Problems with non-thinkpad option drives on T43 thinkpads

[SteveS]

fuzzball wrote:

My question is does anyone know what is the cheapest drive I can buy and install with no problems?

The Fujitsu are reported to work off the shelf with no problems. I have personally used the 4200 RPM MHT20x0AT series and 5400 RPM MHV2xx0AH series in both T43 and T43p machines and never have had a 2010 error. I suspect the stock Fujitsu drives have the required SATA commands in them. Unfortunately, Fujitsu does not make a 7200 RPM notebook drive. Not an issue unless you want the highest performance.

IBM/Lenovo drives will all work, however older ones need to have the firmware updated. If it is a genuine IBM/Lenovo part, the flasher program downloaded from the Lenovo web site works automatically with no hacking required. Occasionally you will see one of these drives, removed from a ThinkPad, come up on e-bay. New ones are available from Lenovo, and they are already mounted in the drive caddy. Their pricing is quite a bit higher than discount web sites offer however.

From what I have read, the only option for using a non-IBM 7200 RPM drive without the error is a Hitachi. I have had luck flashing them using the two step flash process given earlier in this thread. However, a word of caution here. If the drive has newer FW (A53A versus A51A), the drive will not be on a list that the Hitachi supplied flasher program checks against, and it will report “drive not on supported list” and quit. I have not be able to find a work around. Help shows a /S option that is suppose to ignore model checking, but this option does not work and generates an error message. I suspect that Lenovo has not updated the version of the Hitachi flasher program (reported to be version 0.1) as it handles all of the drives they have ever sold, so there is no need to.

[fuzzball]

The Fujitsu are reported to work off the shelf with no problems. I have personally used the 4200 RPM MHT20x0AT series and 5400 RPM MHV2xx0AH series in both T43 and T43p machines and never have had a 2010 error.

So a MHT2020AT, a MHT2030AT, or a MHT2040AT drive should be plug and play?

-Fuzz

[SteveS]

Just re-verified a MHV2100AH in one of my T43p - boots fine with no error message.

[alinutu]

Hello,

I just got a 5400rpm 100Gb Hitachi 2'5 and i get the infamous 2010 error during boot up. I downloaded the latest firmware update utility from Lenovo website but i get the message "you hdd dont need firmware update". As i see my hdd model number is HTS541210H9AT00 . I only found on this forum informations about 7k rpm version of hdd.

Can anyone please help me with some advices for this specific model?

Thank you in advance

[GomJabbar]

Rather than have 2 Stickies on the subject, I unstickied the older, shorter thread. Here is the link to it.

Hitachi 7k60 in a T43, and hello

[alinutu]

Thank you very much but as i mentioned i have the 5400 rpm version not the 7k2:( Thats why i posted and thats why i still need your help guys:(

[polityk]

Ok, I thought that I can live with 2010 but unfortunatelly no :/

I have a Hitachi 5k160 series, 80GB 5400rpm Parallel-ATA 8MB drive: HTS541680J9AT00
Ibm's official software does not support this drive, only HTS5410.... which is 1A and mine is 600mA...

Is it possible to flash this drive and get rid of 2010?

[2_i]

This is just for the record. I have a T43 2668-72U, running under Windows XP. I bought the Hitachi Travelstar 5K160 160 GB Ultra ATA drive, HTS541616J9AT00 (0A50817), as a replacement drive. According to the Hitachi site, the drive is compatible with T43. In spite of many efforts, including using FIXMBR and FIXBOOT, as well different versions of BIOS for T43, I could not get the Travelstar working as a first drive inside T43 and it got relegated to a USB backup drive.

[moon]

I purchased Hitachi 5k100/80G (HTS541080G9AT00; MB4OA60A). I got 2010 at first.
<snipped>
reboot , no 2010

It's been a while since someone updated this procedure. Thanks to messar and badsmith for the clues:

0. Hitachi 5k100/80G (HTS541080G9AT00, firmware version MB4OA60A), got 2010 message on boot

1. download fwhd48.iso from IBM: http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... 62282.html

you'll also need an ISO editor, a binary file editor, and disc image burning software
[if you don't have them, download free/trial MagicISO and UltraEdit32]

2. extract mpbA60Ab.tbl from fwhd48.iso (MagicISO)
delete mpbA60Ab.tbl from fwhd48.iso (MagicISO)

3. modify extracted mpbA60Ab.tbl file: (UltraEdit32)

replace "A56J" with "A60A"
replace "A5BJ" with "A60A"

4. extract MB4IA60A.bdf from fwhd48.iso, but leave it in the iso (MagicISO)

5. copy MB4IA60A.bdf to MB4OA60A.bdf

6. add mpbA60Ab.tbl and MB4OA60A.bdr back into the iso (MagicISO)
save the iso (MagicISO)

7. burn the modified iso to disc (e.g. Nero Express)

8. boot with the disc; immediately quit once the firmware application loads,
at the a:\ or c:\ prompt, type:

hfui14.exe OA60A -pm MB4IA60A.bdr /f mpbA60Ab.tbl

press 'U' to upgrade; you will get an upgrade error/failure, then press any key to exit

9. at the a:\ or c:\ prompt, type:

hfui14.exe IA60A -pm MB4IA60A.bdr /f mpbA60Ab.tbl

press 'U' to upgrade; on success, press any key to exit

10. no 2010 message on reboot, firmware version MB4IA60A

[JHaislet]

I just picked up another Hitachi 7K100 100GB drive and was able to upgrade it from OEM A51A to IBM A5CA firmware using the latest firmware update cd from Lenovo and the special commands issued outside of their update program.

Everything seems to be working well and I feel much better now having a hot-swap spare (as the 7K100 I picked up last fall started making a couple strange noises).

[phutro]

i want to buy one of the new hitachi 200 / 250 gb harddrives. and ya i will get the 2010 error but that i'm not concerned about it. what i am concerned about is the below...

It appears the thread is now too big, so let me reiterate the finer points...

2. So far, the following differences are known:

2a. SATA protocol hacks/fixes to certain drives, so that they behave and don't corrupt on-disk data when used with the SATA/PATA bridge on the T43 (not all drives seem to need this). Note that almost all manufacturers NEVER publish firmware updates to their laptop drives, and you just need to ask the OS driver crowd to know these things are buggy as all heck, so you are actually getting bugfixes from IBM for these.

2a is critical, but probably not much of an issue on newer drives if we don't get a ton of complains about corrupted data with people skipping the warning.

what does 2a mean exactly? do i run a high risk / chance of corrupting my data using the above hitachi drives as the months wear on? or should i be fine? regards,

[JHaislet]

Are you wanting one of the new 200/250gb drives for a T43???

AFAIK, these new drives are SATA only. The T43 is PATA only and thus you physically can't use a SATA drive in a T43.

[phutro]

so the largest pata drive i can fit into my t43 is a 100gb? where can i order one? i'm searching new egg and just coming up with all sata. in the end i'll prolly just get a 200/250 and make it an external for the laptop.

[JHaislet]

The largest PATA 7200rpm drive currently is 100GB.

I think there might be a couple PATA 160GB @ 5400rpm, and I recall seeing a PATA 200GB, but I'm thinking it was possibly 4200rpm?

Check Hitachi, Seagate, Samsung, & Fujitsu's websites to see if such a beast exists, as Newegg seems to have all but stopped carrying PATA 2.5" drives.

[phutro]

searching the hitachi website they list the largest PATA drive as their Travelstar 5K160 and lists the model no. as HTS541616J9AT00, which newegg does carry.

would using this & getting the 2010 error mean i am more likely to form bad sectors / lose data?

[JHaislet]

There was a post somewhere that Hitachi uses the EXACT same firmware on both IBM & Non-IBM drives. I believe that's the case since the Bios in T43's now allows you to disable the 2010 error message. I've re-flashed both of my 7K100 drives, but now that IBM allows you to disable the messages, it's probably not as big of deal.

As always, have a good & complete backup of your files in case something goes south with the drive; CYA

[benji]

Following up to my earlier post - still no problems 12+ hours daily running a 100GB Seagate 7200rpm drive that gives the 2010 error.

I suspect the firmware differences are just adding a space to store data on "GSense" information (ie when the drive has gone beyond the threshold for being thrown around it will log it, therefore Lenovo/IBM can prove you didnt look after your HD if you try and get it swapped under warranty after abusing it!)

[Murcielago]

guys...I have an idea a guess why some harddisks are supported and some aren't and some get the error issue.

I was thinking, since some models have the hard disk protection feature, APS which involves immediately parking the drive head the moment shock is detected. those harddisks that can't move back the head in time or something will give rise to the error issue.

correct me if i am wrong as I am still new to laptops(been a PC user for years) and hard disk tech.

[kim-chee-san]

I bought a T43 sometime ago and basically had to resurrect it back to health and got all the information I needed just from reading the forums--didn't have to ask a single question! Thank you to all the forum members and your informative posts.

The laptop didn't have its original 60gb 7200 RPM drive (I think it was originally a Hitachi). Instead, it had a 40gb 5400 RPM Toshiba MK4026GAX drive which presented the annoying 2010 error. It was a really easy fix--just downloaded the firmware update, ran it once, and upon the next bootup the annoying message was gone.

So, you can add this drive to the list of drives that will work on the T43 post firmware update.

[bzumwalt]

Special thanks to JHaislet for his efforts and especially the helping hand in making this happen for me.

Make sure you download the latest Firmware HDD Update from Lenovo - For this one is is FWHD49 Release Date of 10-02-2007. Go here to get it http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... 62282.html

Make the bootable CD from the iso image then boot to it. Hit CRTL+C during the boot up to take you to DOS. Then type the following commands.

1) COPY MCZIA5CA.BDR MZOA5CA.BDR
2) HFUI15 OASCA MCZIA5CA.BDR /F MPCA5CAB.TBL
3) HFUI15 IA5CA MCZOA5CA.BDR /F MPCA5CAB.TBL

Power down your machine. Then power it back up and no more 2010 errors!!! Cheers!

Thanks again to JHaislet and this community. My T43P is the best computer I have ever owned and I love this little laptop to death. It sounds cheesy, but I have more admiration for this machine than any MAC user could have for theirs hands down.

-Brandon

[cchinz]

Special thanks to JHaislet for his efforts and especially the helping hand in making this happen for me.

Make sure you download the latest Firmware HDD Update from Lenovo - For this one is is FWHD49 Release Date of 10-02-2007. Go here to get it http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... 62282.html

Make the bootable CD from the iso image then boot to it. Hit CRTL+C during the boot up to take you to DOS. Then type the following commands.

1) COPY MCZIA5CA.BDR MZOA5CA.BDR
2) HFUI15 OASCA MCZIA5CA.BDR /F MPCA5CAB.TBL
3) HFUI15 IA5CA MCZOA5CA.BDR /F MPCA5CAB.TBL

Power down your machine. Then power it back up and no more 2010 errors!!! Cheers!

Thanks again to JHaislet and this community. My T43P is the best computer I have ever owned and I love this little laptop to death. It sounds cheesy, but I have more admiration for this machine than any MAC user could have for theirs hands down.

-Brandon

Hi, I just upgraded my hdd to 80gb and tried out using FWHD49. Initially, its says "no firmware upgrade". The 2010 still exist.

My hdd HTS541680J9AT00 - firmware SB2OA70H, my lappy R52

Can any help out in the command prompt in dos?

Many thanks

[albo]

Just to let people know, I put a seagate ST9120821A 130 Gb drive in my T43 2668-73u XP machine, and it worked like a charm. Didn't have to do anything. I have bios 1.29.

Does anyone know of any 200Gb+ drives that will pop into a t43 without troubles? I need to step up a size...

thanks,
allie

[cchinz]

Just to let people know, I put a seagate ST9120821A 130 Gb drive in my T43 2668-73u XP machine, and it worked like a charm. Didn't have to do anything. I have bios 1.29.

Does anyone know of any 200Gb+ drives that will pop into a t43 without troubles? I need to step up a size...

thanks,
allie

upgraded my bios to 1.29 also problem 2010 persist. Got to live with it
until ibm comes out a new firmware

[JHaislet]

Hi, I just upgraded my hdd to 80gb and tried out using FWHD49. Initially, its says "no firmware upgrade". The 2010 still exist.

My hdd HTS541680J9AT00 - firmware SB2OA70H, my lappy R52

Can any help out in the command prompt in dos?

Many thanks

You need to CHANGE the firmware on your drive to remove the 2010 error.
SB2OA70H the "O" signifies "OEM" in the drive firmware. It is this "O" that causes the 2010 error since the T43 bios is looking for an "I" as in "IBM" in the firmware string of the hard drive. Find the "I" firmware for your drive and substitute that for the strings & instructions posted multiple times in this post.
That should solve your problem.

As always, you do this at your own risk and I take no responsibility nor provide any guarantees on the information myself and others have provided...

[albo]

There's a lot of concern here about getting rid of the 2010 error. Does getting rid of the error actually mean that the drive is working properly with the thinkpad? For example, will the APS still work with the drive? My impression was that the 2010 error exists to try to make sure that drives installed in the thinkpad actually implement the extra ATA commands that the thinkpads issue.

thanks,
allie

[cchinz]

Hi, I just upgraded my hdd to 80gb and tried out using FWHD49. Initially, its says "no firmware upgrade". The 2010 still exist.

My hdd HTS541680J9AT00 - firmware SB2OA70H, my lappy R52

Can any help out in the command prompt in dos?

Many thanks

You need to CHANGE the firmware on your drive to remove the 2010 error.
SB2OA70H the "O" signifies "OEM" in the drive firmware. It is this "O" that causes the 2010 error since the T43 bios is looking for an "I" as in "IBM" in the firmware string of the hard drive. Find the "I" firmware for your drive and substitute that for the strings & instructions posted multiple times in this post.
That should solve your problem.

As always, you do this at your own risk and I take no responsibility nor provide any guarantees on the information myself and others have provided...

I am not so sure if this string is the right one, but can anyone lend me a helping hand to rectify it. I am not sure on the .tbl command.

1) COPY SB2IA70H.BDR SB2OA70H.BDR
2) HFUI14 OA70H SB2IA70H.BDR /F ???A70AB.TBL
3) HFUI14 IA70H SB2OA70H.BDR /F ???A70AB.TBL

[SteveS]

albo wrote:

There's a lot of concern here about getting rid of the 2010 error. Does getting rid of the error actually mean that the drive is working properly with the thinkpad? For example, will the APS still work with the drive? My impression was that the 2010 error exists to try to make sure that drives installed in the thinkpad actually implement the extra ATA commands that the thinkpads issue.

thanks,
allie

If you actually update the drive firmware with that provided on the update disk, the answer is yes. The PATA drive will support the SATA commands needed for APS that are not in a standard PATA drive. If you only change the model number to one the BIOS believes is already compatable, you may not get all of the protection features.

[JHaislet]

The update doesn't just change the model number. It reflashes the drive with the correct IBM firmware and thus also allows subsequent firmware updates from IBM.

[johnnydu]

By any chance, would the firmware update for the HTS5410xxxxxxxx work for the HTS5416169JAT00 while retaining the original drive capacity? It's awfully frustrating to use up a USB slot just to utilize a 160GB HDD when it can be inside the laptop operating at your leisure. I just can't live with the thought that APS won't be there to protect my HDD investment hence looking for a firmware update...

It's frustrating that the 7K100 isn't sold here in the Philippines. I guess the best option for me right now is to ditch the combo drive and keep it in my notebook's bag and get the ultra slim HDD adapter so i can keep the 160G hd in the ultrabay.

Great work on past posts, guys. As much as there are other notebooks out there that I can purchase, the T43 is just a nimble and comfy machine I can't let go of!

[silvermail]

Hey guys,

Just got myself a piece of the Seagate Momentus 100GB 7200RPM Hard Drive ST910021A for my T43 (1.29, 1.06).

The drive came with 3.06 firmware and I flashed it to 3.07 based on the FWHD49 release (http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... 62282.html).

I'm still getting the 2010 error. If you are considering the Seagate, maybe you should take a look at the Hitachi. Seems like more users are getting better luck with it.