i1neal@exnet.iastate.edu (Neal Rauhauser -- ELT Computer Applications Group) (01/14/91)
>The problem: >On bootup the computer takes a long time, and finally responds that it is >unable to initialize hard drive 1, and give me the option of F1 to continue, >or escaping into the setup routine. The setup looks o.k. - both drives >are configured as type 1, per the adaptec manual. When I tell it to continue, >it boots normally, but there is no drive "D". If I go into debug, and >try to low-level format the drive I get a recalibration error almost >immediately. I get the same error if I use seagate's diskmanager diagnostics >to do any of it's tests. Disk manager also responds that the drive is >a 10.6 megabyte. I have a similar problem. On boot the machine exercises the drive a bit, waits a long time, says it "Can't initialize drive 0", then boot to floppy. I run diag.exe from the disk manager package and I get a RECAL failure - a recalibration that fails. The controller works fine with another drive, no cableage problems, controller is properly seated. My guesses are: 1. bad mechanicals, sick stepper motor maybe 2. bad logic board on the drive Since it worked before with this disk (It being a WD1006) I'll rule out any drive/controller conflict. I _REALLY_ need to get stuff from this drive, just once, then it can spend the rest of eternity as a doorstop, if it so desires. BTW, its a st251, set up with disk mangler and 2 partitions of the same size. Neal i1neal@exnet.iastate.edu .FLAME BEGIN The reason I _have_ to get data from this disk is a very interesting tale. I was asked to 'fix' an ST225 I had sold to my room mate. The drive works fine for me, he hasn't got enough sense to install it and have it run on anything. I determined that the problem did indeed lie in the controller the 225 was connected to, soooo I pulled the controller for the st251 to format the disk and show him it works fine and that the problem is in some of the junk he tries to use. Today, the st251 fails to boot with the RECAL error and its my fault. Pay attention, this is where it gets good. I loaned him about $700 last semester because he hadn't got paid on a project he'd been working on. Guess where the sole completed copy of that project is at right now ... and he doesn't believe in floppy backups of hard disks, not even the critical stuff. The most recent copy of this project is on a tape I made the first time he screwed up the st225. The tape is five months out of date. Half of me wants to fix this up so he can get paid. The other half of me , being the only one on the lease, is going to evict him so I won't have to babysit his excuse for a computer. .FLAME END