ok, i have to apologize. you were right! i recreated the disc last night, included sp2, pointed to IDE\WinXP\legacy using 'single driver' and grabbed both NVIDIA nForce Storage Controller and NVIDIA RAID Class Driver and it worked. Not sure what I did wrong last time, but now it's working. The catch is obviously not using the \sataraid directory at all, but just using the \legacy directory. if all you need is the legacy directory, what's the \sataraid directory for, anyway?

You will not get WHQL certified nForce SataRaid drivers by using the LEGACY subfolder drivers, but this is not really a big disadvantage unless you try to upgrade to Vista.

Fernando, in nLite, I remove all the drivers supplied by Windows XP with NO exception (cause I have my own new drivers for every hardware). My question is, do you think Windows XP installation is gonna succeed if I integrate my downloaded nForce4 RAID drivers even though I removed all Microsoft supplied drivers?

To put the question in a plain manner, Does RAID need any driver supplied by Microsoft?

nForce SataRaid systems don't need any Microsoft driver. Nevertheless I would not recommend to delete the MS Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller drivers, if you are using any IDE devices (CD-ROM or DVD). Reason: Many users have reported about problems with NVIDIA's P-ATA drivers (nForce4 Parallel ATA Controller = IDE s/w) and obviously got better results with the fully compatible MS Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE drivers.

Hey guys,
Sorry I haven't touched base here in a few days. This site is supposed to notify me when messages are posted but it only does so occasionally.

douirc, sounds like you're on your way to success! Sorry I wasn't here for you man. You shouldn't have any problems with USB as long as you have NOT disabled your parallel port (and possibly some of the others but I think it's mainly the P-port).

Merry Christmas to All!

Ok I am having major problems with nLite right now. I integrated the drivers and installed flawlessly at college. Unfortunately I need to do a reinstall here at home and don't have the disc. I had the .ISO I made. So I burned it to a CD and attempted to install. I get the error that NVATA.SYS is missing. So I figured oh well, this probably just needs the driers re-integrated.

When trying to reintegrate drivers I now always get Access Denied to the "<REGISTRY PARAMETER>" of the driver that I am trying to integrate. This install is fast losing steam and functionality. Can someone please help me??

-Kevin

It was not a good idea to integrate drivers into an already nLited ISO file. Furthermore different nForce chipset RAID systems need different driver combinations. As you can see within the first post of this thread, it is not possible to create an "omnipotent" nLited CD usable for all nForce SataRaid systems.
You should create a new nLited CD using the original Windows XP source and integrate the special nForce SataRaid drivers I have recommended within the first post of this thread for your hardware configuration.

Crap, my original XP CD was damaged. I still have my CD-Key that I use, but I use a friends CD. I don't know if I can get a CD that isn't damaged....

Ill see if my Dad or one of my friends has a CD I can borrow. If not, is there any problem you know of by integrating the drviers into 2000 and then upgrading to XP?

My problem is that my disc got scratched on the file autofmt.exe which apparently performs the formatting of the HDD. So I have no way of formatting it other than installing 2000 first and then going to XP.

As for the drivers, I am aware that different chipsets require different drivers. I have an Nforce 4 Ultra Chipset. This worked last time I did it, but all of the sudden I am running into problems

-Kevin

I assume, that your nForce4 RAID array is correctly created and set as bootable.
In this case you will be able to find easier ways to get your RAID partitionated and formatted.
If neither a friend nor your father will let you create a customized nLited XP CD for you with their computer, you still have the possibility to get XP installed by F6/floppy method (provided that your pc has a floppy drive and you still have the RAID driver disk from the manufacturer of your mainboard).

A clean install of an OS is always better than an upgrade.

hello everybody!

i'm expecting my new Abit AN8 32 SLI motherboard (Si3132+nvraid) in a few days and i've been reading posts related to the unattend installation of the nforce4 SATA drivers - i dont own a floppy and i need to install the stuff on my SATA drive. apparently there are some serious problems with the SATA controllers (found out too late, wouldnt have ordered it but oh well ). anyway i already have my viasraid set up and working on my winxp sp2 customized CD (for my old board that i'm still using) and i was wondering if anybody has the text files and folder structure for the nvraid. i prefer not to use any program to do the setup, i'm happier when i know exactly what and where to add rather than hope some utility will do the job correctly

my current/future drive config: seagate 160GB sataII (3gbps) -- using a jumper now to slow down to 1.5gbps due to motherboard limitations, seagate 120Gb IDE, NEC 8xDVD, liteon 32x cd-writer, both IDE.

here's what i set up (will test in a few days when i get the board). i'm using the latest 6.86 nforce4 drivers from their site.


----------------------

WINNT.SIF:

[Unattended]
OemPreinstall=Yes
OemPnPDriversPath="Drivers\SATA\VIASRAID;Drivers\SATA\SI3132;Drivers\SATA\sataraid;Drivers\SATA\sata_ide"
DriverSigningPolicy=Ignore
OemSkipEula=Yes
NoWaitAfterTextMode=1
NoWaitAfterGUIMode=1

[Data]
UnattendedInstall=Yes
MSDosInitiated=No
AutoPartition=0

[GuiUnattended]
OEMSkipWelcome = 1
OEMSkipRegional=1

[UserData]
ProductKey="***"
FullName="***"
OrgName=""

[Componets]
AutoUpdates=off
msmsgs=off
msnexplr=off
zonegames=off

[Networking]
InstallDefaultComponents=Yes

[Identification]
JoinWorkgroup=MSHOME

[Shell]
DefaultStartPanelOff = Yes
DefaultThemesOff = Yes

[URL]
Home_Page=http://www.google.com

----------------------

TXTSETUP.SIF:


[SourceDisksFiles]
viasraid.sys = 1,,,,,,3_,4,1
SI3132.sys = 1,,,,,,3_,4,1
nvatabus.sys = 1,,,,,,4,4,1,,,1,4
nvraid.sys = 1,,,,,,4,4,1,,,1,4


[HardwareIdsDatabase]
PCI\VEN_1106&DEV_3149 = "viasraid"

PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_31321095 = "SI3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_710A1462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_B0021458 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0CA9105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_3009148C = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_88881019 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_819F1043 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_09781019 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_716A1462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_715A1462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0CAB105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0CAD105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0C8F105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0C8D105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0C8B105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0C89105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0C87105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_81F0104D = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_722A1462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_02391154 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_63001462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_63101462 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_2C0B17F2 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_00226409 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_0D10105B = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_820E1043 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_2A4A103C = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_31321A57 = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_31321A5F = "Si3132"
PCI\VEN_1095&DEV_3132&SUBSYS_1000131F = "Si3132"

PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_008E = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_00D5 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_00EE = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_00E3 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0036 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_003E = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0054 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0055 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0266 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0267 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_036F = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_037E = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_037F = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_03F6 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_03F7 = "nvatabus"
PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_03E7 = "nvatabus"

GenNvRaidDisk = "nvraid"
*_NVRAIDBUS = "nvraid"
*NVRAIDBUS = "nvraid"


[SCSI.Load]
viasraid = viasraid.sys,4
SI3132 = SI3132.sys,4
nvatabus = nvatabus.sys,4
nvraid = nvraid.sys,4



[SCSI]
viasraid = "VIA Serial ATA RAID Controller(Windows XP)"
SI3132 = "Silicon Image SiI 3132 SATALink Controller for Windows XP/Server 2003"
nvatabus = "NVIDIA nForce Storage Controller (required)"
nvraid = "NVIDIA RAID CLASS DRIVER (required)"


----------------------

directories:
i copied the makecab compressed sy_ and uncompressed sys files into the 386 dir and the full drivers for sataraid, sata_ide and SI3132 into the drivers dir (along with the viasraid).
i know that this line SI3132.sys = 1,,,,,,3_,4,1 needs compressed drivers and this line nvatabus.sys = 1,,,,,,4,4,1,,,1,4 needs the uncomressed sys (from what i've read on these and other forums) so i'm curious if that's gonna work. i only tested the first format with compressed files up to now.

----------------------

as you see i basically used the same setup as my currently working viasraid sata driver. so now i'm wondering if i should change anything like use OemInfFiles for the driver installations or remove some stuff from OemPnPDriversPath or just leave it as it's now.


any suggestions? a copy of your (working) setup files and dir would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Forgive me if this has been covered, but I poured over all 48 pages and couldn't find it.

I'm going to be using the evga 680i SLI board. It comes with a floppy. Should I just copy that floppy to my laptop and work with nlite on those files? I tried downloading the drivers from the evga site and I run the exe file and then running setup to expand everything and it just doesn't run...brings up an nvdia screen and then that's it. So that's why I am wondering if I can just use the floppy.

boxer2007: generally, the floppy should contain the txtsetup.oem and you need to use that for the "text mode" driver and then only if you're installing a SATA drive or RAID array. (in windows it's the short seconds when you see the message "press F6 to install SCSI drivers" or smth like that.) if you have any other directories not containing a txtsetup.oem but rather "inf" files you have to use them in the "unattend" (graphical install) part. (or manually after windows has loaded.)
so the short answer is yes copy them and use them if you have SATA drives or hardware that does not work properly with the default windows drivers.

but then again i'm also awaiting a reply on my setup for this strange nforce chipset which brakes some rules...

As you don't want to integrate the mass storage device drivers by using nLite, you better should ask for help within this forum: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showforum=88
By the way: You don't need to integrate any nForce S-ATA driver unless you have built an nForce RAID array.

OK, I've never built a system before. While I'm overall quite knowledgeable, when it comes to building and all the intricacies of getting the board drivers on, I need my hand held a little.

Could someone either post or pm me (if you feel this request is too beneath being public, although I would think it might help many) explicit, step-by-step instructions on how to get everything going for an evga 680i? I'm not a stupid man:) But I still am having a hard time deciphering all the instructions that have been layed out in here.

Also, I know this is a little off topic, but what's the best way to flash a new BIOS for my mobo before I even do anything? I'm sure you evga people are aware that the 680 board shipped with some nasty BIOS that causes SATA errors and they have a new BIOS and every thread on the evga board is a mess....one posts contradicts the one before it and there's really no straight talk. I won't have a floppy, so I want to flash it from a USB and I'm assuming it's wise to do it before I do the nlite stuff, right?

Thanks in advance and I apologize in advance if this is a noob question, but I'm a noob at this, what can I say?

ups sorry bout that Fernando 1! i guess you can remove my post with all the files that i quoted. i already read some of the stuff in that forum and it's hopefully helping! i'll ask them for more help if i need it.

thanks again

Within this thread you can expect only help regarding the integration of the nForce SataRaid drivers into a bootable CD. If you need special assistance in how to get everything going for an evga 680i, you should look here or google for "evga 680i".
You are right - before you begin with the installation of any OS, you should update your mainboard BIOS. If you need instructions in how to flash a BIOS, you should look into your mainboard manual. Here is a sticky thread about your special question.

I wouldnt advise doing it from usb, as floppies dont load anything other than what is required for the floppy drive to work, usb does.

Best bet if you refuse to do it rom a floppy is to see if you can find a windows-based flash program for your bios (ami, award/phoenix, etc) and just flash from within windows.

Help! any ideas with the following...bear with me... If anyone can help fernando 1 can...

new asus M3N32sli deluxe (590sli), new raid array (nvidia, but silicon image available on mb)
xp home edition upgrade cd installed on old hd

After ugrading my hardware I wanted to fresh install XP on new raid (nvidia) and then ditch old (slow) hd so I went for nlite and all was going well...
I updated bios, added latest nvidia chipset drivers and burnt the CD. Followed above instructions text mode for raid, pnp for ide etc
I couldn't unplug old hd during setup as XP CD is home edition upgrade (what a false economy in retrospect) so had to install on raid as a mulitboot setup.

Now I can't access either installation, despite recovery console fixboot, fixmbr (apparantly i have a non standard mbr (no matter how many times I fix it))and bootcfg /rebuild (incidently bootcfg /list now shows about 6 items, but i'll check microsoft for help on that). The system will not start without the nlite cd (error message= NTLDR missing), and when I do use the nlite CD it goes straight to windows setup...

Any ideas where to go with this?
My mb can do silicon image raid, so maybe i should ditch Nvidia raid - will this be free of probs/any disadvantages using this raid controller? Will I have to buy full win XP? Should I throw the whole thing out the window and do something more interesting?

Many thanks...

I assume, that you have 2 S-ATA hdd's set as nForce RAID and 1 non-RAID hdd.
First questions: Did you set your RAID array

• as bootable within your RAID Creation Utility (F10) and
• as first bootable hard disk device (this has nothing to do with the "normal" boot device order CD-ROM/hdd/floppy) within BIOS after having successfully created the NVIDIA RAID?

This is very important, otherwise your system will not find the correct boot sector (MBR), which should be at drive C: within your RAID device.
It was not a good idea to install the new OS onto your RAID without unplugging the non-RAID hdd. Now you probably have a mixture of MBR's on different drives. I don't understand your explanation for not being able to unplug the non-RAID hdd during the XP installation. When you have an XP Home CD as Upgrade version, you simply have to insert the upgradable OS CD into your CD drive, when you are asked for, and then you can continue your installation.
Check, if you have set your RAID as bootable (by using the RAID utility) and as first bootable hard disk drive (open your mainboard BIOS and search for "Hard Disk Priority" or something like this).
If you managed both, unplug your non-RAID hdd and retry to install XP. Do a clean install of Windows XP by formatting drive C.
One more tip: If you have a running OS, I would recommend to prepare a second nLited XP CD without integrated SATA_IDE driver subfolder. It is possible, that your nForce SataRaid system only needs the integrated SATARAID driver subfolder. Use nLite 1.3 RC for creating this CD, this new version doesn't execute the SATA_IDE driver integration automaticly and lets you decide, if you wish it or not.
Don't use any of these possibilities. You will get XP installed onto your new system. By the way: the nForce RAID is much better than the Sil RAID.

Thanks very much - now much more optimistic...

In answer to your quieries:
Yes, Raid set as bootable and first on boot sequence.
About xp home upgrade - I seem to remember that if I unplugged old hdd with xp installed on it and tried to boot on nlite CD the XP setup says it couldn't find prev install of XP and therefore won't proceed to install.

I'll try again and keep you posted

many thanks

You must have an original Windows 95/98/ME CD. Windows XP Setup will ask you to insert this CD. After having done it, you have to reinsert the nLited XP CD and Setup will continue.

Ah - that will be a problem, its many years since I last saw the old (think it was ME) CD...
cant find it!
any suggestions? difficult problem

If you own a Windows 98 or Windows Millennium CD, but can't find it now, why don't you just borrow such a CD from a friend? You will need it only during the installation of Windows XP.

I am confused about driver version

For nforce3 there are drivers version 5.11
for nforce4 6.86

what confuses me is version of :

• Audio driver version 4.42 (WHQL)
• Audio utility version 4.44
• Win2K ethernet driver version 4.16 (WHQL)
• WinXP ethernet driver version 4.16 (WHQL)
• Ethernet NRM driver version 4.82 (WHQL)
• Network management tools version 4.88
• GART driver version 4.36 (WHQL)
• Memory controller driver version 3.38 (WHQL)
• SMBus driver version 4.04 (WHQL)
• Installer version 4.46
• IDE driver version 4.46 (WHQL)

and in 6.86 its

• Audio Driver (v4.65) "WHQL"
• Audio Utility (v4.51)
• Ethernet Driver (v50.25) "WHQL"
• Network Management Tools (v50.19)
• SMBus Driver (v4.57) "WHQL"
• Installer (v4.89)
• WinXP IDE SataRAID Driver (v6.66) "WHQL"
• WinXP IDE SataIDE Driver (v6.66) "WHQL"
• WinXP RAIDTOOL Application (v6.63)

As u can see driver are updated, but what is confusing me, weather e.g.SMBus driver version 4.04 (WHQL) from 5.11 drivers has anything to do with SMBus Driver (v4.57) "WHQL" driver drom 6.86 drivers.

Help

I don't understand, what you mean.
The latest nForce3 chipset driver package has the version 5.11 (the first number=5 stands for nForce3 chipsets) and is from June 2005 whereas the latest nForce4 AMD chipset driver package has the version 6.86 (the first number=6 stands for nForce4 chipsets) was published by NVIDIA 1 year later.
That is the reason why all components are newer and have a higher version number than those of the nForce3 package.

What is your problem?
If you have an nForce3 SataRaid system and want newer drivers than those you find within the 5.11 package, you may try one of the newest nForce chipset driver Remix packages you find here:
http://www.nforcershq.com/forum/nforce-111...3e19645950a77eb
and here:
http://www.nforcershq.com/forum/meis-nware...3e19645950a77eb

thanks, your reply helped

The confusion started because i thought nforce drivers were unified for all nforce chipsets, similar to Via Hyperion drivers.

Anyway which of those two is better driver pack... i cant see no difference between them.

MEI's nWare Release 06.10 (x86) has gpu drivers
and everything else is same with nForce 11.10 Unified Remix (x32/x64)

So which is better in your opinion, or do u know someone that has tested both?

There is not really a big difference between them and both are successfully tested on several different nForce chipset systems. I have tested them too.
So it is your decision which one you will take.
The only advice I can give is not to take the included Forceware driver. If you have a NVIDIA graphic adapter , take the latest official Forceware v. 93.71 from NVIDIA's homepage.
If you want to integrate the different drivers of one of those AIO chipset driver packages into a bootable CD, you have to do the following:
1. Unzip the package by using 7-zip or by "installing" the package somewhere, where you find them again (it will not really be installed, but only unzipped).
2. Integrate all drivers you need or want separately by using the nLite options.

Ok that's all the info i needed, muchas gracias.

I will not integrate drivers until relaease of sp3, then i will integrate all the drivers i can find into install. There are several big drivers packs here on forums.

I have all the latest drivers except, u can guess, nforce

Now that's fixed too

I've been getting on the 1.3 RC a "Parameter is Incorrect" message while nlite integrates my nvidia raid drivers (the last stage of nlite)--

specifically i'm using:

windows xp w/ sp2 oem dell cd
ryan's 2.1.5a
nvidia's nForce sata_ide and sataraid for 430/410/405/400--Version: 11.09 for MCP61 WHQL drivers that were just released five days ago (1/5/07)
http://www.nvidia.com/object/nforce_nf4_wi...8.26_11.09.html

anyone else gets this problem?

thanks,
dk

Please try to integrate just the SATARAID subfolder of the new nForce driver package and report here if you succeed this way. Your experience with this brandnew nForce chipset package might be useful for other users with a similar hardware configuration.
As I have written within my first post, the driver combination method (SATARAID+SATA_IDE) is not useful for all nForce SataRaid systems.

no go with even just sataraid driver--still get two "Parameters Incorrect" messages during driver integration stage and "insert disc 2" when i try running a burned cd of it...

Thanks for your reply.
If you took a clean XP CD as source and didn't edit any SIF or OEM file, I see only 2 possibilities for your issue: Either nLite 1.3RC or NVIDIA's brandnew driver package is buggy concerning your special hardware configuration.
As next step I suppose to create a new nLited CD without integrating ryan's 2.1.5a.
If you don't succeed, you have 2 options left:
1. Try to install XP by using the original source and loading the new nForce 11.09 drivers via F6/floppy method. If you get the same error, I suggest to try the nForce SataRaid drivers from this driver package.
2. Build a CD by using this version of nLite.

Please report here about the results.

Hi,
I've read most of the pages on this discussion and I must say that this is all very confusing.

I have a nforce3(msi neo2 platinium) and 2 HD's that I would liket o run in stripping mode, can anyone post a patch with a working setup ?
If there are so many people that got this working, why doesn't someone post a package with the nvidia drivers that work, and
those txt files with the info of the nvidia drivers?
So all it would be needed to get a working cd, is to move the files to the i386 dir and burn a cd.

I miss consistency of the information provided and more detailed information, otherwise its dificult to make use of it.

1. You should not read all the pages of this thread, which is really confusing. As I have written in my first post, all important things are layed down there.
2. The integration of actual nForce SataRaid drivers into a bootable OS CD is not as easy as you think. It is impossible to create something link a patch usable for everyone, because different chipsets, different mainboards, different hdd combination and even different BIOS versions may need different drivers or driver combinations.
3. If you want an easy and perfectly working method to get Windows XP installed onto your nForce3 RAID system, use the F6/floppy method and take the nForce chipset driver package v.5.10 or 5.11. But if you want to integrate the newest (and probably better) nForce SataRaid drivers into a bootable CD, you should do what is written within my first post.

Hi,
Thanks for replying.
I would have taken the F6 /floppy procedure anytime, the problem is that I don't have a floppy drive. Thats why im here.

I think the information on the front page its _very_ confusing, thats why I tried to clarify by reading more on the discussion,
it only made me even more confused.
A suggestion is to simplify and organize the information in the front page, I don't know if more people found it confusing or if its only me...

This is what i've done, pelase correct me if something is wrong, ok ?

1] As the source I got a windows xp + sp2 (extracted the files into my harddrive, so I have c:\XPCD).

2] Open nlite and select the source as c:\XPCD

3] "Task selection" on nlite I select "Integrate Drivers" and under "Setup" I choose "unattended", and finally I choose "bootable iso" and press next.

4] Downloaded the "nForce_6.53_WinXP2K_english.exe" file and extracted the contents to a folder called "nForce_6.53_WinXP2K_english"

5] in nlite I selected "insert" and choose "Multiple driver folder" and browsed to the /IDE/WinXP folder where I extracted the nForce driver mentioned before

6] nlite finds: "nvatabus.inf" and "nvraid.inf" - O hold "control" down and select both files, selected as textmode drivers, and press next.

7] The unattended window comes up - here I customize the diferent options, such as serial key, ip address and users, and press next.

8] The process begins, make the resulting iso image and burn it with nero afterwards.


Now, when I boot the machine with this cd, would or wouldnt it be possible to have a raid setup on a nforce3 ?

<edit>
The WINNT.SIF file its missing any reference to the nvidia drivers .. how is this suppose to work ?
I thought nlite did this....
</edit>


thanks.

I don't know. Why don't you just try it?

to point 4: The 6.53 package is an old package and was primarily designed for nForce4 chipsets. The better choice for the integration of nForce3 compatible SataRaid drivers would be either Mei's Unified Driver Package (as proposed within my guide) or - as an old but safe option - the special nForce3 chipset driver package v. 5.11. Unfortunately I forgot to mention the "official" nForce3 chipset driver packages v. 5.10 and 5.11 within my guide.
In this respect I agree with you, that my guide is not clear enough for users with an nForce3 RAID system. I will modify this point within my guide (UPDATE: Done!).

to point 5: I proposed to use the "Single Driver" method to avoid the integration of wrong drivers.

You should trust the tool nLite. There is nothing to warry about the WINNT.SIF.

Hi,

I am struggling for some days now to get this working, hope you can help.

I am trying to setup a RAID 5 configuration with the following components:
3 * WD32000YS disks
Mainboard GA-M51GM-S2G with nVidia nForce 430 chipset
Windows XP Pro SP1
RAID bios version 6.70

I tried the F6-Floppy disk and the nLite method as stated in the first topic. I used the most current SATARAID WHQL certified drivers. It's not clear to me if I should use the MCP51 or MCP61 version so I tried both. In the current driver package there is no LEGACY or PATARAID directory available.
These are the options I tried:

F6 method
SataRAID 6.86 (MCP61 English US version)
Result endless reboots at end of installation

nLite method
SataRAID 6.86 (MCP61 English US version) including SataIDE and SMBus 4.5.7
Result endless reboots at end of installation

nLite method
SataRAID 6.66 (MCP51 English US version) including SataIDE and SMBus 4.5.2
Raid array degraded during installation reboot (just before GUI part)

nLite method
SataRAID 6.86 (MCP61 International version) including SataIDE
Result endless reboots at end of installation

Hope you can help.
Greetz,
Theo

Hi Theo,
why didn't you try the drivers Gigabyte offers for your mainboard? Here is the link to the GA-M51GM-S2G driver page: http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Motherb...me=GA-M51GM-S2G

Gigabyte recommends to take these nForce RAID drivers for Windows XP: http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Motherb...amp;FileID=2693
Create a driver floppy and use it via F6 or integrate the content of the driver floppy with nLite.

Good luck!
Fernando

Hi Fernando,

Thanks for your quick reply!

I forgot to mention my first step:

F6 method
SataRAID 6.66 delivered with Gygabyte mainboard (Tried version on CD and from internet)
Result: Raid array degraded during installation reboot (just before GUI part)

Just to be sure I just tried:

nLite method
SataRAID 6.66 delivered with Gygabyte mainboard (from internet)
Raid array degraded during installation reboot (just before GUI part)

I the situation of a degraded array I can complete the XP installation and even rebuild the array with the windows version of mediashield. By a direct reboot the RAID Bios shows a Healthy array. Only after a minute or so 1 disks drops out of the RAID set again.
Already checked and zeroed the disks with Data Lifeguard from WD, no errors were found.

Any suggestion?
Theo

1. Check your RAID configuration (healthy? set as bootable?) and BIOS settings (no overclockung, set RAID as first bootable hard disk device).
2. Check your memory sticks or remove one after the other, if you have more than 1 stick.
3. Unplug all unneeded devices.
4. Slipstream SP2 into your XP CD.
Then try again to install XP by using F6 method.

If everything fails, you should think about to RMA your mainboard.

Still no go on isolation:

using only (without any ryan's or any other mods) mcp61 sataraid v 11.09 with the newest nlite (1.3 rc2)--I think it may be the drivers (altho they are whql certified)--will try older nvida driver.

oh dam....

after spending way too much time on figuring out my problem, i finally found it.

you have to run nlite as an adminstrator instead of a user (or at least that's what solved the problem for me)--the tricky thing was nlite looked like it was running ok w/ limited credentials, but at the end, it needs admin i guess to properly integrate nvidia raid drivers.

spoke too soon...

altho i have the "parameters are incorrect" messages taken care of, upon installation, i keep getting a "please insert...win xp pro sp 2 cd" message.

i have the WIN51IP.SP2, etc files in my root directory and I didn't have this problem when installing on win mce w/ nvidia raid drivers....

anyone else with this problem?

This pop-up message has nothing to do with the driver integration, but with tweaking.
It's done by the Windows System File Checker (SFC), who obviously found a system file, which has been modified (either by nLite or by prior modding of the XP source files). The System File Checker wants to replace the tweaked files by the original ones and asks for the installation source ("WinXP Pro SP2 CD" means your nLited CD with integrated drivers, hotfixes, tweaks etc.).
If you want to keep the tweaked file(s), do the following:
When the pop-up comes up, don't insert the CD and hit "Cancel", then you will be asked, if you want to keep the changed file. Answer "Yes" and the annoying message will disappear.
If you want to restore all original MS Windows system files, you should do the follwing:
Run: "sfc /scannow" and insert the original Windows XP SP2 CD (not the nLited one you used for installation purpose).

"This pop-up message has nothing to do with the driver integration, but with tweaking."

I actually get the message very early in the installation (before it even makes partitions or copies files), and it won't let me get past the screen. it otherwise has f3 for an option to exit the installation.

to be more exact, it says "please insert the disk labelled win xp sp 2 cd into drive a: press enter when ready"

You obviously found the solution yourself: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?s=&...st&p=614421
If you are going to work with nLite, you must have administrator rights.
As a consequence of your trouble I have added this point into my guide (post 1 of this thread).

i began reading through this thread but was not able to find anything regarding my specific issue (granted i did not read all 50 pages...)

my specific problem is this...

when i boot my system up, i am able to configure three separate raid 1 arrays using the bios (to enable nvraid) and the nvraid utility (f10). two of these arrays are using the four onboard SATA connections on the mobo. the other array is made up of two PATA drives (using the same IDE channel as master/slave). my issue is actually not related to the two SATA raid arrays. when i followed your guide to create a slipstreamed bootable CD, both arrays are now showing up in the list of available partitions. originally this was not even a concern for me since i plan on using those two arrays as data only drives on this file server. my idea was to use the PATA array as the actual operating system drive as an extra precaution against drive failure. unfortunately, every time i get to the partition selection stage, it displays the two PATA drives seperately rather than together as one mirrored partition. any ideas?

Which mainboard, which chipset and which nForce Sata-/Pata-Raid drivers are you using?

the mainboard is an Asus A8N5X Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard

the chipset is nForce4 (4.84)

i tried a few different dirvers according to your first post. i grabbed the PATA drivers from the following link:

ftp://download.nvidia.com/Windows/vista/b...ta2_english.zip

What you probably need is a driver package, which has an nForce4 Parallel ATA Controller driver.
Try the LEGACY subfolder of this one: ftp://download.nvidia.com/Windows/nForce/...p2k_english.exe
Alternatively you can take the 6.70 chipset driver package.
My suggestion: Test the packages by booting off the original (not nLited) XP CD and presenting the content of the LEGACY folder by F6/floppy method. If the XP Setup routine detects your P-ATA RAID this way, create a new nLited CD by integrating the successfully used nForce aRaid driver version. Don't try to continue the XP installation by using the F6/floppy method - you may get endless reboots at the end.