While initializing device VFAT

I have added a 2nd HDD and a PCI IDE Controller card, Ghosted, and swithced the HDD's around to that the new one is the primary. All is fine except that when I hook up the old HDD I get the following error:

While initializing device VFAT: Windows Protection Error, Restart your computer.

I have unplugged it the meanwhile.

Thanks for any help, Lar

 

If you have/had a boot manager installed, (Boot Magic or System Commander or other) in your MBR, then disconnect your new drive and from a boot floppy with Fdisk on it, run fdisk /mbr on the old one. HTH

 

Sorry, no boot manger program.

Thanks,
Lar

 

Actually, I don't think running the FDISK /MBR will do any good in this situation. That command will restore the Master Boot Record (coded by DOS) but your error is in the VFAT which is a protected mode version of the File Tables that allows Windows to handle long filenames.

Try this article for some leads.

Also look here for the VFAT Defination

Based on what you did I would recommend that you check the old drive to see if the primary partition is set active, if so, deactivate it. You'll likely need something better than FDISK to do that.

If that doesn't help, then follow the leads in the MicroSoft article above. As a last resort, re-format it and you should be home free.

Good luck

 

Hi Z,

The MS article just discussed conflicts between FAT16 and 32. Since this HDD had worked in the same computer 10 minutes earlier, there is really nothing in there that was applicable.

The defintions of VFAT, etc, was interesting. How do I check the old drive to see if the primary partition is set to active??

Lar

 

Hi Larry!

I have always used Ranish Partition Manager which is freeware and Google will turn up instantly.

There are many other buywares that will do it too. I have none of those but perhaps someone that does will jump in and advise you on something.

Other thoughts...You need to double check the CMOS setting and see that the drives are being recognized properly and that any DMA mismatch is avoided by have each set to the same mode as the other. Try without DMA first because some drives won't work together due to timing problems. Some won't work together regardless of the settings due to this timing problem. Try setting longer wait states if that is an option in the BIOS.

Next thing...Try them on different IDE channels. Sometimes that helps get around a compatability issue. Change jumpers accordingly.

Make sure your jumpers are in agreement with the manufacturers recommendations. Also see that your jumpers are in good shape. I wasted a whole day once and found out that the jumper I was using had lost its internal copper clip and was just a useless piece of plastic. You can't easily tell by a casual glance.

Then if you really want to try the MBR restore move, issue the command this way:

fdisk /cmbr 2

That will work if you are booted to a good boot disk with the correct utilities. That supposes the second drive is attached at the time of course. As I said before, I don't think that will help.

Personally I would slick the drive since you have already Ghosted it and have no data to lose.

Good luck

 

I was playing with it again today (it is so exasperating that I just stop and walk away for days at a time).

I set the old HDD to slave (that is now on the PCI IDE controller card) and booted up. It booted up but I got a message that a System Registry problem was at hand and to restart to fix it. Whoa. Stop there!!

I noticed that the old drive is still trying to boot up the computer and will not leave the new one alone! Even though it is on slave and the non-mobo IDE controller.

What do I have to do to make it minds its own biz and just be the good little storage drive that it is. How do I tell windows to look for C: not D:?

Lar

 

two post same issue

I stepped in here, hope ya don't mind Zephyr !
Larry, the issue is same as your "second hard drive post" check it over there also. You are in good hands tho And the solution is just around the corner

 

Repeat of message on "Adding Second HDD" thread


Hi, just wanted to tie up loose ends.

What I finally had to do was to boot up with the Win98 Start Up disk and fdisk the old geezer (40Gb HDD) now that the new one was the active one. Then I formatted and Ghosted back to the old one.

Thanks for all your help.

Lar

 

Kewl

Yer outa the woods LAR