Hi I wish to have xp boot of a sata hd on my sata2 controller independent of any ide device is xp capable of doing this?

I slipstreamed my sata2 drivers to the cd and it allows me to select the hd in setup but then it moans about not been able to install boot files on my ide hd (I have it unpartitioned right now), my sata hd is selected as first hd device in my bios and is listed first in the setup so the only conclusion I come to is xp doesnt allow booting directly of a sata device it needs a ide device to piggy back of for the bootblock.

my bios allows me to run the sata2 controller in ide mode which I assume is for compatability and would work but then I am essentially throwing performance away, in theory I could install in ide mode, then switch it to sata mode but I cant see how this would work since windows has to bootup to detect the sata controller and install the drivers and it wouldnt boot following the bios change.

any thoughts, soon if possible please as that pc is down because of this and using my 2nd pc.

Heh...you make it sound as if its a life or death situation.

http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showto...&st=0

got it working, after I disabled the hds in the bios it reset the first boot hd back to the ide device now its working.

i had already read that post, funny enough I think what you said wouldnt work since the sata2 drivers would refuse to install whilst in ide mode? and if switch to sata mode with no sata2 drivers it wouldnt boot, chicken and egg situation.

however i have it installing now, sata2 drivers slipstreamed and fixed the hd order in bios. it failed in ide mode as well so it made me recheck the hd order.

Edited October 25, 200619 yr by Chrysalis