Dead SCSI System

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt (More info?)

Okay. Every couple of months I try again, and I'm still no closer to
getting this PC running again.

I tried disconnecting the hard drives, and as a result, only get as
far as the BIOS screen right after the memory count up.

With the hard drives re-connected I've lately and consistently been
getting the "Invalid System Disk" message(even though there is no
floppy disk in the drive), at which point I can only turn the PC off.

Anyway to get around this?

The problem now seems to me to be the mobo and/or the BIOS.

Thanks.

Darren Harris
Staten Island, New York.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt (More info?)

"Darren Harris" <Searcher7@mail.con2.com> wrote...
> Okay. Every couple of months I try again, and I'm still no closer to
> getting this PC running again.

When did it last work? For you, or did you buy it from a garage sale?


> I tried disconnecting the hard drives, and as a result, only get as
> far as the BIOS screen right after the memory count up.

Hardware description? Does it have an IDE drive as well? Will it boot from
CD? Can you get to the SCSI BIOS?


> With the hard drives re-connected I've lately and consistently been
> getting the "Invalid System Disk" message(even though there is no
> floppy disk in the drive), at which point I can only turn the PC off.

Is the HD formatted?


> Anyway to get around this?

New HD
New SCSI card
Load an OS on the current HD


> The problem now seems to me to be the mobo and/or the BIOS.

Will it boot from a DOS system floppy?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt (More info?)

John R Weiss wrote:
> "Darren Harris" <Searcher7@mail.con2.com> wrote...
>
>>Okay. Every couple of months I try again, and I'm still no closer to
>>getting this PC running again.
>
>
> When did it last work? For you, or did you buy it from a garage sale?
>
>
>
>>I tried disconnecting the hard drives, and as a result, only get as
>>far as the BIOS screen right after the memory count up.
>
>
> Hardware description? Does it have an IDE drive as well? Will it boot from
> CD? Can you get to the SCSI BIOS?
>
>
>
>>With the hard drives re-connected I've lately and consistently been
>>getting the "Invalid System Disk" message(even though there is no
>>floppy disk in the drive), at which point I can only turn the PC off.
>
>
> Is the HD formatted?
>
>
>
>>Anyway to get around this?
>
>
> New HD
> New SCSI card
> Load an OS on the current HD
>
>
>
>>The problem now seems to me to be the mobo and/or the BIOS.
>
>
> Will it boot from a DOS system floppy?
>
>
PLUS, verify that the drives aren't assigned the same SCSI ID number on
any one SCSI channel.

 

[overlord]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt (More info?)

Amazingly little information.
I hope you know what hardware you have in there; we certainly don't.
What SCSI card are you using - or is it part of the motherboard?
Do the drives spin up? Can you hear/see/feel them?
Does the SCSI card have onboard BIOS?
Have you tried to enter the SCSI card BIOS to configure the card?
Have you entered the SCSI card BIOS to low level format the drives?
What drives? Single ended? LVD? HVD?
Are the drives 50pin? 68pin? 80pin?
Do you have a terminator on the end of the SCSI bus segment?
Are the drives jumpered for their own individual SCSI ID numbers?
Does it boot from a bootable floppy?
Do you have a bootable floppy?
Can you boot an OS from the CDROM?
Do you have a CDROM?


>Okay. Every couple of months I try again, and I'm still no closer to
>getting this PC running again.
>
>I tried disconnecting the hard drives, and as a result, only get as
>far as the BIOS screen right after the memory count up.
>
Is that with or without a bootable floppy/CD in the system?
If it's without..... what had you expected the system to do next?

>With the hard drives re-connected I've lately and consistently been
>getting the "Invalid System Disk" message(even though there is no
>floppy disk in the drive), at which point I can only turn the PC off.
>
Has nothing to do with the floppy. The invalid system disk is the hard drive
you reconnected.

>Anyway to get around this?
>
A. Wait another couple months, and when the urge comes over you -
don't turn it on.

OR

B. Tell us something more than I have a computer with a scsi drive and
it doesn't work.

>The problem now seems to me to be the mobo and/or the BIOS.
>
>Thanks.
>
>Darren Harris
>Staten Island, New York.
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