pci slots

i brought myself a wireless adapter and a ethernet adapter for my pc, i put them into the slots yet the found new hardware wizard did not run. i returned the goods which got tested o0k at the shop. since that day several things have happened. i know the slots work because my soundcard is in one, my computer knows it has pci slots but cant find them to install( i think )

also my bluetooth settings will not let me save turn discovery on, it says settings not saved. so i cant send files via bluetooth to my phone, the computer finds the phone but when u try to send to phone the computer does not list the device

how do u check pci slots are ok please. my bluetooth uses the usb ports

 

Hi Keith,
Put the soundcard into each of the slots as a test (although I have never known one slot to work and not the others). You can shuffle the cards around in the slots, there should not be any problems with the drivers (that aren't already a problem).
Look at the installation instructions for the Ethernet card. Sometimes they specify to install the drivers before inserting the card. You may need to run the Add New Hardware wizard in Control Panel, the Ethernet card may not have "plug and play" firmware. If you get to a section with a "Have disk..." button, use that to direct Windows to the drivers.

USB, it could be a problem with the USB controller drivers. If you want to update the USB controller drivers, find an update for the chipset/motherboard drivers.

In fact, updating or installing the original chipset drivers could be the key to both of the problems (the original chipset drivers should be on a drivers CD that came with the computer, Intel chipset updates can be downloaded at the Intel website).

The bluetooth may require USB 2.0. If the motherboard is around 5 years old it may only be USB 1.1. For USB 2.0 you need the listing
"chipset name" enhanced host controller
under Universal Serial Devices in Device Manager.

Matt

 

Hi Matt, sorry to dissapoint you but individual PCI slots do go bad & sometimes so badly that whatever you put into them also get damaged.

Learnt from my bad experience.

 

Couple of thoughts here. First of all, kiethsince59 has not identified his operating system or his motherboard so its tough to tell whether this could be something as simple as an interrupt problem or if, in fact he has a bad PCI slot, a bad controller or any related driver issues.

In defense of Mattman's comment re: one bad PCI slot versus all; usually a shorted PCI slot is going to take the controller with it and it is indeed rare to find one and only one that doesn't work. Sure, it can happen and dirt or oxidation are usually the culprits when only one is seemingly bad, but as a general rule Mattman's comment is right on the money.

Absent OS and MoBo information, I'll throw out another general rule - If one has an AGP card populated, PCI slot #1 should not be used and on many motherboards, can't be used. Yes, there are exceptions, but very few.

As a suggestion, if one wants to add hardware to a machine - do it one device or in this case, card, at a time. Trying to read in-between the lines it sounds to me like both cards may have been added at once.

Kieth - if you want to get more specific about your machine, your OS, your motherboard and these cards in particular, you'll probably get some better help.

 

Hi rsinfo,

That's interesting, for me at least. I have not seen it or come across it in my readings. I suppose a bad PCI card could cause the slot to go bad or any number of other possibilities (I have seen some strange things and I am sure I have only seen the tip of the iceberg). Thinking about it, I could imagine a PCI modem could get "lightning strike" through the telephone cable. My brother's modems seems to have suffered from lightning strike at least twice. I pulled one modem from a machine that had burnt and blackened components. The power overload I would expect would have consequences back to the motherboard.

I have noticed the point Rockster made about slot #1 and seen recommendations in motherboard manuals to leave slot #1 empty unless installing a PCI based graphics system, then to use that slot.

Matt

 

Hi Matt,

I am not an expert in hardware but as a professional in this field for the last 15 years, I have come across even stranger things - like a motherboard destroying all keyboards except one particular one, a hard disk refusing to start unless a specific cable was used with it & so on.

Though all this flies in the face of logic, practical experience tells you the opposite.

 

Amen - very well put. Should probably be a sticky.