I got a new 200 GB maxtor HD and I installed it fine. It said I didn't need the extra PCI card because I am running a current version of XP with SP1 (in the manual). Yet when I try and finalize the installation through the software portion, it only sees it as 33GB? WTF OVER!?!?

Did you happen to create a FAT partition?

How big does the BIOS report your HD?
How big does the XP Disk Management (Computer Management->Storage->Disk Management) report the drive.

And using that silly setup program to get your HD running was a bad idea. Wizards are stupid.

I created no partitions because I saw that it read the drive as 33gb, so i went no further. Disk manager in XP reads it as 33 gb as well and not online (it doesnt show up because i havent run any setup programs for it). Ideas? I'm new to this.

Windows XP has a 32GB limit when you format in FAT32, as confirmed by MS:
http://www.microsoft.com/WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/choosing_between_NTFS_FAT_and_FAT32.asp

This limitation does not exist when you use NTFS. So reformat your whole HD under NTFS if you want the whole ca. 200GB in one piece.
Otherwise either leave the current 32GB as is under FAT32, or convert it to NTFS.
Then format the rest in one big partition under NTFS.
If you insist on FAT32, you are limited to a maximum of 4 partitions of 32GB each, which does not let you use the whole capacity of the HD!
In other words, use NTFS where you can.

You don't need to run any special setup programs to attach an internal hard drive. All operating systems come with all the needed tools to prepare a HD.

What does the BIOS say about the drive?

It is an internal hard drive, right?

And what extra PCI card? Something that came with the drive?

incorrect, there is no such 32 GB limitation with XP, as my computer has an 80 GB drive running just fine. 2K has that limitation. http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;154997
make sure you are using the HD cables that came with the drive as that can be a factor. does your BIOS see the drive as only 32GB too?

Krugger, your info comes from an article pertaining to W95/W98/ME and is rather old.
The article I refer to is later and says a.o.

In Windows XP, you can format a FAT32 volume up to 32 GB only.
Maximum file size is 4 GB.

Unless I am very mistaken, this should rather refer to a partition.
Read the article here:
http://www.microsoft.com/WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/choosing_between_NTFS_FAT_and_FAT32.asp

okay i see, you are correct in that XP and 2K are limited to 32GB FAT32 partitions when using the native format utility. If you use a windows 98 bootdisk to partition the drive first it'll work just fine. i can attest to this as i'm running an 80gb drive right now under XP. if you're formatting in FAT32 with XP's utilities then you'll only get 32GB, get yourself a win98 boot disk.

(you're original link didn't work, so i never got to read that article first. i searched myself and that was the first MS one i found)

Step by Step guide to format a HD above 32GB in Fat32 using a Win98 Bootdisk (get from bootdisk.com)
http://www.petri.co.il/install_xp_on_large_fat32_partitions.htm

Here's some general info comparing NTFS and FAT32. http://www.ntfs.com/ntfs_vs_fat.htm

I'd recommend using NTFS for the XP partition and for partitions with large files, use FAT32 for partitions that will contain lots of small files and for stuff that you might need to access from an OS not supporting NTFS.

While it is true that XP can support larger than 32GB FAT32 partitions created outside of XP itself, it is not a good idea at all as Per said.

all taken care of -- formatted in NTFS for 200 gb capacity -- maxtor product support rocks. I did not use the maxblast software btw...

i see. i did not realize that.

Similar situation...

I have a Samsung SP8004H 80 gig HardDrive. It is typically used as a main harddrive for one of my computers. It had windows XP Pro installed, and it worked flawlessly, all 80 GB were fine and dandy.

I also used the drive for storing stuff: pictures, movies, (pron SheeHeeHee-heehee :stickout: ), etc etc. Many of the files are very important to me.

From time to time, I used to remove the drive, and plop it on a USB enclosure, to access the files from a different computer (take my homework to school, etc etc)

One time, I took my HDD and slapped it inside (not using the enclosure) a G4 PowerMac (I wasn't able to access the drive properly, to copy some files from the mac to my HDD; the Mac anted me to format it!)... I don't know what, where, why, or how, but my HDD now reads as an unallocated 33GB HardDrive that needs to be formatted, according to PartitionMagic 8.0 and Mac OS X Disk Utility.

I do believe the file format was indeed NTFS (96+or- 4% sure). Even the BIOS reads it as a 33GB HDD!!!

It wont boot anymore, as a main drive, on the system I grabbed it from. And as a secondary slave drive on my other WindowsXP machine, Windows Explorer doesn't even show the drive at all... And Device Manager reports the drive, as it's proper model name SP8004H... In the USB Enclosure, windows Explorer does see the drive, but it tells me that I need to format it!!!

Before I try formatting it, I want to know if how I can get my files out of it. Because there are some files there that I REALLY need to salvage.

I apprecaite all and any help.