oldwierdal Posted September 29, 2008 Report Share Posted September 29, 2008 My desktop computer slowly developed problems with the PATA/EIDE ports on the motherboard. Long in developing, and intermittant in nature, by the time I realized just what the problem was, my computer was finally rendered useless in its present state. For very short periods, I was able to boot to my rescue disk, and recover some valuable files from it, but that's about it. So..... I'm exploring options. Here are some givens; I am experiencing extremely limited cash flow at this point. I have successfully installed Mandriva 2008 Spring, dual boot, on my company laptop, from which I am posting this, using the Mandriva partition. WinXP Professional on the other partition for work. I really want to move away from using the company laptop for my personal use expeditiously. It is not panic-time, yet. But, I really want to get going on this piece of the problem. I believe that the rest of the desktop computer, i.e. cpu, etc. is still functional, as far as I can tell at this point. I have explored the possibility of getting a PATA/EIDE > USB external drive caddy which I could use with the company laptop. This is a viable option, yet it still involves using the company laptop for personal use. As I've said, I really want to avoid this. I have also explored the possibility of getting a pci/EIDE card to plug my hard drives and CD/DVD drive into on my desktop. The question I have with this option is, would the pci/EIDE drives boot if the motherboard PATA/EIDE connections are totally inoperative? I have also explored the possibility of getting a motherboard, motherboard/cpu combo, and a bare-bones box. The cost of a pci/EIDE card would be the least expensive option, IF it would work. The costs of either a motherboard, motherboard/cpu combo, or a bare-bones box are very close, and are do-able, if the pci/EIDE card option is not possible. The cost of the PATA/EIDE > USB external drive caddy is also close to that of a pci/EIDE card. Does anyone have any experience or knowlege on this? I'd appreciate any feedback. Thanks, owa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K Bergen Posted September 29, 2008 Report Share Posted September 29, 2008 The question I have with this option is, would the pci/EIDE drives boot if the motherboard PATA/EIDE connections are totally inoperative?That is doable, I ran Linux from one for many years but the EIDE problem may be just a symptom of more serious motherboard problems.If I was in your boots I'd go for the new motherboard or the bare bones box. Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniewicz Posted September 29, 2008 Report Share Posted September 29, 2008 I would try clearing the CMOS on your motherboard to see if that rectifies the EIDE problem. Replace the IDE ribbon cables as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theYinYeti Posted September 29, 2008 Report Share Posted September 29, 2008 Like K Bergen, I wouldn't trust a motherboard where integrated IDE is broken (if it is… see daniewicz post). Yves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfoss Posted September 29, 2008 Report Share Posted September 29, 2008 Hi, I would recommend checking the IDE cable just like daniewicz recommended. It may be hard for a laptop. I seen many desktops that seem to be failing but just needed a new IDE cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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