Guide to Installing XP on a Raid Enabled (AHCI) ThinkStation S10

Question

I spent a long time attempting to install Windows XP on my ThinkStation S10 with Raid 5 enabled. This post will detail exactly how to accomplish this process.
Method 1: Using F6 Option During XP Installation (Note: I could not personally get this method to work, therefore, I can’t confirm it.)
1) Download the appropriate Raid drivers for your operating System from lenovo’s support site (ie: “Intel Matrix Storage Manager (RAID) driver for Windows XP”)
2) Copy the files to a floppy disk (highly preferable) or USB drive. If you don’t have a floppy drive on your machine you will have to do the following:
2a) Boot into the BIOS by tapping F1. Navigate to Startup Sequence and move “Diskette Drive A” to the “Excluded from Boot Order” category. Make sure the USB devices are included in the boot order and in the right order. Also, make sure PCI SCSI: Intel VOL01 (this should correspond to your raid volume) is not excluded from the boot order.
For example, my startup sequence is the following:
1: IDE HDD
2: PCI SCSI: Intel VOL01 (this should correspond to your raid volume)
2: IDE CD
3: USB CD
4: USB FDC
5: USB Key
6: USB LS120
7: PCI BEV: P3-HL-DT-STDVD-RAM GSA-H60
3) Enter the BIOS (tap F1) and set the following.
Devices --> IDE Drives Setup --> SATA Raid Enabled: Enabled.
Devices --> IDE Drives Setup --> Native Mode Operation: Automatic
4) After the first Lenovo splash screen, there is a black screen which lists all your hard drives, hit ctrl-I to enter Intel Matrix Storage Manager. Here you can delete and create your raid volumes. Mine was setup with my computer so I left it alone. For more information on configuring your raid volume look for the following documentation on lenovo’s support site: Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM) - ThinkStation S10.pdf --> Chapter 7. Installing and configuring RAID
Note: Record the information on the top right hand of the screen (ie: ICH 9 and the version number) This information may be needed this when installing the raid driver.
5) Reboot with the inserted XP installation disk. At the very beginning of the windows install process a message on the bottom bar will say "Press F6 if you need to install a third party SCSI or RAID driver." (Be alert to not miss this message.)
5a) Insert the USB stick and follow the instructions, it should ask you to hit “s” to specify additional device.
Note: When I tried this it did not detect my USB stick and wanted a floppy. Maybe someone can confirm how this works? Below are the exact instructions from the “Intel Matrix Storage Manager (RAID) driver for Windows XP (32-bit) - ThinkStation S10” driver readme.txt file.
 [Quote]
5.3 Pre-Installation Using the F6 Method.
Note: The Steps 1 and 2 can be skipped if you use the F6 Floppy
      disk utility provided by Intel. This utility can also be
      downloaded from the following website. These methods
      are applicable to systems configured for RAID or
      AHCI mode.
    http://downloadfinder.intel.com/scripts-df/Product_Filter.asp?
    ProductID=2101
1.  Extract all driver files from the installation package.
    See section 7.2 for instructions on extracting the
    files.
2.  Create a floppy* containing the following files in the root
    directory:
    iaAhci.inf, iaAhci.cat,
    iaStor.inf, iaStor.cat,
    iaStor.sys, and
    TxtSetup.oem.
* Note: For Windows Vista you can use a floppy, CD/DVD or USB.
3.  For Windows XP or later operating systems:
    - At the beginning of the operating system installation,
     press F6 to install a third party SCSI or RAID driver.
    - When prompted, select 'S' to Specify Additional Device.
    - Continue to step 5.
4.  For Windows Vista:
    - During the operating system installation, after selecting the
     location to install Vista, click Load Driver to
install a third
     party SCSI or RAID driver.
    - Continue to step 5.
5.  When prompted, insert the media (floppy, CD/DVD
 or USB) you
    created in step 2 and press Enter.
6.  At this point you should be presented with a selection
    for one of the following depending on your hardware
    version and configuration:
    - Intel(R) 82801IR/IO SATA RAID Controller (Desktop ICH9R)
    - Intel(R) 82801IR/IO SATA AHCI Controller (Desktop ICH9R)
    - Intel(R) 82801HEM SATA RAID Controller (Mobile ICH8M-E)
    - Intel(R) 82801HEM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH8M-E)
    - Intel(R) 82801HBM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH8M)
    - Intel(R) 82801HR/HH/HO SATA RAID Controller (Desktop ICH8R)
    - Intel(R) 82801HR/HH/HO SATA AHCI Controller (Desktop ICH8R)
    - Intel(R) 631xESB/632xESB SATA RAID Controller (Workstation ESB2)
    - Intel(R) 82801GHM SATA RAID Controller (Mobile ICH7RM)
    - Intel(R) 82801GBM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH7M)
    - Intel(R) 82801GR/GH SATA RAID Controller (Desktop ICH7R/DH)
    - Intel(R) 82801GR/GH SATA AHCI Controller (Desktop ICH7R/DH)
7.  Highlight the selection that is appropriate for the
    hardware in your system and press Enter.
8.  Press Enter again to continue. Leave the floppy disk in
    the system until the next reboot as the software will
    need to be copied from the floppy disk again when setup
    is copying files.
  [/Quote]
6) Install XP as normal and everything should work properly.
Note: If there are any corrections or additions feel free to PM me or reply to the thread and I will update this post.
Message Edited by kalensk on 08-11-2008 02:57 AM

Answer 1

Method 2: Using nLite to Integrate the Drivers into the XP Install Disk
1) nLite can’t use .exe drivers, rather it needs the un-archive drivers containing the .inf (setup information) file. Therefore, right click on the .exe and select “Extract To…” or “Extract Here” (Note: You will need 7-Zip or WinRar to do this).
1a) When un-archiveing the “Intel Matrix Storage Manager (RAID) driver for Windows XP” you will reach a file with an .IMA extension (ie: F32.IMA). This is an image file so you will need mounting software like Alcohol 52% (Free Edition), UltraISO, Daemon Tools, etc. to extract the .inf file.
1b) Simply install and run any of the above mounting software and open the .IMA file and copy the contents to a folder.
2) Download nLite and follow the guide.
2a) Insert the Windows XP CD and right click “explorer” and copy the files over to a new folder called XP_Source. Then Start nLite and point to the directory where you have XP_Source.
2b) During the “Task Selection” screen select “Integrate Drivers” and “Create a Bootable ISO”
2c) On the “Integrate Drivers” screen click the “insert” tab and search the for the .inf file in the folder where the raid driver is located.
2d) Follow the rest of the nLite setup to your liking until you have the opportunity to make an ISO on the “Create a Bootable ISO” screen. Select the “Make ISO” button and save the file on your computer. Next, burn the ISO to a CD using burning software such as InfraRecorder, CDBurnerXP, Nero, etc.
3) Without loading the CD, boot your system and tap F1 to enter the BIOS. Enable RAID and the following settings:
Devices --> IDE Drives Setup --> SATA Raid Enabled: Enabled.
Devices --> IDE Drives Setup --> Native Mode Operation: Automatic
4) While in the BIOS navigate to Startup Sequence and make sure PCI SCSI: Intel VOL01 (this should correspond to your raid volume) is not excluded from the boot order.
For example, my startup sequence is the following:
1: IDE HDD
2: PCI SCSI: Intel VOL01 (this should correspond to your raid volume)
2: IDE CD
3: USB CD
4: USB FDC
5: USB Key
6: USB LS120
7: PCI BEV: P3-HL-DT-STDVD-RAM GSA-H60
5) Select F10 to save and exit.
6) After the first Lenovo splash screen, there is a black screen which lists all your hard drives, hit ctrl-I to enter Intel Matrix Storage Manager. Here you can delete and create your raid volumes. Mine was setup with my computer so I left it alone. For more information on configuring your raid volume look for the following documentation on lenovo’s support site: Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM) - ThinkStation S10.pdf --> Chapter 7. Installing and configuring RAID
7) Reboot the machine with the customized Windows XP CD with the integrated drivers and Install XP as normal.
Note: If there are any corrections or additions feel free to PM me or reply to the thread and I will update this post.
Message Edited by kalensk on 08-11-2008 02:58 AM