XP will not see a CDRW in My Computer

Hi everyone.

I read all the searches and didn't find an answer for my particular problem so I am posting it.

I built a new computer last night.

AMD XP 2500+
512mb PC3200
120GB Western Digital HD (IDE)
TDK CDRW 52X speed.
DFI LanParty motherboard.

Everything is brand new. I have the CDRW as master and the HD as slave on the same IDE ribbon.

I installed WinXP Pro. I notice that the cd icon in My Computer will not show up sometimes. Only my A and C drive. I popped in my WinXP cd and rebooted. When Windows boots back up again, then it shows the icon again.

I have to take out the XP cd and put in my other cds/programs that I want to install. However, if I reboot the computer, same thing. No cd icon.

It's annoying to keep putting in the WinXP cd, reboot, and then exchange the cds to install whatever I need to.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

For starters, since you have only the two drives, I'd suggest making the HDD the master on the primary IDE bus and the CD-RW the master on the secondary.

Does the CD-RW show up in Device Manager, even if it doesn't show in My Computer or in Windows Explorer?

 

No, it doesn't show up in the Device Manager either.

I can't make the HD the master and CDRW as slave because the IDE ribbon won't let me. It has a sticker at the end of the IDE ribbon that says "Master ", the second one says, "Slave" and the last one that is close to the slave connector goes into the motherboard.

I have my CDRW at the top of my computer case and the HD is at the bottom. The Master IDE connector reaches the CDRW. The Slave reaches the HD and then the last connector which is close to the HD connector just fits into the motherboard.

Does it even matter if I keep the IDE ribbon the same way but just switch the jumpers?

 

Lighthammer, do yourself a big favor and get another IDE cable. JSS3RD is on the right track, you should separate the optical drive from the hard drive.

I can tell you from experience that this can cause problems. A second cable is a simple way to fix the problem.

But yes, you should be able to set the jumpers to make the hard disk master and the optical drive the slave.

 

Lighthammer ...

The cable is marked that way for use with the "Cable Select" jumper settings on the drives. If your drives are set up as master and slave, either connector can be plugged into either drive.

IDE ribbon cables are quite inexpensive, and can be purchased at any computer shop, Radio Shack, etc. Play it safe and get an 80 conductor cable, though. If you use a 40 conductor cable you may limit your hard drive's transfer rate.

If that solves your problem, please post back ... if it doesn't solve your problem, please post back.

 

Ok, I just took the above advice and put my HD as master on one IDE and the CDRW as master on the second IDE ribbon. I really didn't want to use two IDE ribbons because my case is UV Green with more neons than my entire car has and I wanted a clean looking interior. However, I just wanted the thing to work so two IDE ribbons is fine. It's working. Thanks for everyone's input.

 

You're welcome.

If you don't like the ribbon cables, you might consider spending a few bucks to get a couple of round cables. They look better, and don't interfere with the airflow through the case as much as ribbon cables do.

 

I do have the round ones. They came with the motherboard. (neon effect) My case looks like one big neon green lightbulb. =)

 

Sigh .... to each his own, I suppose.

 

Pete ...

Arrrggghhh!