HDD cause computer to free after POST.

[thecokebadger]

First, my rig setup. Originally
p4 3.0ghz prescott
asus p4p800-mx
1gb ram
1 40gb hdd (c
1 160gb hdd (d
1 400gb hdd (sata) (e

Couple days ago, i went to reboot my computer, and after post and smart test, my computer would freeze on the following screen which was a blank screen with a blinking cursor. The cursor would start on the top line, drop down one line, and just stop. It would still blink. I figured something has messed up my 40gb hdd, as it's the oldest. I took it out, formated my 160gb hdd, set it as the master and partitioned it into 3 drives, 120gb, 20gb + 20gb. (my intention was to eventually dual boot with xp and media center, don't ask me why, just letting you know) I reinstalled winxp pro on one of the 20gb partitions. reinstalled a bunch of programs (and restarting multiple times), then restarted again and now my computer won't get pass the smart test. It say that my 160gb "Capable and Status OK" but it freezes after that. It won't smart test any other drives. If i move the hdd to a slave of another drive or dvd rom, it will test all the drives ahead but still freeze after it smart test the 160gb. It won't even let me get into the bios. I've tried:
- reset the bios jumper, unplugged the 160gb to get into the bios but it still freezes in the same place when i reconnect it.
- disabled the smart test but then it just days "capable and disabled" and then freezes.
I don't have any other hdd around to install xp on (except the 40gb, which won't let work anyways). I won't install xp on my 400gb b/c it has 350gb of data that i've been in the process of slowly backing up.
Is there any other options other then buying a new hdd. b/c the 160gb was recently formated, there is no valuable information on it and therefore i don't care if i lose it, but i really don't have the money to be spending on another hdd. This would suck to lose 2 hdds in 3 days. the 160 is probably about 2 years old, and even if it is covered under warranty, that doesn't solve me immediate problem, and i'm pretty sure the receipt is long gone.

 

[Mondoman]

Why do you think it's a hard drive problem? Could it be a RAM problem, a video card problem, etc? Have you tried replugging all your add-in cards and power connectors? Download and burn an "Ultimate Boot CD" image onto a CD and boot from that. It won't need any hard disk to boot, and will allow you to check RAM and other functionality.

 

[thecokebadger]

I think it's a hdd problem, b/c when i unplug that hdd, i can get into the bios, and i can use a bootable cd like the xp installation cd and opt to install windows, but like i said, i dont' want to install windows on my other 400gb hdd. Is the only way to test the ram is to put it in someone else's computer? i know there's programs to test the ram, but obviously, i can't get into windows.
I've tried replugging in all my add in cards. I'm using a dual monitor setup, but the default monitor is an intergrate video card. I've tried it without the other video card, but still no luck. I don't think it's a power supply problem either b/c i just replaced that about 2 weeks ago. I've tried other plugs too.
Where can I get an "Ultimate Boot CD" from? I'm gonna test my hdd in my friends computer tonight... My ram isn't supported by his computer though..

 

[Mondoman]

Just Google "Ultimate Boot CD". It's freely downloadable, and doesn't require Windows (it boots a lightweight Linux). It has lots of diagnostic/utility programs on it, so once you boot from it, you can run memtest86+.
Also, hard disk warranties now usually go by the drive's manufacturing date, which should be printed on the drive, so no receipt needed.

 

[thecokebadger]

I installed my hdd in my friend's computer, and it booted with no problem. i went into disk management and somehow, the second 20gb partition was set to active. I don't know what cause that or why that would cause it to freeze, but in cmd, i set that partition to inactive. Popped it back in my computer, reformatted and reinstalled everything. Everything is working fine now. Thanks for you're help Mondoman, i'm gonna grab Ultimate Boot CD when i get home form work and keep it for future references.

 

[ethel]

Use memtest86 to test your RAM. It boots off of a floppy.

 

[thecokebadger]

I popped my 40gb back in, and its working and recognized by windows. All the files are still there and intact. Sometimes I just wanna throw my computer out the window. I can't be bothered now to set it up like it was....grrrrr