DISK BOOT FAILURE, INSERT SYSTEM DISK AND PRESS ENTER

My PC specs:

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R (With latest BIOS version)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core
Hard Disk: Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 160 GB (IDE)
Graphics/Video Card: NVIDIA EVGA e-GeForce 9800 GT
RAM: CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
CDROM: PHILIPS DVD/CD REWRITABLE DRIVE SPD2513 (SATA)
OS: Windows XP Professional, Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex

My problem:

Ok, so I got the parts for this build around December '08 and January '09, and it worked great up until a couple of weeks ago.

The computer will run fine for a 3-4 days, and then it will crash during boot with DISK BOOT FAILURE, INSERT SYSTEM DISK AND PRESS ENTER. Sometimes, if I reboot, my OS will boot, but then later it will crash for good.

So every time this happens, I have to wipe the hard drive and reinstall the OS. I've reinstalled XP Pro several times, tried XP Home Edition once, tried Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron twice, and Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex once, and all end up crashing with this error.

Furthermore, I've tried installing XP Pro on two other hard drives, and both times they have crashed with this error, so I think something must be going on with my hardware.

I also successfully flashed my BIOS to the latest version, but that didn't fix the problem either.

Any help is greatly appreciated. I really don't want this computer to be done for good.

Hayden Roche

That HD of yours is . . . how old?

Anyhow, you can try another IDE cable, or you can spend a few bucks for a new SATA HD which will likely solve your problem.

Other less likely sources are mobo (but its a good one and relatively new) and psu, which you haven't described. Please give make, model, and age.

Check all your cables and connections for integrity and tightness. Also, switch your power cable to one on another lead. Your motherboard is losing communication with your hard drive for some reason. If your hard drive is NOT going bad, then either the data cable/conection is faulty or you are losing power-again due to a faulty cable or connection. It's obviously cheaper trying different cables and connections first. (I personally don't like anything on a power lead with my hard drives. I've had conflicts before, too.) Good luck.

Well, to clarify, this problem has occurred on both IDE and SATA hard disks. I will post the results when I try out all of your ideas. Thank you.

What do you mean? The power cable that connects to my PSU?

Well I changed the IDE cable and it's working...for now. I'll let you all know if this comes up again.

Thanks so much,

Hayden

LOL, how rude