Installing 'doze XP on nForce4 RAID0 array

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mic_y

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Hi guys, I have been having some problems installing windows on a RAID array. I have tried a few times, and each time with no success.

I can see that it should be working, since windows does boot up to the second installation screen, completes it, and then reboots. after this, while the XP logo is on the screen, it gives me the dem BSOD and reboots. It does this so quickly that I dont even manage to read what the screen says.

In short the method I used was as follows:
1) Install 2 identical HDD's.
2) Enable nVidida RAID controller in BIOS.
3) Create a RAID0 array, and set is as bootable.
4) Create stiffy with drivers for RAID controller.
5) Insert 'doze CD (XP with integrated SP2) and boot from it.
6) Press F6, and load both drivers that were on the stiffy.
7) Create partition on the array.
8) Install on that partition.

In theory this is working ('doze sees the RAID controlloer as a single drive), but that BSOD just keeps occuring. I have tried everything already. Any of you guys have any ideas? Thanks in advance...
 
without the err msg there is not much we can do...

have you downloaded the latest drivers?

are you sure SP2 is included (slipstreamed) into the CD and not installed afterwards by some installation script? most recovery-type CDs install it afterwards.

are you using maxtor HDDs? make sure they have the latest firware on.

also have a read through this thread.

if none of the above work, please post your setup.
 
Ok to answer some of your guys questions:

Gigabyte GA-K8N Ultra9
BIOS version: hhmmmm. cant remember
HDD's: 120GB seagate barracuda 7200.9

With relation to the slipstreaming question: yeah I am very sure that the CD is slipstreamed: first of all I have installed 'doze on at least 5 PC's off the CD (Including my own), and all of them were installed with SP2. The other thing is I whent thru the slipstreaming proccess myself when creating the cd...
 
Two thoughts - may or may not help, but anyway.

1) Have you tried FAT32 and NTFS - and also different partition sizes
2) Different HDD - I have had times when the drive was faulty (not raided though), and windows would not install - and not just windows, but Linux would also fail on the drive. (Although in the case of Linux, I switched of DMA and it worked).
 
Moederloos:

I haven't tried it with FAT, but FAT is not really in the question... Never had any problems with NTFS...

The HDD shouldn't be a problem: One I was running XP on till about 3 days ago with no problems, the other I bought 2 days ago and it is working...

Now the next update: I decide that there could be a problem since I wasn't using the latest BIOS and stiffy drivers, so I got to gigabyte site, and download all the latest goodies. Install BIOS version F7, and the whole system stops working: The PC reboots while instaling Windows at the stage where the bar in the first (Blue DOS screen) says "Starting Windows", just after it finishes loading all the drivers into RAM...

I am about to rip my hair out... damn-it.
 
Have you reset bios to defaults & rebooted after flashing?

Then go back in and set it to your liking, then try again.
 
Many moons ago, I did have a similar problem - windows XP would load to "37 minutes remaining" and then hang.
Every time, without fail.

Eventually, the motherboard was declared faulty and replaced.

I did manage to install by switching all BIOS defaults to lowest settings before I sent the board back.
 
hmm, thx for the tips guys... Ok I tried resetting the BIOS to defaults, then Hard-Cleared it, and still it is the same ****. It loads all the device drivers, and then as it starts the windows setup part, just reboots. The same was happening yesterday, just after I flashed the BIOS, when I had an OS installed on a single drive, and it would just get thru the DOS part of bootup, and reset... Anybody have any ideas on what to do???
 
mic_y said:
hmm, thx for the tips guys... Ok I tried resetting the BIOS to defaults, then Hard-Cleared it, and still it is the same ****. It loads all the device drivers, and then as it starts the windows setup part, just reboots. The same was happening yesterday, just after I flashed the BIOS, when I had an OS installed on a single drive, and it would just get thru the DOS part of bootup, and reset... Anybody have any ideas on what to do???
Click to expand...

Going back a step or two:
1) Did windows install prior to you creating the RAID array?
2) What hardware was changed post 1)?
 
Here's an idea. It might work, might not.

Boot off the install CD.. while "Setup is loading" drivers etc, tap F5 a couple of times. I'm not sure exactly at what point it is that you're supposed to hit it, so I find the "tap F5 until you get the screen" method seems to work.

You will be prompted with a screen to change your computer type. The only option available is 'standard PC'. Select that, and then continue with install.
 
Yeah windows did install perfectly... before and after RAID. Except that after RAID I kept getting a nasty BSOD, but that was after windows installation, not before the installation had even started.

The real problems started last night after the BIOS update where the system rebooted after trying to load the installed 'doze, so I decided to try and reinstall, it, caus it was installed on a single HDD, and I was really hoping to install it on a RAID array, and decided that now with all the BIOS and driver updates, it should work, but then the reboots came.

Now, refering to the F5 thing: It worked. I got past the drivers screen, and onto the partition selection screen, but now Windows is saying that the partitions that it created itself arent windows partitions, and windows cant be installed on them :P
 
hehehe it still keeps saying that the partitions that werecreated aren't 'doze partitions and therefor it cant install wondows on them :P

LOGIC PLEASE...
 
yup that is the one ;) Well in any case, I am giving up on this for a week or so. Gonna have to live without a PC till next week AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH NNNOOOO. Dont have time for this stuff right now, so yeah... Stats exam is a bit more important.
 
Ok well found out what the issue was: Originally when I flashed the BIOS from version F3 to F7, something went very wrong with the flashing, and it kept rebooting. Now all is sorted, and I have a beauty of a system running on a 240GB RAID0 array... awesome. Dem gigabyte utilities for flashing the BIOS :/ *hacks with a chainsaw*
 
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