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Motherboard confusion

RohanRohan Registered User regular
edited June 2007 in Games and Technology
So, as some might know, I'm upgrading my computer. Everything is ordered now but for the hard drives, and I'll be ordering them tomorrow. Before I do, though, I want to make absolutely sure that I'm not making a mistake. Currently, my machine runs Windows on a 40GB drive, and I use a 120GB for storage. This is all IDE. The new motherboard, an MSI G965M, has a single IDE slot, and warns both on the board and in the manual that you cannot use this IDE port to boot to an OS. I've never seen a motherboard with a single IDE port before, so that was surprising, but even more so was the warning about not booting to OS. The new board has four SATA ports, and I was intending to upgrade the 120GB to a 500GB SATA anyway, but now it seems that I can only boot from SATA. The smallest SATA drive I can get from my online store of choice (Komplett) is a 250GB, which is so much more than XP and Vista need (I'm currently dual booting, and plan to continue on this way).

However, it is fairly cheap, and I can afford to get both the 250GB and the 500GB, both Seagate Barracuda SATA drives. I can boot from SATA, correct? I've never used anything other than IDE before so I've no experience with these drives. Should I try to run my OS' off a hard drive on the IDE port, or go with the combination above?

...and I thought of how all those people died, and what a good death that is. That nobody can blame you for it, because everyone else died along with you, and it is the fault of none, save those who did the killing.

Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
Rohan on

Posts

  • QuasiStaticQuasiStatic __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2007
    Yes of course.

    QuasiStatic on
  • taliosfalcontaliosfalcon Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    Apparently some people are having problems getting that board to boot from an IDE cd-rom to even install an OS to a SATA drive, so did you order a sata or usb optical drive to go with it?

    taliosfalcon on
    steam xbox - adeptpenguin
  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    edited June 2007
    That board has a JMicron IDE controller, which is absolute shit. My motherboard, an Asus P5W DH Deluxe, actually has two separate IDE controllers: an Intel one based on the chipset (which is fine), and the JMicron. Not only does the JMicron explicitly does not support ATAPI devices (for my IDE-based DVD drive), it's generally a shitass POS that I hade major issues with. I ended up just disabling it altogether and buying a cheap PCI IDE controller and be done with it. I'm miffed that they didn't just put two competent IDE controllers like any sane motherboard I've ever used.

    Motherboards will allow you to boot from SATA devices, although on older boards it might be a dicier issue. A lot of modern boards allow you to configure them to "appear" as IDE drives for the sake of the OS installation, meaning you generally don't have to load up drivers to install Windows on them.

    Zxerol on
  • RohanRohan Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    taliosfalcon wrote:
    Apparently some people are having problems getting that board to boot from an IDE cd-rom to even install an OS to a SATA drive, so did you order a sata or usb optical drive to go with it?

    No, though I can use a friend's external USB DVD-RW, if I really need to.
    Zxerol wrote: »
    That board has a JMicron IDE controller, which is absolute shit. My motherboard, an Asus P5W DH Deluxe, actually has two separate IDE controllers: an Intel one based on the chipset (which is fine), and the JMicron. Not only does the JMicron explicitly does not support ATAPI devices (for my IDE-based DVD drive), it's generally a shitass POS that I hade major issues with. I ended up just disabling it altogether and buying a cheap PCI IDE controller and be done with it. I'm miffed that they didn't just put two competent IDE controllers like any sane motherboard I've ever used.

    Motherboards will allow you to boot from SATA devices, although on older boards it might be a dicier issue. A lot of modern boards allow you to configure them to "appear" as IDE drives for the sake of the OS installation, meaning you generally don't have to load up drivers to install Windows on them.

    Well, bollocks. I'll have no extra money whatsoever to get an IDE controller tomorrow (I really am that broke right now)... will I be having problems?

    Edit -

    I found this on MSI's site -

    "Can I connect a DVD/CD device to IDE1 slot for OS installation?
    Yes, this IDE connector could support optical drive, but this IDE connector don't support IDE HDD OS installation."

    "Why my IDE CD/DVD ROM is recognized as an USB device?
    This mainboard is using JMicron Jmainboard20335 IDE controller which is an USB to PATA bridge chip so It will identify all IDE devices as USB."

    Rohan on
    ...and I thought of how all those people died, and what a good death that is. That nobody can blame you for it, because everyone else died along with you, and it is the fault of none, save those who did the killing.

    Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    edited June 2007
    I'm going out on a limb and predict that yes, you will have problems, one way or another. I mean, for all I know, it may work out just fine for you. But realistically, I have had nothing but problems with the controller on my (expensive, high-end) motherboard, and I can only imagine it'll be the same or worse for a cheaper one.

    That controller is absolute balls. Not the good kind with dogs or whatever.

    Zxerol on
  • RohanRohan Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    I'm going to have to grin and bear it... the motherboard arrived earlier in the week and is already screwed into the very sexy NZXT Nemesis Elite case. I'll get my friend's external writer just in case, but the first option I'll choose will be to believe MSI and try to install XP from an IDE DVD drive. I'll let you guys know...

    Rohan on
    ...and I thought of how all those people died, and what a good death that is. That nobody can blame you for it, because everyone else died along with you, and it is the fault of none, save those who did the killing.

    Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
  • Shujin KatanaShujin Katana ClubPA regular
    edited June 2007
    the fatherboards have the peepees, the motherboards have the vajayjays and the ta-tas, what's there to confuse?

    Shujin Katana on
    DP: 0902 9415 9324
  • RohanRohan Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    ...:|

    Edit -

    I guess I can get the 250GB and an IDE controller tomorrow, and the 500GB next week. Much easier.

    Rohan on
    ...and I thought of how all those people died, and what a good death that is. That nobody can blame you for it, because everyone else died along with you, and it is the fault of none, save those who did the killing.

    Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
  • MuddBuddMuddBudd Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    Rohan wrote: »
    This mainboard is using JMicron Jmainboard20335 IDE controller which is an USB to PATA bridge chip so It will identify all IDE devices as USB."

    What the fuck?

    I am having trouble comprehending why they would even make such a thing, let alone install it on a motherboard.

    Are IDE controllers suddenly super expensive or something? Was there an explosion in the IDE mines on Titan? Brain... hurt...

    MuddBudd on
    There's no plan, there's no race to be run
    The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun.
  • RohanRohan Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    I know, that was pretty much my reaction, too. It's like they want to make upgrading to their motherboards a more painful experience than upgrading to a different motherboard already is.

    Rohan on
    ...and I thought of how all those people died, and what a good death that is. That nobody can blame you for it, because everyone else died along with you, and it is the fault of none, save those who did the killing.

    Nothing's forgotten, nothing is ever forgotten
  • SushisourceSushisource Registered User regular
    edited June 2007
    MuddBudd wrote: »
    Rohan wrote: »
    This mainboard is using JMicron Jmainboard20335 IDE controller which is an USB to PATA bridge chip so It will identify all IDE devices as USB."

    What the fuck?

    I am having trouble comprehending why they would even make such a thing, let alone install it on a motherboard.

    Are IDE controllers suddenly super expensive or something? Was there an explosion in the IDE mines on Titan? Brain... hurt...

    I have this on my motherboard. I have no idea why it exists either. All it did was cause me trouble.

    But yeah, you can boot from SATA just fine. If you don't want to do that, snag yourself a PCI adapter that has an IDE port on it, I'm too lazy to find one, but they exist.

    Sushisource on
    Some drugee on Kavinsky's 1986
    kavinskysig.gif
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