Fernando 1

@ krzysiek033: Thanks for your reply. The attached HardwareID's of your now in AHCI Mode running "NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller" were a surprise for me, because according to my knowledge they belong to MCP78 (nForce 730a/720a/710a) and not to MCP72 (nForce 780a/750a) chipsets. Have fun with your freshly installed Windows XP running in AHCI Mode! Fernando

Users, who don't want or are afraid to edit any driver file, may use one of the driverpacks I have already customized for being easily integrated into a Windows XP (32/64bit) CD. Here are the download links: 32bit 3Ware RAID drivers v9.5.2 for Windows XP 64bit 3Ware RAID drivers v9.5.2 for Windows XP x64 Have fun! Fernando

No, you only need to integrate the appropriate 32/64bit (Sata)RAID driver subfolder, which contains a file namd TXTSETUP.OEM. When you are doing the driver integration task, nLite will only show you the INF files of that folder. Point to any of them (doesn't matter which one, nLite will copy them all anyway). No, you must not hit F6 when prompted.

So you did not take a clean XP CD as source? Then you didn't read my guide carefully.It was not easy to help you, because you didn't answer all my questions and your few answers have always been hidden within your quoted text. Nevertheless it's fine, that you succeeded at least. Last questions (hoping for an answer): 1. Which of the different drivers worked for you at least? 2. Which HardwareID's has your freshly installed "NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller"?

Maybe you have posted the HardwareID's of this IDE Controller.I repeat: Do you see any other Controllers within the "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" and "SCSI and RAID Controllers" sections? If yes, give me the related HardwareID's too. EDIT: After having downloaded the manual of your mainboard from ASUS support sites, I have done a deeper look into it. Your mainboard has 6 NVIDIA nForce SATA ports, but only 2 of them do support AHCI. These are the ports 5 and 6. So if you want to run Windows XP in AHCI Mode, you have to connect your 2 SATA hdds with these AHCI capable SATA ports.

"PATA" and "SATA (IDE Mode)" are really different, but maybe the informations I have regarding the DeciceID of the MCP72 IDE/SATA Controllers are wrong (they are from NVIDIA). OK. Where is your CD/DVD drive connected?

@ krzysiek033: The HardwareID's you have posted belong to the NVIDIA MCP72 PATA Controller. That would mean, that your hdd is a native IDE (=P-ATA) and not a SATA one. If I am right, you will not be able to set your hdd to AHCI Mode, because the AHCI features are not supported at all by PATA hdd's. EDIT: Do you see any other Controller within the "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" section? If yes, give me the related HardwareID's too.

Then you have done something wrong.Are you sure, that your hdd is a SATA one and connected to a NVIDIA SATA Controller? Have you really done the needed AHCI settings within the BIOS? Since you obviously are still able to run Windows XP, you may give me the HardwareID's of your currently running "Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller" (Device Manager > "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" > right-click onto "Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller" > "Properties" > "Details" > "Property" > "HardwareID's").

That would be correct, if you have an nForce SATA system running with enabled "AHCI Mode".Are you sure, that the SATA Controller, where your hdd is connected, a ) is a NVIDIA nForce one and b ) is running in "AHCI Mode"? EDIT. Now I have realized your answers. This was not easy, because you have quoted the whole text inclusive your reply. You obviously are runinng your SATA Controller neither in AHCI nor in RAID Mode. If you want to get Windows XP installed without using the advanced SATA features of AHCI or RAID (that means with your current BIOS settings), you should boot off the original Windows XP without hitting F6 or having integrated any textmode driver. If you want to run Windows XP in AHCI Mode, you have to do the following: 1. Enter BIOS and change the SATA Controller settings to "AHCI Mode". 2. Put your already prepared Windows XP CD with integrated nForce SATA_IDE driver 10.3.0.46 into the CD/DVD drive and boot off it. 3. Choose the partition where you want to get Windows XP installed (should be formatted previously). 4. Let the XP Setup do its work. 5. Enjoy Windows XP running in AHCI Mode.

@ krzysiek033: Welcome at MSFN Forums! Are you running any Windows OS now? If yes, have a look into the "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" and - if present - the "Storage Controllers" (or "SCSI and RAID Controllers") section of the Device Manager. Which Controller names do you see? As long as the AHCI or RAID Mode is enabled within the BIOS, the OS needs appropriate AHCI resp. RAID drivers. Otherwise you will not be able to boot the OS anymore. Which ASUS driver did you take and how did you integrate it?By the way: The AHCI/RAID drivers, which I am offering within my guide, are almost newer and possibly better than those you get from the mainboard manufacturer. Furthermore the use of them is much easier, because I have already prepared them for being integrated into a Windows XP CD.

@ bretmaverick999: Thanks for your suggestion. I will put something like that into my guide, when it's time for the next update. By the way: Only the Intel SATA AHCI Controllers are listed within the "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" section of the Device Manager. The Intel SATA RAID Controllers are within the section "SCSI and RAID Controllers" (XP) or "Storage Controllers" (Vista and Win7). Regards Fernando

I am sorry. but we must not give any support to users, who are working with an illegal copy of a Windows OS.

If you really have integrated nothing else than a Service Pack and the Intel chipset "divers", the BSOD is caused by something else.Questions: 1. Are you using a clean (=untouched) original MS XP CD as source? Look into the i386 directory of the CD for a file named WINNT.SIF. If you find it, you can be sure, that the CD has been processed (by you or someone else). 2. When you get the STOP: error message, do you see a name of a file, which may have caused the error? If you couldn't see the entire error message, because the system rebooted at once, you should repeat the procedure, but hit F8 at (re)boot and choose the option "Don't reboot at System failure". Please give us the complete STOP: error message. 3. How much RAM is within your computer? If it are more than 3 GB, you should remove 1 RAM stick, before you are going to install Windows XP.

Thanks for this information.The exact name of the related device is "Intel® 82801FB Ultra ATA Storage Controllers - 2651". It is an Intel ICH6 chipset SATA device, which is neither supporting AHCI nor RAID. There is no textmode driver available for this SATA Controller, because the device doesn't need any real driver, but just an INF file. It is supported by the actual Intel chipset "drivers" (wrong name), which you can get >here<. So you should be able to get Windows XP with integrated SP2 or - even better - SP3 installed without the integration of any textmode driver. This is what I recommend for you: Download and unzip the above linked Intel chipset drivers, which I have already prepared for the later integration into a Windows XP CD. Copy the content of the original (=untouched) Windows XP CD onto a folder of your hdd. Start nLite and let it do just the following: integration of the Service Pack 3 (not needed, if your source is already XP SP3) integration of the Intel chipset "drivers" by pointing onto any of the various INF files (doesn't matter which one you choose) creation of the ISO file Burn the ISO file as bootable Image. Unplug all unneeded extern devices. Boot off the just created XP CD. This way you should succeed with the XP installation. All Intel chipset "drivers" for your Intel ICH6 system should be already installed due to the integration of them. Once the OS is up, look into the Device Manager for the missing other drivers (for the Graphics adapter, Network Controller, Soundchip etc.). Search, download and install them. Good luck! Fernando

The user can decide, if he wants to use the generic MS IDE drivers or the "IDE Mode" nForce SATA driver (the MS "Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller" and the "NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller" are fully compatible). Users, who want to get the nForce SATA driver installed from scratch, have to integrate the suitable SATA_IDE driver folder as PnP driver. Correct. Mostly correct, because the SATARAID driver folder contains the needed RAID and SATA driver.Only exception: Users with a LEGACY Mode nForce RAID systems (nForce2/3/4) will not get Windows XP installed onto their RAID by just integrating the SATARAID driver folder. They need to take either the LEGACY driver folder (if available) or the SATARAID driver folder (as textmode) and additionally the SATA_IDE driver folder as PnP driver, because otherwise the SATA driver will not be installed. It's not the SATA driver, which is missing, but the associated INF file, which only is present within the SATA_IDE (and LEGACY) driver folder.

You should not compare NVIDIA's AHCI and RAID drivers with Intel's ones. Things are different and more complicated with NVIDIA's textmode drivers. Contrary to Intel, where there is just 1 single driver named IASTOR.SYS managing both RAID and AHCI, NVIDIA has 2 different IDE drivers, the RAID driver named NVRD32.sys (formerly: NVRAID.SYS) and the SATA driver named NVGT.SYS, which has "normal" SATA driver functions, but additionally does support the AHCI features, if the AHCI Mode is enabled within the BIOS. All actual nForce IDE drivers have a SATA_IDE and a SATARAID folder, neither NVIDIA nor me ever have created a folder named SATA_AHCI. When I have written about the nForce "SATA AHCI" driver, I meant the regular nForce SATA driver named NVGTS.SYS running in AHCI Mode. Nevertheless you are not totally wrong. The new generation of SATA_IDE driver folders, which have a file named TXTSETUP.OEM (important for the installation of the SATA driver as AHCI textmode driver), should have been renamed to "SATA_AHCI". This would make clear, that such folder might not be the best choice for nForce chipsets, which do not support AHCI.

The last and good nForce SATA AHCI drivers for XP are the nForce SATA_IDE drivers v11.1.0.30. You will find a link to my latest modded nForce drivers within my previous post (I have edited the link while you were writing your new questions). My "NF4-7 Actual Driverpack v7.0" is optimized for AHCI users, but should work with all other NF4-7 chipsets too (except nForce4 RAID systems, which don't like the actual nForce IDE drivers v10.x.x.xx and v11.x.x.xx series at all). RAID and AHCI are different things. Since you have an MCP55 chipset mainboard, which is not able to fully support the AHCI features, you will not get any benefit by installing an nForce SATA driver, which is optimized regarding AHCI.

@ Cor'e =): Your questions are not easy to be answered, because there is no "best" driver for everyone's preferences and for all thinkable hardware combinations. Nevertheless I will try give you a reply: These new nForce IDE drivers are optimized for the actual nForce 7-9 series chipsets and maybe the best choice for users, who are running their SATA hdd(s) in AHCI Mode. Nevertheless I didn't yet put them into my guide, because the original and WHQL certified nForce IDE drivers v11.1.0.30 do not support all AHCI capable nForce chipsets.This was the reason why I have already created a brandnew "modded" driverpack on the basis of NVIDIA's 15.45/15.46 sets. You can get the 32bit version for Windows XP from >here<. For users with an MCP55 chipset I still recommend to take the nForce IDE drivers v9.99.09, because this way they will get the best possible performance. You can find all old nForce driversets, which were released for Windows XP before 2008, within >this< FTP site (or within the subdirectories named "64" and "standalone").The newer, but already outdated nForce chipset driver sets are hidden for public, but you can get them nevertheless, if you know the set version number. Example: Open the website for the WinXP set 15.45 (it's >here<). If you then go on top of your browser and replace the digits "15.45" by any other set number (example: "9.64"), you usually will get the download page of that version.

The HardwareID consists of the VendorID (VEN_xxxx), the DeviceID (DEV_xxxx) and usually a suffix. A typical HardwareID looks like this: PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2822&CC_0104You can get the HardwareID's of each device, if you have a running Windows OS on the system: Open the Device Manager, do a right-click onto the related device > "Properties" > "Details" > "Property" > "HardwareID's". All storage Controllers (SATA, AHCI or RAID) are within the "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" or "Storage Controllers" (XP: "SCSI and RAID Controllers") section of the Device Manager.

Although I have never done that, I don't expect any problems due to the installation procedure (by booting off CD/DVD/USB/eSATA or by starting it from within an existing hdd partition.Much more important is, that you have integrated the correct textmode driver. If yes, Windows Setup will find and use it.

@ quaternary: I don't think, that your problem has something to do with the installation medium USB stick. The STOP: 0x0000007B error message usually indicates a wrong or broken textmode driver. Since we do not know exactly the specifications (HardwareID) of your SATA Controller and the SATA Mode (AHCI, RAID or IDE), you probably have to try several different drivers and may check different SATA Controllers during the textmode driver integration. @ E-66: If you do a fresh install of Windows XP onto a SATA hdd, which is running in AHCI Mode, and you are booting off an XP CD with integrated suitable AHCI textmode driver, you haven't to do anything regading SATA after XP Setup has been finished. The procedure you have linked to is only valid for users, who want to enable AHCI after having installed Windows XP in IDE Mode.

Exactly this would be my suggestion too. I am pretty sure, that you will enjoy the stability of this OS.Greetings from Germany Fernando

Since your nForce 980a chipset mainboard is rather new, you may use the newest official nForce chipset drivers. You will get them >here<.The SATA_IDE driver folder is the correct and newest AHCI driver, which does support your nForce 980a chipset. If you are not using the Silicon Image Controllers (Silicon Image Controllers should be disabled within the BIOS) or if they even are not present at all within your current hardware configuration, you can delete all Silicon Image entries within the registry. This is not documented at all, but a trick to erase the annoying error messages.Any manipulation within the registry is risky. You always have to take care not to do something wrong.

That is right, but there are some differences nevertheless. The main question is, if the built-in generic MS IDE drivers do detect and fully support the SATA drives, which should run in "IDE Mode". Not really, because I never had such a system. This is what I would try: 1. Integrate the actual AMD/ATI SB7xx chipset drivers (=Soutbridge drivers) as PnP drivers. 2. Try to install W2k by booting off the nLited CD. Good luck! Fernando

@ ghot: Welcome at MSFN Forums. The best solution for your system is a clean fresh install of Windows XP SP3 with integrated actual NVIDIA nForce SATA AHCI driver according to part B of my guide. Since you do not want to do a reinstallation of the OS, your problems are rather off-topic. Nevertheless I will try to help you: 1. >Here< is a detailed guide about how to easily change the NVIDIA nForce SATA Controller Mode from IDE to AHCI while running Windows XP. I don't know, if it works for you, but you may try it. 2. You should install the AHCI driver before you are going to switch the SATA Mode from IDE to AHCI within the BIOS. 3. Regarding the annoying error message I recommend to open the registry ("Run Command" > "regedit"), search for all entries "Sl3132" and delete them.