Windows 7 Installation Woes

[RhinoShock]

Ok, so I am trying to install Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit on a 400GB Western Digital Caviar RE2 drive (Which was used as a linux boot drive before ( And I attempted to reset the BMR but if there is another step I need to conduct before I try to format a partition for 7 please let me know)), and I am just about to pull every hair follicle out of my skull. When I attempt the install it says that Windows cannot "format a partition on disk 0. ... Error code: 0x80070057". I am using a Gigabyte X58-UD3R with 6GB (3 2GB sticks) of OCZ DDR3 RAM, a Core i7 Bloomfield 3.06GHZ Quad-Core processor, and an EVGA GTX460 SE Graphics card. I don't fully understand the difference between AHCI, IDE and RAID modes for my motherboards SATA controller, but I have tried them all as well as every single SATA port on my motherboard.

This is my first computer build so please, if I said anything wrong/if you know what I am doing wrong due to me not knowing everything yet, please halp.

Thanks a bunch in advance.

 

[badge]

Windows cannot "format a partition on disk 0

Try deleting the partition in question. Or install the HD in anothber computer and format it from Disk Management. If all this fails, boot to a Windows XP CD and format the drive then install Windows 7.

 

[badge]

Try clicking the 'advanced' option if booting to the Windows 7 installation disk during format and installation. Delete the partitio0n from there then format the drive. Or this video may help if the drive is connected to another computer.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Delete-a-hard-disk-partition

 

[RhinoShock]

Ok so i deleted all current partitions because they didn't have anything on them. Now i have 372.6GB of unallocated space. When I try to install to that it creates another partition of 100MB and reserves it as system. Then I get the same error code and When i try to go back to the point to look at the drives listed for installation, no partitions or unallocated space is shown for this particular drive.

Edit: and I can't boot into vista or XP because there is no version of windows on the drive, I am doing a clean install.

 

[badge]

Well, if I knew it was not a hardware issue, I would try formatting the hard drive by booting to a Windows XP disk or hooking the hard drive up as a slave to another computer and formatting it from Disk Management. It sounds like you are doing the installation procedure corectly. I suppose the problem could be hardware related. The only thing I can think of is try installing Windows with a single DIMM of RAM in slot 1, not with the 6GB. Perhaps try the default settings in BIOS.

 

[badge]

Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit

Which version retail, OEM or upgrade.

 

[pat]

If you don't know the diff between IDE/AHCI/RAID, just let the as IDE first. If you try them at AHCI, and installed the driver from the CD, did you put back the Windows installation dvd after you put the SATA drivers cd in?

 

[RhinoShock]

Its OEM, and I got the drivers straight from gigabytes website. I will try to boot into the setup disk and install them from there though.

 

[badge]

Be sure to choose IDE in BIOS.

 

[RhinoShock]

Ok IDE is set in BIOS and I cant install the drivers from the driver disc that came with the motherboard, windows isnt picking it up.

 

[badge]

Windows 7 default drivers will take care of that, default SATA driver, etc.. Install the MB drivers from the updates you have or the CD that came with the MB after Installing Windows 7. Do you have a different hard drive you try and see if the installation starts? There have been issues noted in the past regarding the Windows installation DVD failing to load up on a NEW hard drive. That issue workaround was to do what I suggested earlier. Format the hard drive with a Windows XP CD, then try installing Windows 7 on the freshly formatted hard drive. Or use Disk Management on another system to format the hard drive brfore trying to install Windows 7. Have you tried a new/different SATA cable?

 

[RhinoShock]

Yes, I've tried 2 other sata cables, and no I dont have another hard drive I can try, until next week when I get my new 1TB back, because I had to RMA it because I deemed it was DOA.

 

[badge]

Well, I think you are doing everything right. There is a issue of the Windows 7 DVD not installing on a NEW hard drive. My only suggestion would ne to format the hard drive with an XP disk or through Disk Management on another computer and then try installing Windows 7 after a format like that. I have had the same problem and used an XP CD to format the new hard drive. Worked for me.

 

[badge]

Is the hard drive showing up in BIOS normally on the SATA controller?

 

[RhinoShock]

Yeah, i'll try to format it on XP and tell you how it goes.

 

[badge]

Yeah, I would give it try. It works! 8)

 

[RhinoShock]

Yeah I'm trying to boot into the windows XP installer and it just hangs before anything happens.

 

[badge]

Yark. Replied to the wrong thread! First mistake I have ever made. So, in BIOS you have the first boot device set as DVD/CD. You nhave to do this to boot to the Windows CD. Also, I would try one DIMM RAM only in slot one. The SATA hard drive is showing up in BIOS right.

 

[RhinoShock]

Haha its okay, and yeah its showing up, i tried to install windows 7 with one RAM stick in, but it didnt work, did you mean to boot into the XP disc with it? Right now i am trying to format it on another setup in disk manager

 

[badge]

Yeah. I meant to boot to the XP disk and go ahead and format the hard drive with the XP disk that way. That is what worked for me.