automatically
> recognized by Windows like it is when you plug an USB device (but the disk
> transfer speeds are much higher when using AHCI than when using USB).
>
> If I turn the disk off and physically remove it, I can see the disk
> immediately disappearing from the desktop explorer. But I am quite unhappy
> with this. Because I am electrically stopping the device, I suppose some
> data could be corrupted. I thought that the AHCI driver would add an
> "Eject" feature on the right-click menu (like it is with USB devices or
> flash disks) but I did not found any in my menu (only the "Format" item).
>
> => Do I have to configure Windows XP so I get an "Eject" item in the right-
> click menu ? How could I do this ?
> => Is there another way to disconnect the disk "softly" before physically
> disconnecting it ?
>
> Thanks in advance for your help.
>
um ... via the "safely remove hardware" icon in your taskbar?
*inconspicuously looking for the hidden camera*
>> => Do I have to configure Windows XP so I get an "Eject" item in the
>> right- click menu ? How could I do this ?
>> => Is there another way to disconnect the disk "softly" before
>> physically disconnecting it ?
> um ... via the "safely remove hardware" icon in your taskbar?
> *inconspicuously looking for the hidden camera*
On my computer the "safely remove hardware" is only available for USB
devices (only the USB drive letters are displayed), I have nothing for the
SATA disks directly plugged on the motherboard SATA ports.
That's why I was asking.
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Guilbert STABILO schrieb:
> Jesco Lincke <ichwill@keine.mail> écrivait news:ghjrsf$1me$1@online.de:
>
>>> => Do I have to configure Windows XP so I get an "Eject" item in the
>>> right- click menu ? How could I do this ?
>>> => Is there another way to disconnect the disk "softly" before
>>> physically disconnecting it ?
>
>> um ... via the "safely remove hardware" icon in your taskbar?
>> *inconspicuously looking for the hidden camera*
>
> On my computer the "safely remove hardware" is only available for USB
> devices (only the USB drive letters are displayed), I have nothing for the
> SATA disks directly plugged on the motherboard SATA ports.
> That's why I was asking.
>
>
>
In device manager, check if the write cache is activated for your
drive(s). Right click on the drive and check the policies tab in properties.
If the write cache is not enabled you can stop worrying about data loss.
, as the data gets written to your disk immediately (or should be, at
any rate. Who can really tell, with windows...).
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Previously Jesco Lincke <ichwill@keine.mail> wrote:
> Guilbert STABILO schrieb:
>> Jesco Lincke <ichwill@keine.mail> écrivait news:ghjrsf$1me$1@online.de:
>>
>>>> => Do I have to configure Windows XP so I get an "Eject" item in the
>>>> right- click menu ? How could I do this ?
>>>> => Is there another way to disconnect the disk "softly" before
>>>> physically disconnecting it ?
>>
>>> um ... via the "safely remove hardware" icon in your taskbar?
>>> *inconspicuously looking for the hidden camera*
>>
>> On my computer the "safely remove hardware" is only available for USB
>> devices (only the USB drive letters are displayed), I have nothing for the
>> SATA disks directly plugged on the motherboard SATA ports.
>> That's why I was asking.
>>
>>
>>
> In device manager, check if the write cache is activated for your
> drive(s). Right click on the drive and check the policies tab in properties.
> If the write cache is not enabled you can stop worrying about data loss.
> , as the data gets written to your disk immediately (or should be, at
> any rate. Who can really tell, with windows...).
Without write buffer, you can still kill the filesystem with
complete data loss, namely when you unplug during a write.
It is just less likely.
Never remove a drive before the "savely remove" feature tells
you it is safe to do so!
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Arno Wagner <me@privacy.net> écrivait
news:6q5r4pFa569lU2@mid.individual.net:
> Without write buffer, you can still kill the filesystem with
> complete data loss, namely when you unplug during a write.
> It is just less likely.
>
> Never remove a drive before the "savely remove" feature tells
> you it is safe to do so!
Thanks but where is the "safely remove" option for SATA connected drives ?
(not USB or Firewire).
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Guilbert STABILO schrieb:
> Arno Wagner <me@privacy.net> écrivait
> news:6q5r4pFa569lU2@mid.individual.net:
>
>> Without write buffer, you can still kill the filesystem with
>> complete data loss, namely when you unplug during a write.
>> It is just less likely.
>>
>> Never remove a drive before the "savely remove" feature tells
>> you it is safe to do so!
>
> Thanks but where is the "safely remove" option for SATA connected drives ?
> (not USB or Firewire).
You enable write caching here:
> In device manager, check if the write cache is activated for your
>drive(s). Right click on the drive and check the policies tab in
>properties.
Then the drive(s) should show up in the "remove hardware safely" dialogue.
Re: How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ?
Guilbert STABILO wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I configured my BIOS so it handles the SATA AHCI feature which allows SATA
> disks to be hot-plugged on my computer. I also replaced my Windows XP disk
> driver with the Intel AHCI disk driver so the AHCI can also be managed
> under Windows XP.
I think you may have shot yourself in the foot with this action. I
typically tend to stay way from Intel's drivers (or any proprietary
drivers) when it comes to certain hardware like disk drives. The Intel
drivers tend to be very finicky compared to the standard Microsoft
drivers. There may be some minor performance improvements available when
going with the Intel drivers, but less compliance with various
standards. See if you can't go back to the standard Microsoft drivers again?
> There may be some minor performance improvements available
> when going with the Intel drivers, but less compliance with various
> standards. See if you can't go back to the standard Microsoft drivers
> again?
If I get back to the Microsoft standard driver, I will lose the hotplug
feature which is what I want. Indeed, the hotplug is only managed by the
Intel ACHI driver which is not provided by Microsoft (except with Windows
Vista but I don't have and don't want it).
Moreover, I did many write/read tests : I made a backup from my primary
disk to the racked one, I stressed my disk using Everest and I ran some
performance test using HD Tach. I also let my computer running all day long
with many disk I/O processes running and it perfectly worked (no crash, on
unstability).
So, I have no reason to do the rollback.
My motherboard is shipped with an Intel SATA controller so I hope the Intel
driver should appropriated.
> You enable write caching here:
>
> > In device manager, check if the write cache is activated for your
> >drive(s). Right click on the drive and check the policies tab in
> >properties.
>
> Then the drive(s) should show up in the "remove hardware safely"
> dialogue.
I checked/unchecked the write cache box but this is alwyas the same : no
eject function nor safely remove in task bar.
How do I eject a SATA hard disk under Windows XP ? 
Linear Mode
