DRU-500A: did my firmware update fail? Please help

[joejoe]

A short description what I did - and you'll understand, what kind of help I need:

1.) MY computer has an additional PCI-Card-Promise ATA 100-Controller, since I have many harddiscs, a CD-Burner, DVD-ROM, ZIP etc.
2.) I installed the Sony as Slave on the last free IDE-Port on the Promise Controller (NOT on the mainboard IDE) - it worked
3.) I seem to have failed to disable the DMA-Mode in WIN XP - what I did
not know is, that the Promise-Controller ALWAYS runs in DMA-mode.
4.) I updated the firmware from 1.0d to 1.0f (in DMA-mode, obviously..)
5.) After that, the Sony was recognized during booting, but Windows XP
could not be started.
6.) After trial and error-sessions I found out, that both the Sony and my
TEAC CD-Burner prevented WIN XP from starting
7.) I started WIN XP without them, updated the PROMISE-Bios and its drivers and reconnected the SONY and the TEAC - WIN XP started successfully - BIOS recognized SONY as Firmware 1.0f as well

Now: here are my questions:

1.) Since Sony requests you to disable DMA during firmware-update:
is everything ok with my Sony (I afterwards successfully burned 3
DVDs)?
2.) is everything ok with my TEAC?
3.) can the Sony-Firmware update somehow have done something to my
mainboard, Controller, other hardware (still under the impression of
Sonys DMA-warning)
4.) How can I find out, whether any of my hardware has suffered from
this and has "Bugs" but still "works somehow"
5.) Since the Sony is recognized during boot as "1.0F" - does it make
sense to do the fimware-update again to really make sure it works?
(I have noticed, that whilst burning with IMGTools (NERO Engine) for
Fuji DVD +R I get speed options of 1x, 2.4x and 3.1x (???????). Never
heard of 3.1x - could that be a hint for a failed firmware update?
6.) Is a firmware-update always a either/or - either it worked well or when
it failed, you can throw away your hardware?


Thanks very much for helping me out in that matter
Joe

[Coop]

Joejoe,

When you executed the update, did it complete successfully? DMA is an issue with the 1.0f update. I upgraded from 1.0d last week and ONLY after uninstalling a via driver and disabling DMA on that drive in device manager would it work for me. I don't think that the drive being on your expansion PCI card would be an issue as far as the update is concerned.

If it came up ok in bios, and you can see the drive in XP with 1.0f, I would think that it did complete successfully. Does the drive work? Have you burned/erased since applying the firmware update?

[joejoe]

@coop:

thanks for your reply!
Yes, the drive is accessable
Yes, it shows up in the BIOS as DRU-500A 1.0f
Yes, I successfully burned 3 DVDs after the update

My only concerns still are:
why did the BIOS ALWAYS recognize the Sony and my TEAC CD-RW, but Windows failed to and did not continue the Boot-process?
Why - when I detached the Sony - would Windows XP even refrain to start with ONLY the TEAC attached (it froze within the Start-Animation with the scrolling green bar)
Why did Windows refrain to start, even when I moved TEAC and/or SONY to the IDE-"slot" on the mainboard?
What happened - and changed this behaviour - when I flashed the Promise-Controller with a new BIOS and updated the Promise-Drivers?
Why the 3.1x Speed-Burning-Option - shouldn't the SONY have a choice between 1x, 2x, 4x with CD -R/+R with the 1.0f-Firmware?

As I already said - I am not sure, whether this Firmware-Update only seems to work at first sight, but actually failed and will produce errors, that I can't control and will discover only later on (for example: I am planing to move the backup-Images from my harddiscs to DVDs - but how can I be sure, they are really complete and without mistakes...)

Do I sound too crazed? Well, hopefully not, but I think, this thread could be a good help for others as well.....

[Coop]

My only concerns still are:
why did the BIOS ALWAYS recognize the Sony and my TEAC CD-RW, but Windows failed to and did not continue the Boot-process?
Why - when I detached the Sony - would Windows XP even refrain to start with ONLY the TEAC attached (it froze within the Start-Animation with the scrolling green bar)
Why did Windows refrain to start, even when I moved TEAC and/or SONY to the IDE-"slot" on the mainboard?
What happened - and changed this behaviour - when I flashed the Promise-Controller with a new BIOS and updated the Promise-Drivers?
Why the 3.1x Speed-Burning-Option - shouldn't the SONY have a choice between 1x, 2x, 4x with CD -R/+R with the 1.0f-Firmware?

As I already said - I am not sure, whether this Firmware-Update only seems to work at first sight, but actually failed and will produce errors, that I can't control and will discover only later on (for example: I am planing to move the backup-Images from my harddiscs to DVDs - but how can I be sure, they are really complete and without mistakes...)

Do I sound too crazed? Well, hopefully not, but I think, this thread could be a good help for others as well.....

Joejoe:

You don't sound crazed to me. Why XP wouldn't boot, I'm not sure. Have you upgraded it to the latest service pack?

Your firmware update to the Promise controller may also have solved the problem, although why it didn't see the drives on the mobo controller doesn't make sense either. This is looking more like a Windows issue, rather than a drive issue. I'm currently running Win2k and not as familiar with it, so probably I'm not much help to you there.

I'm not sure what's up with the recording speed issue. I'm using NERO to burn and I haven't paid attention to burning speed. My experience with firmware issues is that they work or they don't, in worst cases rendering the hardware useless.

Good luck...