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Ok...So I did a reformat today...was having endless problems with freezing and slow performance. So I reformatted, but can't get anything reloaded. Anytime I run XP setup, it says it needs a valid XP partition to install files on. So I delete the current partition, let XP create it's own, and get the same error. I tried doing a low-level format (wrote zeros to all sectors) hoping that would clear whatever is jamming it, and still, get the same problem.I tried running system restore from my manufacturer, and it says that the drive is locked with an NTFS partition and it can't be accessed. So I tried both using the LOCK and UNLOCK commands in dos, and both times the "lock operation failed."So basically, I'm stuck with no primary PC now...Can anyone help me get this damn drive back online???

There's a way around this, I'm pretty sure, is there any way you have the OS on a Fat 32 instead of the NTFS. I think should work. I've formatted computers before, haven't run into this problem, but I would not doubt that this could happen.Inder

I'm trying to install it.It can't access the partition, it's somehow locked.XP can be installed on 32 or NTFS...that's nto the problem though...I need to "unlock" the drive somehow...

what does fdisk show?manufacturer of the pc? manufacturer of the harddrive?

Quote, originally posted by ullbergm »what does fdisk show?Partition: 1Type: NTFSMbytes: 57232Usage: 100%Quote »manufacturer of the pc? GatewayQuote »manufacturer of the harddrive? Western Digital

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Partition: 1Type: NTFSMbytes: 57232Usage: 100%will it let you delete the partition from fdisk?

Yeah, I've tried deleting and recreating the partion via fdisk...still no go...

Found this:http://www.sandersonforensics.co.uk/manual.htmBut it says that you need to know the password..

what brand of hard drive is it i can send you the manf, disk to take the drive right back to the way you bought it or you can try a normal boot floppy with the fdisk command and delete all partitoins incl non dos then reboot to the floppy and type fdisk /mbr then try to instal and don't choose quick format

I already did a low-level format, that didn't break through whatever is messing the drive up...

try thishttp://support.wdc.com/download/index.asp#dlgtools

it is in the boot sector or master boot record

Been there, done that.All utilties report the drive as normal.

it is part of the ata spec.. if gateway locked the drive you need the password from their tech support..Quote »Question Do Western Digital EIDE drives support hard drive locking? Answer Current Western Digital ATA/100 EIDE drives support the ATA/ATAPI-6 specification, including the security mode settings. Some vendors use the security feature to ensure the usage of only specific drives in their system. The drives can also be locked by a third party utility. When a drive is locked using the ATA security mode settings, the same utility and the original code used to lock the drive are necessary to unlock the drive. If your drive has been locked, we recommend that you contact your system vendor or the manufacturer of the software utility that was used to lock the drive for assistance. Here is a document explaining the ATA/ATAPI standard:http://www.seagate.com/support...7.pdfMy best advice would be to call Gateway, sorry..

Nah, this isn't the factory drive...I replaced the factory drive with this one a long time ago...I've done dozens of reformats before without a problem...I"m starting to think the drive may be crapping out on me...

Do you still have your Linux box laying around? And if so, are you still on SuSE?One thing I've done before, slap the other drive in the Linux box, boot it up. With SuSE go into YaST --> System --> Partitioner, and it should find the second drive. Delete the necessary partitions, and you can create a new partition with standard FAT file system. Don't assign a mount point to the drive. Confirm the settings, and it should be able to format the drive for you. If it yacks, the drive may be going dead...If you have success, stick it back in your Windows box and see if you can do anything with it. If all goes well, you should be able to reinstall Windows. If you use NTFS, it should be able to format it as such during the Windows install.

Problem SOLVED!Poked around the BIOS, figured something was lying in there that I could use a clue.Turns out, when I went into detected hard drive, it showed the primary drive as GENERIC STORAGE DEVICE and the seconday drive as my hard drive. It appears my BIOS was detecting my xD card reader for my digital camera as a hard drive, and that was interfering with the install. Unplugged it, rebooted, and all is going well...Thanks so much to EVERYONE for their help!