RAID not recognized. PSU Issue?

[operaman]

So this began a week or so ago. I have a generic 425 watt PSU running the P4 3.2 in my sig

My issue is that it began a week ago not recognizing one of the Hard drives. So I reconnected everything and now RAID is not reconginzed at all. Nada. I am thinking the generic PSU is the issue here, but want an opinion from you guys...

I ordered a 550 watt Saprkle (Fortron) today from the egg...

You guys think it could be the prob or did I just drop 65 unnecessarily??

 

[Ice Czar]

Originally posted by operaman
did I just drop 65 unnecessarily??

I doubt that, unless you decide to get an even better PSU than the FSP
voltage regulation & transient resopnse long thread backtrack as well
takaman's Power Supply Calculator rev0.63
Choosing the right Power Supply
[H]ardcore PSU info < important

regarding the problem, power could well have been the issue
but "power events" often kill things
getting the drives recognized outside of the array, and tested with the manufacturers diagnostic is the first step
failing to do that extremely limits your options


verfy the power connectors are properly seated
try a different cable
simplify the config to just a single HDD, as master on the primary channel, repeat as cable select

try using the DMI hang proceedure
http://www.plasma-online.de/

The Desktop Management Interface (DMI) is a new method of managing computers in an enterprise. The main component of DMI is the Management Information Format Database, or MIFD (the DMI Pool Data). This database contains all the information about the computing system and its components. At times, some systems may experience a hang condition after partitioning, formatting and initial boot-up of a hard drive. In Windows 95 and 98, changes to the motherboards BIOS settings, changes in hard drives or to hard drive settings alters this pool data. The message, "Verifying DMI Pool Data" appears and the system hangs. This condition may continue even after the physical drive has been removed from the system.

Solution
Method One:
- Apply power to the computer.
- Access the system BIOS.
- Set "Reset configuration data" to enable (most likely to be found in PCI/PnP section of BIOS) might be listed as Force ESCD (Extended System Configuration Data)
- Save the BIOS changes and restart PC.

Method Two:
- Apply power to the computer.
- Access the system BIOS.
- Set the drive type as None or Not Installed.
- Then Load the BIOS Defaults
- Then Load the SETUP Defaults
- Save the BIOS changes and reboot the PC to a System Boot Diskette.
- Shut down the PC after the memory count is displayed.
- Reconnect the power and interface cables to the hard drive.
- Access the System BIOS.
- Auto-Detect the hard drive. Ensure that the LBA Mode option is enabled.
- Save the BIOS changes and restart the PC with a System Diskette.
- Partition and format the hard drive via the operating system.
- Restart the system. On boot, the screen should read:
Verifying DMI Pool Data
Update Successful
- The system should continue booting normally.

Method Three:
- Apply power to the computer.
- Access the System BIOS.
- Disable both the Internal and External CPU Cache. These features are located in either the "BIOS Features" or "Advanced Settings" menu.
- Save the BIOS changes and restart the PC to a System Boot Diskette. On startup, the screen should read:
Verifying DMI Pool Data
Update Successful
- The system should continue booting normally.
- After the system successfully boots, re-start the PC and access the system BIOS.
- Enable the Internal and External CPU Cache.
- Save the BIOS changes and restart the PC to a System Boot Diskette. On startup, the screen should read:
Verifying DMI Pool Data
Update Successful
- The system should continue booting normally.


NOTE: If the above mentioned methods fail to resolve the issue, contact the system or motherboard manufacturer to either clear the CMOS or update the BIOS for your motherboard. This will entail either:

- Removing the "Clear CMOS" Jumper or removing the battery and resetting the system BIOS or:
- Obtaining and applying a Flash BIOS Upgrade for your motherboard.

Id go as far as clearing the CMOS but not the last step of reFlashing the BIOS

 

[operaman]

UPDATE: It was the PSU. I got the Sparkle and it runs AWESOME BABY!!

 

[Ice Czar]

Glad to hear you got it sorted out
count yourself lucky that it was just insability, more than any other component
the PSU has the potential to cause widespread damage

 

[operaman]

Originally posted by Ice Czar
Glad to hear you got it sorted out
count yourself lucky that it was just insability, more than any other component
the PSU has the potential to cause widespread damage

Indeed. I got the Sparkle and I will never look back. From now on it will not be a no name PSU. No way... Now I got all three systems up.... yeeha!!!

 

[Ice Czar]

even really expensive PSUs start to look downright cheap when weighted against the cost of more expensive components

I dropped $200 on a PC Power and Cooling 510 AG
to protect +$4000 worth of workstation