When I update hard drive/sata drivers.. where is that info stored?

[kcroy]

Hello,

I updated a number of drivers last night.. seemed to be working fine. This morning machine would not boot.

I determined the problem to be PSU related, which I replaced. However, it no longer sees 2 of my drives - I cannot tell if they were damaged by my old PSU, or if the updated drivers might have caused issues.

I might have accidentally loaded vista drivers instead of win7 from the ASUS website, but that is the only possible thing I could think of.

I am attempting to bring my computer back to a default state, since my drives originally worked. Any driver/mobo driver updates .. would they have been stored on the mobo? or on my hard drives?

Really at a loss on how to proceed.

edit: system

ASUS p8z68
Intel i7 2600K
NVIDIA 470
Western Digital Black 1TB x2
Seagate 640 x2
16G Corsair RAM
old PSU: thermaltake 750
new PSU: Corsair 750AX

 

[psaus]

I wouldn't think drivers would do that. Especially Vista vs 7 drivers (drivers are very similar).

Steps I would take:
- Double/triple check the data and power connections to the drives.
- Check device manager for any problem components (if any identified, you could select them and roll the driver version back)
- Check BIOS to see if somehow the SATA ports in BIOS got turned off (unlikely, unless you recently reset CMOS)


Is there's a common theme for the missing drives; e.g., are they only plugged into white SATA ports, are they only Seagate/WD drives?

 

[kcroy]

-Data and Power to the drives checked. I also checked them on different SATA ports - they do not work. 2 of my drives are still working fine ( 1 WD, 1 Seagate ).

What was odd, is that the DVD drive has its light come on, but it will not open/spin. I replaced this a few hours ago, and have just installed win7 onto a fresh SATA drive.

2 damaged drives are both WD 1TB drives. The DVD is an offbrand.

When I installed the new PSU, 1 drive ( a seagate ) would cause the computer not to post. So I unplugged that as well.

The damaged drives do not show up on BIOS or in the windows.

Is it possible for the PSU to have shorted/fried those drives?

I had previously updated these drivers.. they required a reboot to work, but original system never came back up:

Marvell SATA 6G Driver
JMicron JMB36X Controller
Intel Chipset Software Installation Utility

Are those drivers loaded to the BIOS?

 

[psaus]

Unfortunately it is very possible. PSUs are the component everyone forgets about until it nukes your system.

Download Data Life Guard Diagnostics from WD and/or SeaTools from Seagate (the bootable CDROM version, not the Windows version) and run all the diagnostics. I prefer SeaTools, and I've had SeaTools work on my WDs before, so might be worth trying. None the less, they have their respective tools.
I will say though, if you're sure that the BIOS isnt' seeing them, the diagnostics wont either. But it's worth a try at this point, because they sound like they might be fried.

Can you hear them spin up when you power on?

 

[kcroy]

I listened but I can't tell.. I don't think they are.

Well losing 3-4 drives in a day is sure a new experience

 

[psaus]

Try one at a time, if you're desperate. Could even hold the drives in your hand, this way you could feel the vibration, as well as isolate/remove the drive from the fans in the case (helps you hear better).

If they're not spinning, they're toast.

If they're dead, you can try RMAing (if still within warranty). If not, you can always open them up. Pretty cool stuff to look at, but most important, there are 2 magnets in each that are really powerful and fun to use. Best fridge magnets ever. (trying to find a bright side for you here. )

 

[kcroy]

Yeah, they aren't spinning up. Going to look into recovery options. Thanks for your responses!

 

[psaus]

No prob.

Drive Savers and Ontrack if you're looking for a proper service. But they are EXPENSIVE. But might be worth it for you...

Good luck

 

[kcroy]

Best answer selected by kcroy.

 

[nikorr]

This topic has been closed by Nikorr