T40 (Type 2373) Largest Harddrive possible?

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jwege · #1 Post by **jwege** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 11:43 am

Hi,

recently bought a aused T40 that I want to use for MP3 files as a music station.

Tried to install a Samsung HM160JC and HC, none works. The TP does not recognize the HD.

Funny enough, using it with the Ultrabay adaptor, I can even boot from it!

Which are the largest working HD used (NOT with Ultrabay but "native") so far?

What is to be recognized when purchasing such bigger HDD's?

Thanks so much!
Juergen

FTC · #2 Post by **FTC** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 2:47 pm

Hi,

If you could see the drive through the ultrabay adapter there is no reason why it should not work in the main HD slot. The only thing to check are the primary/secondary/cable select switches being wrongly set up... other than that I can only thik of a bad mechanical contact, maybe because it did not fully contact the slot or such... (you need to fully mount the HD cage to grant it aligns and contacts the slot correctly).

In summary, I would not attempt to buy another HD until you find what is wrong in your case. BTW, I've used the samsung HM160HC with no problems in a T40 and a T42.

jwege · #3 Post by **jwege** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 4:53 am

Thanks for the answer, but, sorry, no, that seems not to be true.

The Ultrabay obviously uses other drivers and maybe other bios settings. I have the exact same problem with an R52. Does not work in the "native" slot, but works with the Ultrabay.

The difference is that the R52 throws an error message 2010, from which you can see this is a documented limitation of that machine - but thats another funny story I have.

The trouble here is, I need as much disc space as possible, so, I want to have a big HD in the primary slot and another big one in the Ultrabay.

So, I need a big one that is recognized by the machine.

drnoom · #4 Post by **drnoom** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 5:06 am

mine T40 using 160GB Hitachi without any problems.

Brad · #5 Post by **Brad** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 5:28 am

When you say that the ThinkPad does not recognize the drive do you mean in the BIOS?

Brad

FTC · #6 Post by **FTC** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 7:29 am

jwege,

The ultrabay exposes the second IDE channel connector to the drive. It IS a pass through and you can see it by looking at the device manager, for instance, with your CD/DVD attached or another hard disk which you can place there. There (in device manager) you can see that the driver is the same. Of course the BIOS identifies it a bit different (as the secondary IDE channel).

I would suggest also answering what Brad was asking. Maybe it is not that the TP does not recognize the drive in the ultrabay, but just that it is not configured to boot from there (look at boot.ini setup in the boot partition... maybe it is configured to boot from the second disk, which would be the case in the ultrabay only if when you test that you have both disks)... also the master boot record has to be correctly set up (but I assume it is since you can boot from that drive when it is in the ultrabay).

jwege · #7 Post by **jwege** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 9:02 am

@brad:
yes, in the bios, there is no hd entry at the line hd1 (or so) when that hd is in the slot that does not work.

@FTC:
I can only say what i see. And that is: It is not possible to boot from the 160 GB (and also not from 100GB) drive
To clearify:

I have three HD'S, one is a 80GB Hitachi, the other is a 160 GB Samsung, the third is a 100GB Hitachi Travelstar.

1.) With all of them, I can boot on a R40 (the HD used in the HD slot).

2.) I can only boot with the 80GB in the T40 (used in the HD slot).

3.) All three are recognized correctly (including the partitions) when used in the Ultrabay of the T40.

4.) I can boot the T40 with all of them when used in the Ultrabay.

I have multiply removed the 160 GB and inserted again to be sure it is not very likely to be a contact issue.

AND:
I do have the identical behaviour in my R52 (yes, R52 not R40 as above).

Hmmm. I am lost ...

@drnoom:
What Drive Type is it? Can you tell me the Model number?

Thanks to all!

jwege · #8 Post by **jwege** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 9:08 am

Another addition:

When booting, the IBM screen appears.

With a hitachi 160GB HD (a fourth one according to the count of my last entry), the hdd light below the screen goes on and stays on.

It says: "Intel(R) Boot agent ..."

After a while, it says:
PXE-E61: Media test failure, check cable
PXE-M0F: Exiting Intel Boot Agent
Operating System not found

Maybe that helps.
Thanks to all

#9 Post by **GomJabbar** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 9:38 am

I think the problem stems from the HPA that the T40 uses. If you go to Security > IBM Predesktop Area > and choose Disable, that may fix your problem.

After doing the above, if you still have a problem then you probably need to low level format the hard drive, then reinstall the OS with the hard drive in the main hard drive slot of the T40. A low level format is different than a standard format. A low level format writes all zeros to the hard drive erasing all partitions and data.

FTC · #10 Post by **FTC** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 9:48 am

jwege,

I its fine and I do belive you, but the fact that I have been able to boot succesfully from an HM160HC win my T40/T42s is also a proof that this is not a 'design incompatibility'. Also offered you visible proof that both ultrabay and internal slot use the same drivers. This is why the only explanation is some configuration (hard or soft) conflict. I'd now check the GomJabbar suggestion, as well as that you don't have hd encryption active and/or a HD password set.

jwege · #11 Post by **jwege** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:41 am

Hi all,

fist of all: Thanks for the help! I found it.

It IS a contact problem obviously.

I found it very odd that the hdd LED sometimes lit and sometimes not.

When putting the HD into the slot, I felt that - other than with my R52 - there is only a tiny distance that plugs the HD in. Less than 2 mm I guess.

When I pressed against the HD, the LED went on and off, depending which angel I pressed.

At another boot try, I did press against the HD and guess what: It booted from the 160GB Hitachi drive.

That is kind of strange! I hope that mounting it with the little case will fix the HD accordingly.

The Samsung 160 GB HD by the way is ignoring any help and does not boot ...

#12 Post by **GomJabbar** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:48 am

Your post reminded me of something that I should have remembered. When I put a new hard drive in the main hard drive slot of my T42, it was not recognized either. Turns out that I plugged it into the wrong row of pins. This does not seem to be a problem if you have the caddy or cage mounted on the hard drive as per the original. What you need to do is hold the laptop bottom side up when you plug in the hard drive.

FTC · #13 Post by **FTC** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 11:18 am

Glad you found it...

Brad · #14 Post by **Brad** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 2:47 pm

I am glad you are back in business. I would be sure always to use the intended caddy with screws. The motherboard connector is delicate and can break if used incorrectly. If it does break you will be limited to using the hard drive in the second hard drive adapter or replacing your motherboard.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Brad

T40 (Type 2373) Largest Harddrive possible?

T40 (Type 2373) Largest Harddrive possible?

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