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Moving Windows to a Different Hard Disk/RAID Controller Without Reinstalling
Overview
One of the trends in personal computing these days is the prevelance of more options for hard disks and RAID systems than have been available in the past. As a result, many people want to move towards one of these systems as an upgrade, but at the same time want to avoid the hassle of reinstalling Windows and all applications. This has been exceedingly difficult and in some cases even impossible do to. However, with this guide, you'll be able to perform this task in most cases with most hardware configurations.
What You Can and Cannot Do With This Guide
This guide is applicable to the person who has Windows currently starting up from one hard disk/hard disk controller combination, and wants to start that same Windows installation up from a different hard disk/hard disk controller on the same computer. For instance, you may want to upgrade from a single-disk installation of Windows to a RAID installation, or from an IDE drive to a SCSI drive, or from an IDE drive to a native-mode SATA drive. In general, this guide will work for any situation where the mass storage controller that has to be used for Windows startup is going to change.
This guide is NOT for adding another drive or controller to an existing system when the Windows installation doesn't move from it's existing controller. That is a much easier task and can be done with standard driver installation and the Disk Management utility in Windows. This guide is NOT for moving a Windows installation to completely different hardware (like changing your motherboard). There are some procedures posted on the Internet for that already. The guide is NOT for moving a hard drive within a system where the disk controller that is being used either does not change or uses the same drivers as the old one, or where Windows already has built-in drivers for the new controller (like a standard IDE controller).
Windows and Mass Storage Controllers
Windows treats all mass storage controllers the same way. Whether it's a standard IDE controller, SATA controller, SCSI controller, or RAID controller, Windows has to have a driver for it in order to use it. Once Windows has a driver installed for the controller, Windows can start up from a hard drive attached to that controller as long as the machine's BIOS can use the controller as the boot device.
When installing Windows for the first time on a system, most of the time no concern need be given to the mass storage controller, because in the past, 90% of the time, the storage controller is a standard IDE controller which Windows already has drivers for on its installation CD. Windows will detect the standard IDE controller and use it's own drivers for it, thus enabling Windows to start up from the IDE controller.
If Windows does not have a driver on its CD for your system, the Windows text-mode setup program tells you that Windows cannot find a mass storage controller in your system, and prompts you to insert a manufacturer-supplied driver disk. This is the method to install mass storage controller drivers for most SCSI, RAID, and now some SATA controllers. Windows reads the driver off the floppy disk, and uses that driver to start up after installation.
If any situation arises where Windows does not have a driver installed for the mass storage controller you're starting up from, you will get a blue screen STOP error, usually with the error STOP 0x0000007B (INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE). If you've ever tried to copy a Windows installation from one controller to another with one of the partition copy tools and then tried to start it up, this is probably what you got.
The key item in this procedure that makes it work is that the procedure loads drivers for a storage controller that Windows will start up on before moving Windows to that storage controller. Once Windows has seen the storage controller and has had drivers loaded for it, Windows can now use that storage controller as the startup controller.
Requirements to Proceed
To proceed with this procedure, you will need the following:
The Windows installation that you want to move must be Windows 2000 Pro, 2000 Server, 2003 Server, or XP.
The old hard drive controller is currently installed in the system, drivers for it are installed in Windows, and the hard drive holding the current Windows installation is attached to that controller, and Windows currently starts up in this configuration.
You will need some type of tool to copy a partition from one drive to another if you will be moving the Windows installation to a different hard drive as well as a different controller. The recommended tools are: Norton Partition Magic, Norton Ghost, Acronis True Image, or BootIt Next Generation/Image for DOS. There are a few other products out there as well. Be aware that Partition Magic will only run on Windows 2000 Pro or Windows XP - it does not support copying partitions containing a server operating system. For copying server partitions, I recommend Norton Ghost.
You need the ability to have both the old disk controller and the new disk controller installed in the machine at the same time. If you can't do this for whatever reason, there is a work-around that will be addressed later in the guide.
If you will be copying the startup Windows partition to a different drive, the disk controllers involved in the copy operation must support Extended INT13h extensions so that they can be seen by the partition copy software. (Most SCSI and RAID controllers, and all modern IDE/SATA controllers support this).
You need drivers for the new disk controller already downloaded and decompressed (if required) on your C: drive.
You need to prepare a DOS-mode startup media for the partition copy program you will be using. For Partition Magic, you can boot the Partition Magic CD. For Norton Ghost, you need to create a Ghost boot floppy. For Acronis True Image, you can boot the Acronis True Image CD. For BootIt Next Generation/Image for DOS, create a startup floppy.
Disclaimers
This procedure carries some risk. It is not possible to forsee all possible hardware combinations, and there may be some that this procedure doesn't work on. There is a risk of losing your data, all the way from minor problems to loss of the entire hard drive. As with any procedure where data loss is a risk, having a current backup of your data is strongly advised. I can't be responsible for data loss, and I don't guarantee that this procedure will work in all situations, nor that it will work at all times.
Procedure
This procedure assumes you're using a different hard disk as well as a different disk controller. If you're changing the disk controller only, skip steps 13-18 and just move your hard drive to the new disk controller in place of those steps.
1. Backup all important data. Use a different hard drive other than the ones that will be used in this procedure, or backup to a network storage device or tape drive.
2. Shut down the system (power off).
3. Install the new disk controller in the system, but do not connect any drives to it.
4. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS.
5. Make sure in the boot order, that your original disk controller and hard drive are still set to be the boot device.
6. Save changes in the BIOS if necessary, and restart the system.
7. Allow your existing installation of Windows to start up.
8. Once Windows is started up and has reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the new disk controller.
9. Install the drivers according to the manufacturer's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver. Many manufacturers provide a driver package that has drivers for several different, but similar products. Make sure you pick the driver for the exact disk controller that you have installed in the system.
10. When you're done, Windows may ask you to restart. Do so now.
11. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure your new disk controller appears in the device list (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers if it's an IDE/SATA device, or under SCSI and RAID Controllers if it's a SCSI card or RAID device). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
12. Shut down the system (power off).
13. Attach your new hard drive(s) to the new disk controller.
14. If your new controller is a RAID controller and your intention is to create a new RAID array for your Windows installation, power on the system, go into the RAID BIOS Utility and create the RAID array on the new drives according to the manufacturer's directions.
15. Power on the system and start up the DOS-mode partition copy utility that you have, either from CD or floppy.
16. You should now see the existing Windows partition on your old disk controller/hard disk, and a blank area on the new disk controller/hard disk/RAID array. Following the manufacturer's directions for your partition copy utility, copy the partition from the old drive to the new drive/array.
17. Exit the partition copy utility and shut down the system (power off).
18. Remove the old hard drive from the old disk controller, but leave the controller installed.
19. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the new disk controller is set as the startup device.
20. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
21. Windows will now start up on your new disk controller & hard drive.
22. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
(Note: steps 23-25 should not be done if the old disk controller will be hosting other drives, such as a second hard drive or CD/DVD).
23. Right-click and uninstall the old disk controller (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers if it's an IDE/SATA device, or under SCSI and RAID Controllers if it's a SCSI card or RAID device).
24. Shut down the system (power off).
25. Remove the old disk controller from the system (or disable it in the system BIOS if it's a motherboard-embedded device).
Congrats, your system is now starting up on a different disk controller.
Example
Earlier in the guide, I mentioned that you need to be able to install both the old and new disk controllers in the system for the procedure to work. There is a work-around if this isn't possible. What you do in this case is use an intermediate disk controller, and perform the procedure twice. 8O
Let's use an example for a typical scenario. Let's suppose I have a motherboard with an Intel ICH7R south bridge (this south bridge chip is typically paired with the 975X north bridge chip). I currently have my Windows installation installed on a single 120GB SATA hard drive connected to the ICH7R, and the ICH7R is currently in native SATA (AHCI) mode. I want to move the existing Windows installation to a RAID-0 configuration, where the ICH7R is in RAID mode, using two new 150GB WD Raptors.
The problem with this move is that the ICH7R can be in SATA mode or RAID mode, but can't be in both at the same time. Thus, we can't have both the old controller and the new controller installed simultaneously. What we will do in this case is install an inexpensive SATA PCI card, like the Promise SATA300 TX2plus, move the Windows installation to that controller using the procedure above (1st pass), change the ICH7R to RAID mode, install the Raptors, create the RAID array, and then move the Windows installation from the Promise card to the RAID array using the procedure above again (2nd pass).
So, step-by-step:
1. Backup all important data. Use a different hard drive other than the ones that will be used in this procedure, or backup to a network storage device or tape drive.
2. Shut down the system (power off).
3. Install the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller in any PCI slot, but do not connect any drives to it.
4. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS.
5. Make sure in the boot order, that the ICH7R disk controller and 120GB SATA drive are still set to be the boot device.
6. Save changes in the BIOS if necessary, and restart the system.
7. Allow the existing installation of Windows to start up.
8. Once Windows is started up and has reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller.
9. Install the drivers according to Promise's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver.
10. When you're done, Windows asks you to restart. Do so now.
11. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller appears in the device list (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
12. Shut down the system (power off).
13. Since the old connection to the ICH7R was SATA, and the Promise card also supports a single SATA drive, we don't need another hard drive, nor do we need to copy the partition. Simply unplug the 120GB SATA drive from the ICH7R and reconnect it to the Promise SATA300 TX2plus.
14. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller is set as the startup device.
15. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
16. Windows will now start up on the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller & 120GB SATA hard drive.
17. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
18. Right-click and uninstall the ICH7R driver (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers - it will be listed as Intel 82801FR SATA Controller).
19. Restart the system.
20. Go into the system BIOS, change the ICH7R from SATA mode to RAID mode.
21. Allow the existing installation of Windows to start up.
22. Once Windows is started up and reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the ICH7R in RAID mode.
23. Install the drivers according to Intel's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver.
24. When you're done, Windows asks you to restart. Do so now.
25. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure the ICH7R RAID mode disk controller appears in the device list (under SCSI and RAID Controllers). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
26. Shut down the system (power off).
27. Attach the two 150GB Raptors to the ICH7R disk controller using SATA cables.
28. Power on the system, go into the Intel Matrix Storage Manager RAID BIOS Utility (Ctrl-I).
29. Create a RAID-0 array using the two 150GB Raptors, making a 300GB virtual disk.
30. Restart the system and start up the DOS-mode partition copy utility that you have, either from CD or floppy.
31. You should now see the existing Windows partition on the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller and 120GB SATA drive, and 300GB of space on the RAID array attached to the ICH7R. Following the manufacturer's directions for your partition copy utility, copy the partition from the 120GB SATA drive to the 300GB RAID-0 array. You will either need to resize the partition afterwards to 300GB (Partition Magic) or define the size of the destination partition as 300GB before the copy (Ghost).
32. Exit the partition copy utility and shut down the system (power off).
33. Remove the 120GB hard drive from the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller, but leave the controller installed.
34. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the ICH7R/RAID array is set as the startup device.
35. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
36. Windows will now start up on the RAID-0 Raptors on the ICH7R.
37. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
38. Right-click and uninstall the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers).
39. Shut down the system (power off).
40. Remove the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller disk controller from the system.
Testing
I have tested this procedure using the following:
An Intel D925XCV motherboard (925X north bridge, ICH6R south bridge)
Windows 2000 Server
A 120GB SATA Maxtor drive installed on the ICH6R in SATA/AHCI mode, holding the Windows 2000 Server installation.
1. I moved the Windows 2000 Server installation to an Adaptec 29160LP SCSI card with a 9 GB Seagate Cheetah SCSI drive.
2. I removed the Maxtor 120GB, changed the ICH6R to RAID mode, installed two 74GB WD Raptors, and created a 148GB RAID-0.
3. I then moved the Windows 2000 Server installation to the 148GB RAID-0.
All steps were successful. Norton Ghost was used as the partition copy utility.
References
My primary impetus for trying and deveoping this procedure is a Microsoft support KB article entitled Stop 0x0000007B error after moving the Windows XP system disk to another computer. This article says within it that installing a mass storage controller driver before moving the Windows installation will work. This is what I decided to test.
Some other Microsoft KB articles that deal with this, and other related issues are:
Moving a Windows Installation to Different Hardware
How to troubleshoot "Stop 0x0000007B" errors in Windows XP
How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
Conclusion
I hope this procedure works for you and gives you additional options for your mass storage scenarios.
Edits/Version History
v1.1 - 08/20/2006 - Added references to Microsoft KB articles.
v1.2 - 11/12/2007 - Added Acronis True Image to list of partition copy utilities, fixed BB-code formatting for new forum software.
Overview
One of the trends in personal computing these days is the prevelance of more options for hard disks and RAID systems than have been available in the past. As a result, many people want to move towards one of these systems as an upgrade, but at the same time want to avoid the hassle of reinstalling Windows and all applications. This has been exceedingly difficult and in some cases even impossible do to. However, with this guide, you'll be able to perform this task in most cases with most hardware configurations.
What You Can and Cannot Do With This Guide
This guide is applicable to the person who has Windows currently starting up from one hard disk/hard disk controller combination, and wants to start that same Windows installation up from a different hard disk/hard disk controller on the same computer. For instance, you may want to upgrade from a single-disk installation of Windows to a RAID installation, or from an IDE drive to a SCSI drive, or from an IDE drive to a native-mode SATA drive. In general, this guide will work for any situation where the mass storage controller that has to be used for Windows startup is going to change.
This guide is NOT for adding another drive or controller to an existing system when the Windows installation doesn't move from it's existing controller. That is a much easier task and can be done with standard driver installation and the Disk Management utility in Windows. This guide is NOT for moving a Windows installation to completely different hardware (like changing your motherboard). There are some procedures posted on the Internet for that already. The guide is NOT for moving a hard drive within a system where the disk controller that is being used either does not change or uses the same drivers as the old one, or where Windows already has built-in drivers for the new controller (like a standard IDE controller).
Windows and Mass Storage Controllers
Windows treats all mass storage controllers the same way. Whether it's a standard IDE controller, SATA controller, SCSI controller, or RAID controller, Windows has to have a driver for it in order to use it. Once Windows has a driver installed for the controller, Windows can start up from a hard drive attached to that controller as long as the machine's BIOS can use the controller as the boot device.
When installing Windows for the first time on a system, most of the time no concern need be given to the mass storage controller, because in the past, 90% of the time, the storage controller is a standard IDE controller which Windows already has drivers for on its installation CD. Windows will detect the standard IDE controller and use it's own drivers for it, thus enabling Windows to start up from the IDE controller.
If Windows does not have a driver on its CD for your system, the Windows text-mode setup program tells you that Windows cannot find a mass storage controller in your system, and prompts you to insert a manufacturer-supplied driver disk. This is the method to install mass storage controller drivers for most SCSI, RAID, and now some SATA controllers. Windows reads the driver off the floppy disk, and uses that driver to start up after installation.
If any situation arises where Windows does not have a driver installed for the mass storage controller you're starting up from, you will get a blue screen STOP error, usually with the error STOP 0x0000007B (INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE). If you've ever tried to copy a Windows installation from one controller to another with one of the partition copy tools and then tried to start it up, this is probably what you got.
The key item in this procedure that makes it work is that the procedure loads drivers for a storage controller that Windows will start up on before moving Windows to that storage controller. Once Windows has seen the storage controller and has had drivers loaded for it, Windows can now use that storage controller as the startup controller.
Requirements to Proceed
To proceed with this procedure, you will need the following:
Disclaimers
This procedure carries some risk. It is not possible to forsee all possible hardware combinations, and there may be some that this procedure doesn't work on. There is a risk of losing your data, all the way from minor problems to loss of the entire hard drive. As with any procedure where data loss is a risk, having a current backup of your data is strongly advised. I can't be responsible for data loss, and I don't guarantee that this procedure will work in all situations, nor that it will work at all times.
Procedure
This procedure assumes you're using a different hard disk as well as a different disk controller. If you're changing the disk controller only, skip steps 13-18 and just move your hard drive to the new disk controller in place of those steps.
1. Backup all important data. Use a different hard drive other than the ones that will be used in this procedure, or backup to a network storage device or tape drive.
2. Shut down the system (power off).
3. Install the new disk controller in the system, but do not connect any drives to it.
4. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS.
5. Make sure in the boot order, that your original disk controller and hard drive are still set to be the boot device.
6. Save changes in the BIOS if necessary, and restart the system.
7. Allow your existing installation of Windows to start up.
8. Once Windows is started up and has reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the new disk controller.
9. Install the drivers according to the manufacturer's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver. Many manufacturers provide a driver package that has drivers for several different, but similar products. Make sure you pick the driver for the exact disk controller that you have installed in the system.
10. When you're done, Windows may ask you to restart. Do so now.
11. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure your new disk controller appears in the device list (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers if it's an IDE/SATA device, or under SCSI and RAID Controllers if it's a SCSI card or RAID device). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
12. Shut down the system (power off).
13. Attach your new hard drive(s) to the new disk controller.
14. If your new controller is a RAID controller and your intention is to create a new RAID array for your Windows installation, power on the system, go into the RAID BIOS Utility and create the RAID array on the new drives according to the manufacturer's directions.
15. Power on the system and start up the DOS-mode partition copy utility that you have, either from CD or floppy.
16. You should now see the existing Windows partition on your old disk controller/hard disk, and a blank area on the new disk controller/hard disk/RAID array. Following the manufacturer's directions for your partition copy utility, copy the partition from the old drive to the new drive/array.
17. Exit the partition copy utility and shut down the system (power off).
18. Remove the old hard drive from the old disk controller, but leave the controller installed.
19. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the new disk controller is set as the startup device.
20. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
21. Windows will now start up on your new disk controller & hard drive.
22. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
(Note: steps 23-25 should not be done if the old disk controller will be hosting other drives, such as a second hard drive or CD/DVD).
23. Right-click and uninstall the old disk controller (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers if it's an IDE/SATA device, or under SCSI and RAID Controllers if it's a SCSI card or RAID device).
24. Shut down the system (power off).
25. Remove the old disk controller from the system (or disable it in the system BIOS if it's a motherboard-embedded device).
Congrats, your system is now starting up on a different disk controller.
Example
Earlier in the guide, I mentioned that you need to be able to install both the old and new disk controllers in the system for the procedure to work. There is a work-around if this isn't possible. What you do in this case is use an intermediate disk controller, and perform the procedure twice. 8O
Let's use an example for a typical scenario. Let's suppose I have a motherboard with an Intel ICH7R south bridge (this south bridge chip is typically paired with the 975X north bridge chip). I currently have my Windows installation installed on a single 120GB SATA hard drive connected to the ICH7R, and the ICH7R is currently in native SATA (AHCI) mode. I want to move the existing Windows installation to a RAID-0 configuration, where the ICH7R is in RAID mode, using two new 150GB WD Raptors.
The problem with this move is that the ICH7R can be in SATA mode or RAID mode, but can't be in both at the same time. Thus, we can't have both the old controller and the new controller installed simultaneously. What we will do in this case is install an inexpensive SATA PCI card, like the Promise SATA300 TX2plus, move the Windows installation to that controller using the procedure above (1st pass), change the ICH7R to RAID mode, install the Raptors, create the RAID array, and then move the Windows installation from the Promise card to the RAID array using the procedure above again (2nd pass).
So, step-by-step:
1. Backup all important data. Use a different hard drive other than the ones that will be used in this procedure, or backup to a network storage device or tape drive.
2. Shut down the system (power off).
3. Install the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller in any PCI slot, but do not connect any drives to it.
4. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS.
5. Make sure in the boot order, that the ICH7R disk controller and 120GB SATA drive are still set to be the boot device.
6. Save changes in the BIOS if necessary, and restart the system.
7. Allow the existing installation of Windows to start up.
8. Once Windows is started up and has reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller.
9. Install the drivers according to Promise's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver.
10. When you're done, Windows asks you to restart. Do so now.
11. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller appears in the device list (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
12. Shut down the system (power off).
13. Since the old connection to the ICH7R was SATA, and the Promise card also supports a single SATA drive, we don't need another hard drive, nor do we need to copy the partition. Simply unplug the 120GB SATA drive from the ICH7R and reconnect it to the Promise SATA300 TX2plus.
14. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller is set as the startup device.
15. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
16. Windows will now start up on the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller & 120GB SATA hard drive.
17. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
18. Right-click and uninstall the ICH7R driver (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers - it will be listed as Intel 82801FR SATA Controller).
19. Restart the system.
20. Go into the system BIOS, change the ICH7R from SATA mode to RAID mode.
21. Allow the existing installation of Windows to start up.
22. Once Windows is started up and reached the desktop, the Found New Hardware wizard should start, indicating that the system wants to install drivers for the ICH7R in RAID mode.
23. Install the drivers according to Intel's directions. Make sure you're installing the correct driver.
24. When you're done, Windows asks you to restart. Do so now.
25. After the restart, check Windows device manager, make sure the ICH7R RAID mode disk controller appears in the device list (under SCSI and RAID Controllers). Make sure there is no yellow exclamation point or red X on the device. Double click it to make sure Windows says that the device is working properly.
26. Shut down the system (power off).
27. Attach the two 150GB Raptors to the ICH7R disk controller using SATA cables.
28. Power on the system, go into the Intel Matrix Storage Manager RAID BIOS Utility (Ctrl-I).
29. Create a RAID-0 array using the two 150GB Raptors, making a 300GB virtual disk.
30. Restart the system and start up the DOS-mode partition copy utility that you have, either from CD or floppy.
31. You should now see the existing Windows partition on the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller and 120GB SATA drive, and 300GB of space on the RAID array attached to the ICH7R. Following the manufacturer's directions for your partition copy utility, copy the partition from the 120GB SATA drive to the 300GB RAID-0 array. You will either need to resize the partition afterwards to 300GB (Partition Magic) or define the size of the destination partition as 300GB before the copy (Ghost).
32. Exit the partition copy utility and shut down the system (power off).
33. Remove the 120GB hard drive from the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller, but leave the controller installed.
34. Power on the system, go into the system BIOS. Make sure that in the boot order, the ICH7R/RAID array is set as the startup device.
35. Save changes to the BIOS, and restart the system.
36. Windows will now start up on the RAID-0 Raptors on the ICH7R.
37. Once started up and at the desktop, go into Device Manager.
38. Right-click and uninstall the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller (under IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers).
39. Shut down the system (power off).
40. Remove the Promise SATA300 TX2plus disk controller disk controller from the system.
Testing
I have tested this procedure using the following:
1. I moved the Windows 2000 Server installation to an Adaptec 29160LP SCSI card with a 9 GB Seagate Cheetah SCSI drive.
2. I removed the Maxtor 120GB, changed the ICH6R to RAID mode, installed two 74GB WD Raptors, and created a 148GB RAID-0.
3. I then moved the Windows 2000 Server installation to the 148GB RAID-0.
All steps were successful. Norton Ghost was used as the partition copy utility.
References
My primary impetus for trying and deveoping this procedure is a Microsoft support KB article entitled Stop 0x0000007B error after moving the Windows XP system disk to another computer. This article says within it that installing a mass storage controller driver before moving the Windows installation will work. This is what I decided to test.
Some other Microsoft KB articles that deal with this, and other related issues are:
Moving a Windows Installation to Different Hardware
How to troubleshoot "Stop 0x0000007B" errors in Windows XP
How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
Conclusion
I hope this procedure works for you and gives you additional options for your mass storage scenarios.
Edits/Version History
v1.1 - 08/20/2006 - Added references to Microsoft KB articles.
v1.2 - 11/12/2007 - Added Acronis True Image to list of partition copy utilities, fixed BB-code formatting for new forum software.
aosot
January 21, 2013 6:18:07 AM
battlefieldhazard
December 13, 2012 2:01:34 AM
a2zgunther
October 28, 2012 12:11:19 AM
I had XP already installed on a HDD and wanted to change SATA controller from IDE to AHCI to take advantage of a new SSD drive and Windows 7 dual boot.
I read a few forumes and found one where you go into device manger and select your Intel or other SATA controller 1 and rmc and UPDATE Driver, then choose the appropriate driver for your controller that you downloaded from your MB web site downlaod drivers.
Then your supposed to do a reboot and before Windows (XP) starts up - go into BIOS and change SATA Controller mode from IDE to AHCI then reboot_Save it and reboot.
- the article said after Windows boots up (good if it does- it means it booted with AHCI mode rather than IDE) that it may tell you it needs one more reboot because driver or something changed. So I did let itreboot
- but this time it did not boot- *** it went to a black screen and blinking cursor ****
WHAT I FOUND OUT
1. I had left 2 USB Drives with Drivers loaded on them plugged in
2. I found that under BIOS BOOT Priority -it had 1 Floppy, 2 as USB cruzer drive, 3 USB cruzer drive, 4 ASUS IDE DRW or other
SO I when i selected those to change - the drives weren't listed,
So one, i removed the USB drives from the ports on the pc case, then i went in to the HARD Drive config in BIOS just below the boot priority and on 2 and 3 where the cruzer USB drivers were i changed it to the HDD 0 and HDD1 hard drives -they showed up diffierent on the screen- probably becaus of AHCI but they were there, So in Boot Priority i was now able to changed priority to of 2,3 to Dirve 0 3 should be CD-rom oe ASUS DRW (its an ASUS MB)
So that fixed it, just had to save the BIOS changes, reboot from saving BIOS changes it booted fine into Windows
I read a few forumes and found one where you go into device manger and select your Intel or other SATA controller 1 and rmc and UPDATE Driver, then choose the appropriate driver for your controller that you downloaded from your MB web site downlaod drivers.
Then your supposed to do a reboot and before Windows (XP) starts up - go into BIOS and change SATA Controller mode from IDE to AHCI then reboot_Save it and reboot.
- the article said after Windows boots up (good if it does- it means it booted with AHCI mode rather than IDE) that it may tell you it needs one more reboot because driver or something changed. So I did let itreboot
- but this time it did not boot- *** it went to a black screen and blinking cursor ****
WHAT I FOUND OUT
1. I had left 2 USB Drives with Drivers loaded on them plugged in
2. I found that under BIOS BOOT Priority -it had 1 Floppy, 2 as USB cruzer drive, 3 USB cruzer drive, 4 ASUS IDE DRW or other
SO I when i selected those to change - the drives weren't listed,
So one, i removed the USB drives from the ports on the pc case, then i went in to the HARD Drive config in BIOS just below the boot priority and on 2 and 3 where the cruzer USB drivers were i changed it to the HDD 0 and HDD1 hard drives -they showed up diffierent on the screen- probably becaus of AHCI but they were there, So in Boot Priority i was now able to changed priority to of 2,3 to Dirve 0 3 should be CD-rom oe ASUS DRW (its an ASUS MB)
So that fixed it, just had to save the BIOS changes, reboot from saving BIOS changes it booted fine into Windows
insan430
March 29, 2012 2:56:17 PM
ragavang43
March 22, 2012 3:46:43 AM
robin_star
March 1, 2012 6:58:15 AM
This won't work for native bios RAID with AMD chipset.
The reg key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\ahcix64s is not present on an IDE install of W7. I extracted the reg key from a RAID install (which asks for this driver during installation in order for the installation to see the RAID disk). I then merged the key to the IDE registry. I also copied over the ahcix64s.sys file into system32\drivers, set the start value in the key to 0 and rebooted.
The windows 7 boot got as far as the logo+fireflies, then restarted the machine, in an endless loop of boot/restart. It's obviously not picking up the new driver.
I'm starting to think that converting to RAID on an ATI based RAID board with AMD chipset is not possible.
The reg key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\ahcix64s is not present on an IDE install of W7. I extracted the reg key from a RAID install (which asks for this driver during installation in order for the installation to see the RAID disk). I then merged the key to the IDE registry. I also copied over the ahcix64s.sys file into system32\drivers, set the start value in the key to 0 and rebooted.
The windows 7 boot got as far as the logo+fireflies, then restarted the machine, in an endless loop of boot/restart. It's obviously not picking up the new driver.
I'm starting to think that converting to RAID on an ATI based RAID board with AMD chipset is not possible.
mountainman25
February 24, 2012 1:09:24 PM
oneclickplus
October 23, 2011 3:08:06 AM
General goal: move an existing XP installation from one mass storage controller to a new one.
In my particular case, I needed to move an XP installation from an older IDE stand-alone drive to a completely new hardware platform using a Intel ICH10R raid controller (Dell Vostro 420 box). I wanted to use a RAID1 configuration with two(2) 1GB SATA drives. The obvious crux of the issue is getting the Windows installation to BOOT with the new hardware. The usual result is boot cycling or a STOP 0x7B
I have tried multiple methods to accomplish this including what is written at this site. None of it worked. I did not have access to a floppy drive but I successfully slipstreamed the RAID drivers in to an XP CD. For whatever reason, this was not sufficient to cause the proper drivers to be loaded. I also did not have two separate controllers. On the Vostro, ALL SATA ports are RAID (or ATA, or AHCI). It did not allow me to select RAID on 2 ports and ATA on another.
What finally DID work is outlined below and is the result of much experience, a boat-load of trial and error plus a dose of Divine Intervention. This quite elegantly solves the catch-22 issue of “I need to be in Windows to load the drivers but I need the drivers loaded first to Boot Windows”.
1) Pull the IDE (in my case) drive from the older/source machine and CLONE it to a SATA working drive. I use Acronis for this purpose (love Acronis). I did this from another shop PC. This step is so we are working with a copy of the installation so as to preserve the ability to re-start if necessary; ie leave the original PC unchanged.
2) Connect the working drive ONLY to the target PC. Boot to the BIOS and set the SATA controller to ATA. Do not yet connect up the target RAID drives.
3) Boot the target PC with an XP boot CD and do a repair installation.
4) Once the installation is complete, boot to Windows and load ALL hardware drivers for the target PC. Since the target PC is set to ATA, there should be no trouble booting up. Do not skip loading all the drivers. Once all drivers are installed, shutdown the PC and disconnect the working drive.
5) Connect the new SATA RAID drives and boot to the BIOS. Change the SATA setting to RAID. Use the RAID configuration utility (reboot if necessary) to configure the RAID1 on the two SATA drives. At the end of this step you have the target PC with a 2-drive RAID structure. It is empty and the working drive is disconnected. Turn off the PC.
6) Connect the working drive to the target PC and boot to an Acronis BOOT CD. Use Acronis to CLONE the working drive to the RAID structure. Once the clone is finished, shutdown and disconnect the working drive. At this point you have the Windows installation on the RAID drives but it will not boot up.
7) If you haven’t already done so, get the RAID (or AHCI) drivers from the manufacturer and put them on a USB flash drive.
8) Boot the target PC with an XP boot CD and do another repair installation. Proceed to the point where Windows puts up the “Regional settings” screen. Do NOT click “next” … leave it right here. You are part way through the installation and as long as you don’t click “next”, you can take all the time you need.
9) Go to a DOS prompt. This is done by simply pressing SHIFT + F10. At the DOS prompt, type “DEVMGMT.MSC” and press Enter. This launches Windows Device Manager and is the TRICK to this method.
10) You now can load drivers for the RAID as necessary. Push in your USB drive and wait for it to be identified. If you have any trouble with a USB drive, put the RAID drivers on a CD and drop that in. In any case, locate the RAID controller hardware – probably behind a yellow exclamation. Right-click and select “Update Driver” – whatever you do, do NOT delete the “unknown hardware” or whatever the RAID is identified as. If you delete it, you are forced to reboot and will have to start over. Point to the location for the drivers (USB or CD) and install them. Note we never use the F6 at boot and certainly no floppies. If, at any time, you are offered to “reboot” make sure you decline.
11) Once you have the RAID/AHCI drivers loaded properly (device manager reports “this device is working properly”), feel free to click “Next” on the Regional settings and allow the Windows repair installation to continue to completion. Once the installation is finished, Windows will boot properly on the RAID.
In my particular case, I needed to move an XP installation from an older IDE stand-alone drive to a completely new hardware platform using a Intel ICH10R raid controller (Dell Vostro 420 box). I wanted to use a RAID1 configuration with two(2) 1GB SATA drives. The obvious crux of the issue is getting the Windows installation to BOOT with the new hardware. The usual result is boot cycling or a STOP 0x7B
I have tried multiple methods to accomplish this including what is written at this site. None of it worked. I did not have access to a floppy drive but I successfully slipstreamed the RAID drivers in to an XP CD. For whatever reason, this was not sufficient to cause the proper drivers to be loaded. I also did not have two separate controllers. On the Vostro, ALL SATA ports are RAID (or ATA, or AHCI). It did not allow me to select RAID on 2 ports and ATA on another.
What finally DID work is outlined below and is the result of much experience, a boat-load of trial and error plus a dose of Divine Intervention. This quite elegantly solves the catch-22 issue of “I need to be in Windows to load the drivers but I need the drivers loaded first to Boot Windows”.
1) Pull the IDE (in my case) drive from the older/source machine and CLONE it to a SATA working drive. I use Acronis for this purpose (love Acronis). I did this from another shop PC. This step is so we are working with a copy of the installation so as to preserve the ability to re-start if necessary; ie leave the original PC unchanged.
2) Connect the working drive ONLY to the target PC. Boot to the BIOS and set the SATA controller to ATA. Do not yet connect up the target RAID drives.
3) Boot the target PC with an XP boot CD and do a repair installation.
4) Once the installation is complete, boot to Windows and load ALL hardware drivers for the target PC. Since the target PC is set to ATA, there should be no trouble booting up. Do not skip loading all the drivers. Once all drivers are installed, shutdown the PC and disconnect the working drive.
5) Connect the new SATA RAID drives and boot to the BIOS. Change the SATA setting to RAID. Use the RAID configuration utility (reboot if necessary) to configure the RAID1 on the two SATA drives. At the end of this step you have the target PC with a 2-drive RAID structure. It is empty and the working drive is disconnected. Turn off the PC.
6) Connect the working drive to the target PC and boot to an Acronis BOOT CD. Use Acronis to CLONE the working drive to the RAID structure. Once the clone is finished, shutdown and disconnect the working drive. At this point you have the Windows installation on the RAID drives but it will not boot up.
7) If you haven’t already done so, get the RAID (or AHCI) drivers from the manufacturer and put them on a USB flash drive.
8) Boot the target PC with an XP boot CD and do another repair installation. Proceed to the point where Windows puts up the “Regional settings” screen. Do NOT click “next” … leave it right here. You are part way through the installation and as long as you don’t click “next”, you can take all the time you need.
9) Go to a DOS prompt. This is done by simply pressing SHIFT + F10. At the DOS prompt, type “DEVMGMT.MSC” and press Enter. This launches Windows Device Manager and is the TRICK to this method.
10) You now can load drivers for the RAID as necessary. Push in your USB drive and wait for it to be identified. If you have any trouble with a USB drive, put the RAID drivers on a CD and drop that in. In any case, locate the RAID controller hardware – probably behind a yellow exclamation. Right-click and select “Update Driver” – whatever you do, do NOT delete the “unknown hardware” or whatever the RAID is identified as. If you delete it, you are forced to reboot and will have to start over. Point to the location for the drivers (USB or CD) and install them. Note we never use the F6 at boot and certainly no floppies. If, at any time, you are offered to “reboot” make sure you decline.
11) Once you have the RAID/AHCI drivers loaded properly (device manager reports “this device is working properly”), feel free to click “Next” on the Regional settings and allow the Windows repair installation to continue to completion. Once the installation is finished, Windows will boot properly on the RAID.
pritish
October 19, 2011 8:39:46 AM
Dear SomeJoe7777,
I have read few of your posts on this website which is very useful to others and I hope you may be have answer for my problem too.
I was having two seagate hard disks. One is 8GB USB Hard disk and another one is 1TB USB Free Agent GoFlex Ultra-Portable Drive For PC & Mac.
My problem till yesterday was that first one (8GB) hard disk was not working properly. Even when it connect to system, it was not recognized in any system. One of my friend suggest me to visit seagates websites and find the solution for that. Yesterday I visit seagate's website and I download "SeaTools For Windows" software. When I start to use this software, my both hard disks was connected to my system and I wrongly select the good one (1TB) hard disk and select advanced tests and then select USB Erase Tasks and then Full Disk Erase option. It was running for around 9 hours and suddenly I came to know that I have select wrong hard disk but till that time all my data was lost. I just wanted to know that can I recover that data which got erased by mistake?
For data recovery, I have already purchased seagate's software "File Recovery For Windows" and "Active@ File Recovery For Windows". Can I get all my data from these software? It was important data in that hard disk but due to my mistake, it got erased. Does any one have any other solution for that? I will be thankfull to you if you have any solution. Kindly reply me urgently.
I have read few of your posts on this website which is very useful to others and I hope you may be have answer for my problem too.
I was having two seagate hard disks. One is 8GB USB Hard disk and another one is 1TB USB Free Agent GoFlex Ultra-Portable Drive For PC & Mac.
My problem till yesterday was that first one (8GB) hard disk was not working properly. Even when it connect to system, it was not recognized in any system. One of my friend suggest me to visit seagates websites and find the solution for that. Yesterday I visit seagate's website and I download "SeaTools For Windows" software. When I start to use this software, my both hard disks was connected to my system and I wrongly select the good one (1TB) hard disk and select advanced tests and then select USB Erase Tasks and then Full Disk Erase option. It was running for around 9 hours and suddenly I came to know that I have select wrong hard disk but till that time all my data was lost. I just wanted to know that can I recover that data which got erased by mistake?
For data recovery, I have already purchased seagate's software "File Recovery For Windows" and "Active@ File Recovery For Windows". Can I get all my data from these software? It was important data in that hard disk but due to my mistake, it got erased. Does any one have any other solution for that? I will be thankfull to you if you have any solution. Kindly reply me urgently.
See all answers