Real messup installs... Vista, XP,2k,XP again!!

[ptg]

Hi, I have a really convoluted problem, which I think boils down to me having lost the control sector in my HDD after a format. I think!? I'll explain the sorry chain of events.

I have 2x Maxtor 6L30050 and an ASUS A8N-SLI Premium. I had an install of Vista on the machine, which was not working out for me - went to XP, but that install messed up due to the disc (not all data wrote). Went for an install of 2K I had lying around just to get something on there and in formatting the disk for this 2k install, I think I lost something.

Originally, the OS setup screen looked like this:

Cartitional (NTFS) xxxxxxMB xxxxxxMB
Unpartitioned Space 8MB

Dartitional (NTFS) xxxxxxMB xxxxxxMB
Unpartitioned Space 8MB

The 2k format I did for the (failed) 2k install was NTFS to NTFS (Vista to 2k stylee I guess?), but when looking at the HDDs in the OS setup after the 2k instal format, I then got this:

Cartitional (unknown) xxxxxxMB xxxxxxMB

Dartitional (NTFS) xxxxxxMB xxxxxxMB
Unpartitioned Space 8MB

I'd lost the first unpartitioned space on C, and it's saying 'unknown' as the file structure.

Long story short - the 2k install didn't work. I got a better copy of XP, but when trying to install this, after selecting the disk (C and copying the install files - after the reboot, a message comes up 'A disk read error occured'.

So I have no o/s on there and the HD seems unusable.

Have I broken my HDD? Or do I need to sort the MBR? Mobo, what?

Please, please, please help. I am totally stuck.

Rgds.

 

[Tmagic650]

Is this a double post?

 

[Teranius]

A: drive is your floppy drive which i doubt you use, so just disable it in the bios and try again

 

[ptg]

I think it means 'a disk read error occured', not 'A: ...' The A:can be read from.

Not really a double post. This started as an O/S prob and morphed into HDD...

 

[Teranius]

A: drives are ancient, are you sure you have one?

 

[ptg]

Yes I have one, but I think the error is referring to the HDD, not the 'A:'. Don't most large HDDs have a control sector? I think that was the 8MB that is now gone? See my original post...

 

[Teranius]

all i can suggest is to disable the A: drive for the duration of the installation and then re-enable it again after everything is working

 

[ptg]

Sorry double post. Ok, I'll try that. Disable in via the BIOS?