XP Setup not recognising RAID

Question

Hi
  Having just decided to rebuild my system, I have now found that my RAID is not being recognised in Windows XP setup. This has all been working for me previously without a problem. I am using the same drivers I have always used, either on a floppy drive, or with an nlite build. The RAID itself is showing as HEALTHY, BOOTABLE=N/A and everything seems to be working correctly. When Windows XP setup loads it identifies two seperate 75Gb drives, as opposed to the 150GB Stripe that I would expect. I have reset the BIOS, and recreated the RAID several times.
 I know it was tricky getting this all to work the first time I did it, but I can't work out if there is something I have forgotten to do. Should the RAID be bootable, or is this not important? I'm pretty sure the XP setup process is ok, but I can't figure out what else it could be. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.
Steve

Answer 1

Hi Bas
  Sorry about that, it's partly cos I'm mostly doing this from work, and I can't remember. and partly because I know if I let myself I would write you pages and pages and bore you to tears. Also I know that this worked previously and the only thing I have really changed since the last time I did this is my Graphics Card. I now have a 4850HD ATI (gone from 1950x and with 1Gb instead of 512Mb) My Hard Drives are 2x WD800JDs (http://wdc.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wdc.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1228) . The PSU is a 400 Watt Winpower ATX-400. I also run a couple of small fans inside. There was a DVD Burner and a CD BURNER, but I just run the DVD at the moment.
TBH go_for I am not sure about the BIOS versions, I would have flashed it when I got the machine, but the new one would be the latest. But the problem started before I changed it over...
Here I will try and give you the full story....
It started when Firefox got really slow, at first I thought internet speed, but download was fine. Tried removing all the add-ins, reinstalling clean. I even used IE for a while. Eventually I got a Windows lack-of-anti-virus warning even though AVG was working fine. I had also been having issues with CMOS settings, I had thought this was the battery and replaced it but it came back later.
I figured it was a virus and decided to rebuild. I used an nLite build that I had created a while ago.  The rebuild went skew. I don't remember why, I ended up stripping down and removing bits. Including taking out the graphics card to remove dust, somehow I managed to damage it, the second 1950x I have fried, either cards are much more sensitive these days, or these are particularly so. Managed to get a powercolor 4850HD 1Gb for £80 from Maplin, which I was quite pleased about at short notice. I was in a hurry to get back to Dragon Age. Rebuilt the machine, no problems, except something happened right at the end, I wasn't here to see what, Windows booted no problem, but it hadn't set up my start menu programs. I lived with it for about a week or so. Then I turned it on, and there were problems with Windows and I think BIOS messages. I tried to rebuild again, discovered that the Windows setup no longer recognised the RAID. I also got errors about BIOS when I tried to boot ubuntu and WinPE (but these turned out to be normal) so I wondered if my BIOS was faulty or corrupted. I ordered a new one from eBay, thought this would fix everything. But when I put it in the same issues came back.
I know that when I first got the RAID disks it took ages to work out what was wrong. But I did figure it out in the end, after I searched around for a bit, but that was a long time ago, and I don't remember what I did. I know that the BOOTABLE option was an issue but I can't remember if I resolved it, or if it turned out to be irrelevant. I also remember loads of hassle with the RAID drivers on XP, as I don't normally have a floppy drive in my machine, I have to cannibalise from elsewhere when I rebuild. When I grabbed it this time, it still had the same disk inside from the last rebuild, so I know that is ok. That was why I was so keen to get an nLite version going, I'd like to be able to rebuild silently at whim, without spending half the day under the desk with a torch. I keep all my data on a NAS and I prefer to just wipe Windows rather than diagnose issues. If it works I can be fully configured in less than half a day. Obviously if it doesn't work... well here I am.
I thought there was just something obvious in the configuration that I am doing wrong. I expected to come here, then feel really embarrassed when you point out something I really should have noticed, that's what usually happens, especially after I have written a 10,000 word essay only to get a two-word response. I was confident you guys were right about wiping the hard drive. When it showed up as a new ID number I thought everything was going to be ok.
I mounted an old hard drive to build XP on to then wipe the disks, but that is also on it's last legs, and I've had to give up on that (I seem to break everything at the moment). Otherwise I would wipe them again. I'm trying to work out how I can get something else to mount for the moment  I would still like to try accessing the drives from XP as a RAID, maybe if I can format them as a single drive I can then install to that.  I have also read that Windows 7 has solved this issue for other people, but I as I keep saying, I know this should work, it has done in the past.
I'm thinking I should try the old BIOS again, if I didn't mess it up getting it out, I'll try that tomorrow, but as it didn't work before I am not hopeful. I have also stripped the box back to basics, removed 1 of the memory sticks, disconnected spare fans, to try and lower the power consumption. I also swapped the SATA cables over, just in case. I have just cleared the CMOS again, I'm gonna give it one more try with just the basics. I have not yet tried new XP setup drivers, as I have no way to get them onto a floppy easily, however this is something else I am working on.
One other detail that might be worth mentioning, I run the machine on a KVM with my little ITX Media Box, which I'm typing on now. This used to be PS/2, but I have recently put in USB, a pain in the ass as it tends to auto-switch, especially in the middle of the Windows Setup. I have to move the keyboard directly onto my main box to access BIOS and the XP setup. Not really relevant, but I want you to feel my pain  . It's very frustrating typing desperately only to realise you are on the wrong box.
I have Googled this over and over, gone through all the manuals I can find, and tried every option I can think of. I have a few more ideas to try, but nothing I am really confident will have any effect. Thank the stars I have this little machine, or I would be having serious withdrawal by now, that is why I am loathe to start poking around in here to try things (that and the build is ubuntu). I think it is nearing the point where I might have to.
See I told you I might go on  . I much appreciate your help guys, I hope the above helps explain where I am.  Please don't give up on me yet.
Steve