New build windows 7 problems

Mathius_gamgee

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Mar 27, 2013
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Hi,

I have seen similar threads to this apparently common problem but each time there is a different solution. I have just purchased a complete new build. This is not my first time building a computer but it is my first time doing the software.

My computer is as follows:
Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4x 4GB) 1600MHz DDR3
Arctic Cooling Freezer i30 Socket Processor Cooler
Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H Socket 1155 VGA DVI HDMI 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard
Corsair Professional AX860 Fully Modular 860W PSU
Intel Core i5 3570K 3.4GHz Socket 1155 6MB
WD 1TB 3.5" SATA-III 6Gb/s Caviar Black Hard Drive - 7200rpm 64MB Cache
Gigabyte GTX 680 4GB GDDR5 6008MHz Dual DVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Graphics Card
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional w/SP1

Everything is compatible and connected correctly.

I have been saving for ages to get this build and now I cant even use it. The problem is Windows 7 does not recognise the HD despite being recognised in the BIOS. I have plugged it into my existing computer and it works. I have formatted it and updated to current drivers but still nothing shows up in the windows 7 install screen. I have my HD as the main boot and my DVD drive as secondary. I have disabled the tertiary boot option. I have changed the cable to see if it was that and tried multiple sata ports with both cables but still windows does not see it.

My question is if I install windows 7 on my current computer to that hard drive and plug it in would it work?
If not how can I get it to work without replacing the HD as there is a 3-5 working day turnaround and I'm impatient?
 

Dhamilton

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Nov 27, 2012
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So I use the exact same MB, CPU and HDD.
I went into my bios and looked at all settings related to the HDD and boot for you.
Hopefully one of these is the issue.
So load into BIOS.
Click on Peripherals.
Check the following settings:
SATA Controller Enabled
SATA Mode Selection AHCI

Also, i notice you said your HD was set a first boot and Dvd as 2nd. Reverse those. DVD as first boot, HDD as 2nd .

 

Mathius_gamgee

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Mar 27, 2013
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I checked the BIOS, it was in IDE so changed it to AHCI but now I have a message saying missing bootmgr ctrl alt del to reset.... What?

So I CAD and sure enough it boots from CD. Same problem. It cant find a drive to install windows on. I went into the advanced settings and it only highlights options refresh and load drivers. I click refresh... nothing. I click load drivers and it gives me an option to browse... I browse AND THE BLOODY DRIVE IS THERE!!!! "C\: clear as day. What the hell! it cant recognize it to put files on but it can take files off?

it clearly cant be a hardware issue. This must mean that my windows cd is messed up right?
 

Dhamilton

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Nov 27, 2012
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For the install of a new operating system you want a clean drive. There does not need to be anything on the disk.
If your win 7 disk is not allowing you to format the drive ( in ntfs) you could try it in another machine and see if you can format it.
 

Mathius_gamgee

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Mar 27, 2013
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I did that today. The disk works fine and I formatted it in NTFS. :( Sadly same problem occurred.