Disk Boot Failure

Specs:
Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit
Asus Striker II Formula 780i Nforce motherboard
4 GB OCZ 1066 Platinum DDR2 memory
Corsair TX850w
Evga GTX 470 SC
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB
Hitachi Deskstar 1 TB

Anyways, my question relates to this annoying Disk Boot Failure that arises whenever I do a hard reset of the computer as a result of a total system lock-up in Windows. Sometimes it's there, sometimes I boot into windows with no error.

The issue comes up because my BIOS does not list the SATA hard drives or CD-ROM drive. As a result of not seeing the drives, I can not boot into windows. Nothing is there.

To fix the issue, I have:

A. Moved the HDD's to different Sata ports (I have 6).
B. Load Bios Defaults
C. Tried booting from Sata Controller (which resulted in a BSOD when loading windows 0x07B)
D. Flashed Bios.

Again, this issue is intermittent but ONLY comes about after doing a hard reset of the PC. It will occasionally lock up when watching videos online or video editing or simply web browsing.

So a couple of days ago the issue came up again and I'm getting annoyed. The motherboard is fine (everything is listed properly...Sata ports just don't want to play nice).

Any help? I may have to reset the CMOS ...

Thanks

cmos clear...and are all your drivers up to date?

Sounds like what happened to me before a HDD failed. How old is yours?

it's a three year old HDD (the one with the OS on it).

I honestly don't think that it's a hard drive error because once I can get bios to recognize everything, booting is flawless.

Even if I just have the CD-ROM drive or the Hitachi Deskstar hooked up, Bios doesn't see them.

Last time I fixed the issue was loading Bios Defaults and hooking up one drive at a time.

Back when I built the system, the CD-Rom drivers were downloaded and successfully installed. At this point, I don't really need a CD-ROM drive seeing as how I download everything from the Internet.


As for setting my western digital as the main boot drive, I can't. Bios doesn't recognize any sata device connected to the mainboard. When it DOES recognize it, I can set boot priority etc...

I said in my first post that I had flashed to the latest Bios version (revision 2402), which I downloaded from the Asus website.

As for installing any drivers...there is no way if I cannot even get into windows. The drives are there, they are connected. Everything is working properly EXCEPT the sata controllers. Bios just doesn't see them. As I said, IDE works fine.

replace or reseat?

If it is replacement, I am ok with that.

The battery may be dying...I have no idea. The point, manually reseting the computer after a system lock-up causes BIOS to forget what is connected to it (in this case, anything SATA). All other non-sata devices are recognized and listed.

Now during POST I don't receive any CMOS errors. Or "Failing CMOS battery"

But this issue is intermittent, the system acts odd, and everything else is fine.


Man if you're right about this, I will love you forever.


I took a look at the battery. It is a CR2032 NEWSUN 3V Lithium Cell

Now, what procedures should I be ready to use? When I take out the old battery, should I just put the new one in and start it up?


Thanks a lot

Also, use this opportunity to clean out dust from your HSF, and also inspect your mobo for failed capacitors (Google "bad capacitors" for some images of what they look like).

I got the same problems like you. But not same system. I tried every way that you did. But could't solve. Finally, I found the source of problem: the sata cable. Try to change the sata data cable with new one.

Good Luck

Three-volt CR2025 lithium batteries are used by many motherboards to maintain the clock and other permanent settings when AC power is disconnected.

I think this is exactly what the issue was. CMOS battery was aging, and much like a elderly person, was forgetting some things. I even had an issue with the clock after a power outage a week ago. The time was shown as October 21, 2000 on my G15 display.

How odd.

But again, how could a hard reset cause the cmos to forget all the sata devices that were connected to it when a normal shut down and power off through windows doesn't have that issue?

Is it because of the sudden loss of power or sudden reset with no warning that tripped up my CMOS?

Yes, that battery would work. Wal-Mart, Target, pharmacies, jewelry stores, Home Depot, and Lowes are among the places where you can usually pick these up on the spot.

Please let us know how it goes.

No luck, I'm still getting the issue. No devices are being detected on any sata ports.





Any other ideas?

Someone posted this in another forum pertaining to my motherboard:


Try this if you are still having this issue. Once in the BIOS, turn RAID on, with RAID turned on update the BIOS again to 2402. Once the BIOS is updated and the machine reboots, go back into the BIOS and the section were you can exit and save, save the settings to DEFAULT, save it and exit out. Then go back into the BIOS and set everything us they you want it/need it.
It is a good pratice to reset the BIOS to default when you update the BIOS and then go back and change the settings the way you want them. Hope this helps a little.



I guess it is worth a shot.

No, I looked all around the motherboard for any leaking capacitors but I could not find anything wrong.


I figure I could purchase a Sata II to IDE adaptor so I can at least run the hard drive with the OS on it, or purchase a bootable sata II controller.
Or reflash the bios...


At this point I may end up purchasing a new motherboard and one of those fancy 6 core AMD processors + some DDR3 memory and keep everything else. Maybe it's time for an upgrade?

worthwhile? It's the price I'm looking at. $189.99 for 6 cores? Hot damn!


Anyways back to my issue. It appears occasionally that when I turn my PC on it will sometimes detect the SATA devices...but upon restarting they are gone again.

One time my boot hdd WAS detected and the computer attempted to boot into windows...but it was met with an UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME bsod.


What i'm trying to do now is get both my CD drive and boot HDD to be recognized so that I can use the Win Vista disk to run a recovery console and chkdsk.


Sigh