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aruncse30

Guys,

usual apologize for posting this issue in this section.

I got 250GB IDE hard disk last week and i connected as secondary hard disk as i have OS installed in 40GB IDE. I have around 200GB data in my new hard disk with 3 partions

However my old IDE is almost damaged and its giving many problem so i jus wanted to install OS in my 250GB IDE..

When i install OS its showing 250GB as bulk and its saying "XP cannot recognize the type please unpartion and partion it again"

So i checked with Mycomputer-->manage-->disk management.
Its showing my 250GB hard disk as dynamic type wheras my 40GB as basic.

he partion of 250GB are showing as "simple volume" whereas 40GB as 1 primary partion and 2 logical drives.

So i hope if i have primary partion or logical they i could install OS in 250GB disk. now i want to chnge that into the above specified type without losing the data as i cant take backup of 200GB.

do u have any idea about it??

i really pissed of with my new writer and hard disk man.. help me out..

whitestar_999

it is not possible to change a dynamic disc into a bootable type without formatting so my suggestion is buy a new 40/80/160 GB new hard disc.these are very cheap now-a-days & you should be able to get one around Rs.1800 i think.anyway it is always better to have your OS on a different disc & all your important data on another disc/discs.

as for dvd writer just connect your dvd writer to some other computer to check its working with same discs.also check those discs with some other dvd writer.this way you can know for sure if the problem is with dvd writer or system.

__________________
"They say that if you play a microsoft disc backwards you hear satanic messages, thats nothing: if you play it forwards it installs windows"

shriniketsarkar

Well dynamic discs are not generally used.
Well u can get rid of ur problem by this solution ...check this link out
How to non-destructively convert dynamic disks to basic disks « My PKB and
HOWTO: Convert a dynamic disk back to a basic disk without data loss
This will allow u to get the disc back to the basic structure from dynamic disc drive without data loss.
U cannot install a OS on dynamic drives cos ...ther is no MBR.Hence the OS does not get a launch point hence u cant install.All the partitions information in case of a dynamic disc drive is stored in a 1MB file in the last cluster of the dynamic disc drive.
Try that link hope so it works ....or else u can always take backup but 200gb it a bit more to backup.

whitestar_999

@shriniketsarkar,good information but i think following above links will prove difficult for an average user as both method involves lot of command line usage along with editing some sector information in 2nd link & if any mistake is made by the user there is a risk of data loss.this is why microsoft official policy is format the dynamic disc to convert it to a basic disc & the above methods are more of a hack.

shriniketsarkar

Well i can understand what u intend to say but u see there is no other option.....well what microsoft said is correct but u wil have to backup the data in that case ......
And as our friend has huge amount of data to handle, it will be more costly for him to get another disk ,backup all data and then move to format.
Hence if he can study all that is required to get the transformation done its well and good.
hence i posted those links ...i havent tried them yet cos i dont have any spare HDD's.

whitestar_999

i know it is hard to backup 200GB's & that is why i suggested buying a new 40/80/160GB hard disc as these are very cheap now-a-days & it is always better to have your OS on 1 disc & important stuff on other.also there is no need for aruncse30 to move/backup his data from 250GB hard disc.he just have to format & install OS on the new 40/80/160GB hard disc which is already empty after connecting it.

shriniketsarkar

Hmm that is really a nice solution.

whitestar_999

i have a lot of experience regarding using multiple hard discs as i am currently using 4 hard discs(40,80,250 & 500GB).first two are PATA & rest two bigger hard discs are SATA.my OS is on 40GB.80GB is dynamic & 250,500GB are basic discs.

shriniketsarkar

Hey thats nice ...i would like to have some information then ......can u tell me how much did that 500GB HDD cost u ?And where did u purchase it from ....?And of which company ?
I intend to take one ...but couldnot get the exact pricing on the net.
I intended to go for seagate.
can u give me the details?

whitestar_999

i bought my 500GB on 20th july 2007 & that time it costs me Rs.6500.the brand is seagate Barracuda 7200.10 model---ST3500630AS.its actual capacity is 468GB after format.i am planning on buying 1 more 500GB hard disc & right now price is around Rs.4400 in delhi,nehru place.i bought my previous 500GB from there too.seagate & western digital both are good & costs same.i heard that WD provides door replacement warranty so this time i am planning on buying WD but not sure.do remember that i am talking about the SATA versions of hard discs.PATA are also available i think but they are costlier & also not recommended because PATA standard is now obsolete & newer motherboards only have SATA ports with 1 PATA port maybe.