Setup cannot read floppy drive

[DarrellS]

I can see the A:\ and I can read and write to it in Windows but when I go into BIOS to update BIOS or if I'm trying to install raid drivers during setup, BIOS cannot read from the floppy drive.

[roma_turok]

Try to add raid drivers to windows setup by this guide: http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows/resolving-setup-did-not-find-any-hard-disk-driv...-installation/

[DarrellS]

I'm not concerned with an alternative way to install the RAID drivers. I'm concerned with getting my Floppy drive to work during setup. I need to update my BIOS but if setup cannot read my floppy drive then I cannot update the BIOS or anything else I need to use the Floppy drive for while in setup.

[aedipuss]

in order to boot from the floppy it needs to have dos installed on it. i use an old stripped down winME boot floppy, but XP has the "make ms-dos startup disc" you can try. also set the bios first boot device to the floppy.

[Nelson37]

You can't use a Floppy drive while in BIOS setup, there is no provision whatsoever to do so.

You can boot a minimal OS and update the BIOS, but this is done from the floppy drive rather than the BIOS menu.

[roma_turok]

I'm not concerned with an alternative way to install the RAID drivers. I'm concerned with getting my Floppy drive to work during setup. I need to update my BIOS but if setup cannot read my floppy drive then I cannot update the BIOS or anything else I need to use the Floppy drive for while in setup.

Motherboard bios not update during windows setup
You can update bios from cd-rom dos boot disk
or some motherboards have windows utility program to update bios from windows

[bevills1]

Be sure to follow instructions at mobo manufacturer's site. Some say to do update using floppy created according to instructions while others warn not to update from floppy and say to update from windows utility only.

[DarrellS]

I have a Gigabyte P35DS3P motherboard. The last time I updated the BIOS, all I had to do was download the files from Gigabyte and doubleclick the file and a program caused Windows to reboot to the BIOS setup utility and it automatically updated the BIOS. This time, everything is very different. I tried the Qflash option that both Gigabyte and Tweaktown recommend using a floppy disk (not a boot disk). Gigabyte at Tweaktown also gives instructions on how to update the BIOS using a boot floppy or a boot flash drive. I've tried both and neither work. It says to either press the <end> button to start Qflash to update the BIOS or to press F8 in BIOS which will also bring up the Qflash utility and it shows the A drive but when I click enter it tells me that it can't read the disk. If I use the boot disk I created, it goes right past it and loads Windows instead of the BIOS update..

I think this motherboard is going out because I'm starting to have all kinds of problems. My monitor keeps going black but the PC keeps running and the video card is not overheating. It all started a month ago when I lost a power supply and a couple of weeks later had to replace the HDD because I could not repair Windows. That's when I first had the floppy problem while trying to install the AHCI and G-SATA drivers.

I was able to load the RAID drivers every other time I've reinstalled Windows on this machine with no problem. Setup had no problem seeing the floppy drive. Now it will not see it.

Everyone says not to use the @BIOS utility from Gigabyte because it is known to screw up the BIOS and make a machine useless. I guess I don't have anything to lose though so I guess I'll install it and give it a try..

I'm not even sure if I want to try and update the BIOS because I doubt it will fix my problems. I should just bite the bullet and buy a new motherboard and hope it lasts longer than this one did. A year and a half isn't very long. My MSI at least lasted five years before it fried.

[johns0]

Newer mb can update the bios from a hdd or usb,much better than unreliable floppy drives.You can update the bios from a cd with win98 startup with vm driver and load it to virtual c drive and update that way or just a cd with bios alone depending on the mb bios.

[DarrellS]

I went ahead and used the @BIOS software from Gigabyte and it updated fine. Don't know if it fixed the floppy problem but I've been running my computer for a day and a half and the monitor hasn't turned black yet. I took the front cover off of the case yesterday morning though so that might have something to do with it. I'll leave the front cover off a little longer and then put it back on and see it goes black again. There could be a problem with the buttons that forces it to go into some kind of suspend mode. I don't know.

[ocgw]

I went ahead and used the @BIOS software from Gigabyte and it updated fine. Don't know if it fixed the floppy problem but I've been running my computer for a day and a half and the monitor hasn't turned black yet. I took the front cover off of the case yesterday morning though so that might have something to do with it. I'll leave the front cover off a little longer and then put it back on and see it goes black again. There could be a problem with the buttons that forces it to go into some kind of suspend mode. I don't know.

Let's keep our fingers crossed

ocgw

peace

[DarrellS]

This problem is solved. I had to reinstall XP today and tried again to load the F6 SATA controller drivers with no luck. I decided to try the A:\ in my other computer and it loaded the drivers just fine. Strange that Windows could read the drive with no problem but setup and BIOS could not.

Guess I need to go to Fry's and get another drive.