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Q197667: Installing Windows NT on a Large IDE Hard Disk

Article: Q197667
Product(s): Microsoft Windows NT
Version(s): 4.0,4.0a
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): 
Last Modified: 20-FEB-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0 
- Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0 
- Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0, Terminal Server Edition 
- Microsoft BackOffice Small Business Server versions 4.0, 4.0a 
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SYMPTOMS
========

During the installation of Microsoft Windows NT to an 8 gigabyte (GB) or larger
IDE hard drive, the computer may stop responding (hang) during the format
portion of setup. If the drive was previously formatted as file allocation table
(FAT) and designated to be converted to NTFS file system (NTFS), the computer
may hang during the conversion process. Other symptoms include the drive taking
an extremely long time to format or Windows NT not recognizing the entire size
of the drive.

CAUSE
=====

The Microsoft supplied generic IDE driver (Atapi.sys) may not be fully
compatible with drives larger that 8GB. This issue only affects IDE-based drives
8 GB and larger.

RESOLUTION
==========

Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4 (SP4) has a new Atapi.sys file that allows the
drive to be formatted during setup of Windows NT. SP4's Atapi.sys can also
access space beyond 8GB on these IDE drives.

The system partition (boot partition) is still limited to 7.8GB whether an
updated version of the Atapi.sys file is installed or not.

For more information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:

  Q114841 Windows NT Boot Process and Hard Disk Constraints

NOTE: The system board basic input/output system (BIOS) must support and
recognize drives larger than 8GB before Windows NT can access the entire drive.
You can verify this ability by entering into the BIOS or contacting your system
board manufacturer.

If you are using Windows NT 4.0 Workstation, Server, or Terminal Server, follow
these instructions:

1. Download the updated Atapi.sys from Microsoft's FTP server:

  ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/bussys/winnt/winnt-unsup-ed/fixes/nt40/atapi/ATAPI.EXE

  and copy the file to a blank floppy disk. Run Atapi.exe on the disk and the
  new Atapi.sys file is extracted to the disk. Label the disk "Microsoft ATAPI
  Service Pack 4 IDE Driver."

2. Restart from the three setup disks supplied with Windows NT Server.

3. When asked if you would like setup to detect your mass storage devices, press
  "S" so that detection is skipped and you specify a mass storage device.

4. When setup list devices found, which should list <none>, press "S"
  again and insert the Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver disk and press
  ENTER twice.

5. After setup reads the disk and list the Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE
  driver, press ENTER to accept the driver.

6. Setup now lists Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver as an installed
  driver. If you have additional drivers for other mass storage devices, press
  S; if not, press ENTER to continue through setup.

7. Setup should continue through normally but, it prompts you to insert the disk
  labeled "Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver Support Disk" at the copy
  phase after you have chosen or formatted a partition on a hard drive.

If you are using Microsoft Small Business Server 4.0 or 4.0a, follow these
instructions:

1. Download the updated ATAPI.SYS from Microsoft's FTP server:

  ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/bussys/winnt/winnt-unsup-ed/fixes/nt40/atapi/ATAPI.EXE

  and copy the file to a blank floppy disk. Run Atapi.exe on the disk and the
  new Atapi.sys file is extracted to the disk. Label the diskette "Microsoft
  ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver."

2. Copy an updated file to Small Business Server (SBS) disk 2. To do this,
  rename the file Winnt.sif to Winnt.bak on disk 2. Then copy the Winnt.sif
  from the I386 folder on SBS CD 1 to SBS disk 2.

  NOTE:

  If a set of NT setup disks have been created from the SBS CD1 I386 directory
  by running the command winnt /ox or winnt32 /ox, the file winnt.sif will not
  be included on SBS disk 2. In this case, copy winnt.sif file from the SBS CD
  1 I386 directory to SBS Disk 2. It will not be necessary to rename an
  existing winnt.sif on the disk before doing so.

3. Restart from the modified SBS setup disks. When the computer is restarting
  off of disk 1 and the message "Setup is inspecting your hardware
  configuration..." is displayed, press F6 on the keyboard.

  NOTE: This is at a black screen and no visible indicators occur when you press
  F6.

4. When prompted, insert the modified disk 2 into the computer.

5. The next screen that appears prompts you to specify a mass storage drivers.
  To do that, press the S key and then arrow down to the listing of OTHER.
  Insert the Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver disk and press ENTER
  twice.

6. After setup reads the disk and list the Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE
  driver, press ENTER to accept the driver.

7. Setup now lists "Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver" as a installed
  driver. If you have any more drivers for other mass storage devices, press S;
  if not, press ENTER to continue through setup.

  NOTE: You are prompted to insert disks 2 and 3 several times, because you are
  using a modified version of Winnt.sif. Make sure you format or convert the
  partition to NTFS as SBS requires it.

8. Setup should continue through normally but it prompts you to insert the disk
  labeled "Microsoft ATAPI Service Pack 4 IDE Driver Support Disk" at the copy
  phase after you have chosen or formatted a partition on a hard drive.

STATUS
======

Microsoft has confirmed this to be an issue in the Microsoft products listed at
the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION
================

For related issues that this article addresses, please see the following
articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q177257 STOP 0x0000000A or Difficulty Recognizing IDE CD-ROM Drives

  Q183654 IBM DTTA-351010 10.1 GB Drive Capacity Is Inaccurate


Additional query words: sbsfaqtop 8gb 10gb dell poweredge SBS45 sbsfaq large hdisk hard drive disk winnt atapi atapi.sys ide 0x0000007b INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE 0x7B

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Keywords          :  
Technology        : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNTWsearch kbWinNTW400 kbWinNTW400search kbWinNT400search kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400 kbNTTermServ400 kbNTTermServSearch kbAudDeveloper kbSBServSearch kbSBServ400 kbSBServ400a
Version           : :4.0,4.0a
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbpending

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