Windows Not Seeing CD-ROM

[alex_read]

Hi everyone,

Windows is playing silly-buggers with any cd-drives I shove into my pc. I'm setting the jumpers ok & installing the drive as a primary slave disk which the boot process & dos picks up fine.

When windows is loaded though, it doesn't see any drive there?!?!?! I've tried this with a dvd drive which windows picks up without a problem, but for 3 different cd-rom drives now, windows won't see them!

Help please!!!

[BodwadUK]

Cant you re-install Windows????


Check In Device manager is it not there either????

[VisionIT]

Stands a v.good chance you have a device conflict. Try removing your VIA drivers (if you have them) and DON'T upgrade them. The 4in1 drivers are more trouble than it's worth!

Are you re-mastering your BIOS after each device swap? You must refesh your BIOS after every change, unless you have an Auto-Sensing BIOS, which tracks all new devices. Press 'DEL' on cold boot, and reset it back to defaults. Then reboot.

Any futher details, please contact me.

Regards,

Paul.

[alex_read]

Thanks for the suggestions,

This is a brand spanking new clean install of windows 98 se I've just done & I've been into the device manager & not seen any conflicts both in the device listing or the IRQ listing. The CD-Rom isn't see in the device list btw either.

I've got an aopen board with the Award bios version in at the moment. I've done a few of the settings including the auto-detect drives & when I turn the pc on, the first screen looks for drives (the post screen I think it's called in geek language) & picks up the hdd & the cd-drive properly so I guess the bios is set ok for the machine to see it here?

Thanks

[VisionIT]

Give me a FULL specification of your system....

Motherboard model & bios revision...
CPU
GFX
Sound
Network
MEMORY... etc

I'll look into it for you. Be around 1hr if that's OK?

Regards,

Paul.

[alex_read]

It's an Aopen AX6B Plus motherboard
Geforce2 32mb graphics
Soundblaster 16 soundcard
No Network card
Pentium 2 350Mhz chip
Memory 256 I htink SDRam

[VisionIT]

I have attached a BIOS update which should solve all your issues.

Aopen have released quite a few updates since this MB was released, so updating your BIOS should do the trick.

If you don't know what to do... DON'T DO IT! You can cause irreparable damage to your MB if you do this wrong. Get a professional to do it for you. Shouldn't cost more than £25.

Make sure you backup the existing BIOS revision first... or you could make it worse.

If you require any further details... please call me and i'll gladly help if i can.

Regards,

Paul.

P.S: Having just clicked submit... i found the file is too big to upload via VB Forums. I have uploaded it to this address...

https://www.e-visionit.co.uk/ax6b235.zip

Please let me know when you have downloaded it, so it can be removed from our servers.

[Beacon]

So DOS can see it?
BIOS see's it just not WIndows 98?

VisionIT if DOS can see it then it isnt a BIOS problem more than likely.

[alex_read]

Cheers guys, VisionIT, I might not have a chance to get to this pc tonight, would it be okay to leave this file on theservers for 2 days please?

Beacon, I suspect it's probably a windows problem also, but a bios update won't hurt. Fell free to post any other thoughs or suggestions down though if you have them.

Thanks!

[Beacon]

I'd try this know quirk:



1) Click Start --> then Run --> type regedit
2) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\IOS
3) If there is a value called NoIDE delete it --> close regedit and restart.

b

[VisionIT]

Hi again.

I'll leave the file for now... but let me know when you're done!

Contrare to Beacon's opinion (sorry m8), i couldn't be a windows problem. If you have just done a fresh install (IE no drivers, software or updates) then it has to be I/O addresses, which are stored in the BIOS.

Have you installed ANY drivers at all? If not... I suggest you flash it as we said.

BTW... Intel 440BX chipsets are common to these faults.

Regards,

Paul

[Beacon]

Thats alright but why would he see it in DOS.
I can explain it by saying that DOS has it's own set of drivers for cdroms.

As VisionIT said If you've installed drivers for it remove them WIndows 95 and 98 come with there own.

b

[VisionIT]

Am I lost here?

DOS won't see the CD-Rom... it's the POST sequence that can. The post sequence just scans all IDE/SCSI & ATAPI devices and lists them. You need to add MSCDEX files to your autoexec & config.sys before DOS will pick up any CD device.

Windows is just a GUI which reads addresses from stacks. The stacks are controlled by the CMOS.

Am I on the right track... or will DOS see the drive? Post isn't classed as DOS BTW.

Regards,

Paul.