Asrock Dual SATA2 freezes/hangs when loading Windows

[humar82]

hi, I am a newbie here

I think I get the same problem as what you all got

Before installing the new hitachi SATA2 harddisk, all the things in my PC works perfectly without problems.

After installing winXP to the new SATA2 HDD, the system hang after the BIOS POST screen(After turning off the PC for few hours).
After it hangs, I reset the computer and it can get into windows and working perfectly without any problems.
Also, restarting windows dont get any problems within a short period of shutting down.

Now I am trying the new 1.50 bios to see any problem occurs(need to wait for another day to test...)

my current config is:
ASROCK dual 939 sata II(BIOS 1.20)
A64 3000+BW@1980MHz
2x 512MB DDR400 RAM
Winfast 6600GT 128MB RAM
TV CARD
SB Audigy2
hitachi 7k250 80G@IDE 1 primary
DVDRW@IDE2 primary
DVDROM@IDE2 Slave
hitachi T7K250 160GB@ micron SATA-II(SATA mode with normal option)
Antec TP-380W

 

[imported_Imp]

Don't you think that we all cheaped out on the motherboard by purchasing that board?

:laugh: My PSU is actually a quality Antec, and from all the statements about the HD and everything else working properly WHEN it boots(even under power intensive applications), this obviously isn't the problem. Also, did read the manual many times, even before purchasing the board; the IDE2 thing shouldn't have been an issue either when using an SATA HD. Why did I buy the board you ask? Well, other than some crappy budget boards that turn AGP to crap, this is the one and only with dual AGP PCI-E support; the large number of positive experiences and praise for the board was also nice, but there are obviously issues.

BTW, that's awesome that the IDE channel thing worked for you Austro.:thumbsup:

 

[imported_Imp]

Ya, so someone said they were done with the problem (<---), guess not. I posted this in the main ASrock thread, but heres the cliffs:

- System started to chug with high CPU usage when idle.
- Google & other forums led to Process Explorer.
- Found out slowness caused by hardware interrupts.
- More google led to Event Viewer, lo and behold had following error every 5-6 seconds coinciding with 'lag'.

An error with source m5289 is getting logged every 5-6 seconds. Properties says:

"The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Scsi\m52891."

On reboot, it did not reboot. Shut down for half an hour, then it worked. I have since uninstalled that driver which is only for RAID setups anyways. (Windows installed 4 new IDE drivers though:confused. Works fine now, don't know for how long, but finally confirmed it's something to do with the SATA driver/controller. So, those with the problem, did you install the SATA drivers on the CD that came with the MB?

Quick update: So after killing my ALI m5289 driver, windows installed the new controller. Tried uninstalling one, but they are both needed apparently. Anyways, apparently the primary IDE channel is transfering at UDMA6 (my HD setting) and second channel at UDMA4 (DVD). Like I said, my HD is SATA so this may shed some light on why the "no channel mixing fix" "works."

Added 02/01/06: Forget it, it's even less stable with generic windows drivers. Even crashes with these drivers. Likely suggests a software issue.

 

[qsrk]

Originally posted by: grooge
Ok.. for a stable operation, you need a good PSU, good ATA ribbon cable and properly plugged power connectors. Now, stop asking why this board don't work and start wondering where YOU screwed on the installation.. Plugging and unplugging IDE ribbon make the connector to get loose and cause failure. SATA cable that are cheap may be a bit loose and lose contact. Take a break, read the manual COMPLETLY and try to find what YOU did wrong. Did you cheap out on the PSU? Or is the video card is properly powered?

This motherboard simply work. Mine works. Lots of them work.

:disgust: Alright! Take some time to read this:

- I have a good PSU - 500W Seasonic (S-12) as mentioned earlier.
- Also mentioned earlier that I did NOT want to unplug the IDE cable, but since nothing else helped, I could not ignore it since it had helped others.
- I already replaced the flimsy ASRock SATA cable several weeks ago with a heftier SATA cable, and it has some snap compared to the loose ASRock cable.
- I did read the manual - especially the online version, which has way more info in it than the print version - did YOU know that?
- The video card is powered by two independent molex connectors from the PSU.
- RAM is low latency OCZ Platinum memory.
- Using a well cooled Antec P180 case, but space is tight near the bottom of the motherboard, so that and the large AGP card in the way make it hard to unplug IDE cables easily.
- I only cheaped out on the motherboard, and that was only because I needed 8X AGP on a socket 939 board with PCI-E, and didn't have other choices.

Now the bad news. I just received word from Hitachi that my hard drive is dying . It could go any day, so we will be spending quality time trying to back up old memories, and await its replacement. Tech support has confirmed that the freezing problems may be a result of the drive, but I won't know until I get the new drive.

 

[grooge]

My point was not get on everyone, but rather make peoples to look at the other side of the story. I know for a fact that this motherboard works. So, from there, it can be anything from a simple mistake to a big screw up. Assuming that you always built everything right and that it is the hardware that is at fault will not help. Did you know that a molex connector can be plugged backward? I was sure it was like it was supposed to be plugged, and rather than looking at what I was doing, i assumed thatit was a tight fit.. no wonder my CDROM quit working that night ...

So, from then, I always check back simple thing first, and yes, I always download manual to read. When everything was double double checked, and not working yet, then, I guess that it is the hardware. You knew that some ECS motherboard come with the jumper for BIOS in "clear" position to save the battery? And that not reading the instruction, you'll likely to miss that detail? And that the board wont even POST with the jumper set at the CLEAR position.. Can you imagine how many PSU or motherboard that has been sent back because the owner fails to read the instruction? I can say one less because I had to fix one and all I had to do was to set the jumper correctly.

Having good PSU won't help if the wrong 4 pins wire is plugged in. Or even, like in your case, the HDD. So, if you were convinced that the motherboard was at fault, how many of them you'd have tried before getting the problem?

Motherboiard and CPU are generally the last parts that I suspect in a system. RAM is often the first. I always test RAM with all HDD and optical device unplugged, leaving only a floppy. Oh! You know what happen when a floppy cable is plugged backward?

SO, I don't want to bash anyone here. But I always start to blame the user first, me included when something goes wrong. And it works most of the time..

 

[qsrk]

Points taken. That is why I suspected that even a simple thing like leaving an IDE cable with no drives attached could cause a problem. Anyway, I tried it, and still got a freeze.

The HD dying may just be coincidence, since I think I just found the culprit:
I booted into safe mode to backup my data, and it ran on the first try, with no freezing. Afterwards, I tried normal Windows and got an instant freeze. I switched back and forth between Safe Mode and Normal Mode four times, and this behaviour is 100% reproducible. That suggests a bad driver in Windows. Safe mode shows that it is loading Jahci.sys and SCSIPORT.sys, so they may not be to blame, unless they conflict with more advanced Windows drivers. I previously tried a Repair Installation, but it did not fix things. Next step: re-install Windows from scratch.

EDIT: The freeze problem may have shown up in Safe Mode after 45 minutes, but no complete halt yet.

BTW, I replaced the motherboard due to a defective LAN port that was confirmed by ASRock after I returned it. I spent two weeks troubleshooting it first, since the last thing that I wanted to do was to disassemble my computer, but it was a bad board.

 

[grooge]

Sure enough, a fresh install with every motherboard swap is mandatory.. even it it "seems" to work, messed drivers and registry could lead to freezing and crash. Fact the safe mode works better lead to software problem rather than hardware. Maybe your LAN was working but Windows errors just make it work bad..

 

[imported_Imp]

qrsk, just wondering if you installed the SATA driver that came with the motherboard on the CD? I found out last night that it was causing one of my problems(lag+HD); haven't linked the others to it yet.

 

[qsrk]

I know a fresh install is usually a good idea, but since I was replacing with an identical board, I was hoping to avoid it. The LAN problem was confirmed a hardware problem by tech support, and I actually did a fresh install to check first. Now that I have backed-up critical files, I'll do a fresh install before getting the new drive to see if I can eliminate the HD as a factor.

 

[racquel]

Hello!

I do have similare problems!

I had few crashes while transfering data from Drive to Drive:

X2-3800, 2G OCZ plat, Enermax500W, X800Xl, audigy 1, 2x Seagate 300G sata2 16M, 1 WD 120 7200 ATA100, LG DVD-RW.

Because I had to transfer my data from a Seagate 300G sata 1 to the Sata2, While moving big video file over it crashed few times. Also I tried to Ghost from 1 partion to another and got several crashes and different time during the process....

Also I had crash while installing Creative Drivers, one time from originial CD-ROM and another time when I upgraded from the internet. However the soundcard is working fine....The crash propably occured at the end...

I ran memtest86 24 h no error. I had played with IDA/STA/Strong setting but do not appear to change anything beside speed.

NOTE: I will check if my DVD is plugged on channel 1.

I was planning going for a Raid 0 with my dual 300G, but after these crashed I kept them in normal settings. ;(


I have isnatlled all ULI drivers....


Seems that there some issue with this mobo and sata2 drives.!

 

[grooge]

No, there is no diffuculty with this board and SATA2 drives.. at least on mine. If the SATAII is set to SATA in BIOS, set it to IDE and try again.

If you are using the HDD on the ULI controller, check for the jumper for SATA1 compatibility on the SATAII drive and set it to SATA1.

 

[qsrk]

Originally posted by: Imp
qrsk, just wondering if you installed the SATA driver that came with the motherboard on the CD? I found out last night that it was causing one of my problems(lag+HD); haven't linked the others to it yet.

I didn't use any drivers from the CD. I got fresh SATAII drivers online, and never downloaded or used any SATA drivers. BTW, I noticed that the ASRock website lists the x64 SATAII drivers as v1.09, but if you download the normal XP v2.07 drivers, they include v2.07 x64 drivers.

 

[imported_Imp]

Well, forget what I said about the drivers, they screwed my system up more than they helped, wait, what help? System started crashing and 'lagging' every few seconds, I couldn't boot from windows CD, and when it did, no HD was detected. So, after a bit of kicking and crying, decided to plug HD into the SATAII slot bypassing the craptastic SATA controller. Had to reformat and reinstall windows, but I'm hoping for the best. I would also like to take this opportunity to give a one finger salute to this board and all the problems it has caused me. Gonna go reactivate windows through the phone now.

 

[qsrk]

Except for the freezing problem, I found Windows to be more stable when I reinstalled Windows and provided the SATAII drivers during the initial installation. Is that what you did this time around?

I used my computer in Safe Mode tonight, and it froze instantly after 30 minutes when I tried accessing a program on the hard drive. Then I rebooted into safe mode again, and worked off an external hard drive without accessing the SATAII drive for several hours without any problems. HDD access seems to be the key.

 

[racquel]

I suspect these problem to be related to Ultra DMA.

I have 2 sata, 1 IDE and 1 DVD, But in the Device manager I can see only 3 devices.

Channel one 1 device Ultra DMA mode 6 -> i presume it's the sata 2 port (red lpug)
Channel one 1 device Ultra DMA mode 2 -> DVD
Channel two 1 device Ultra DMA mode 5 -> IDE or the sata 2 plugged into the sata 1 ?

where is the 4 th ?

 

[carstea1]

bad news, i thought i got rid of the freezing thing by reistalling the sata2 driver, but i didn't my sata2 hd runs now in ide mode, i dont have the patience to set it in sata mode and see how it acts. i'll do a fresh install of windows tonight, and do anything by the book, with all the knowledge i got from reading and reading forums for a month now.

because that's what an asrock user should do if he wasnt lucky to get it working in the fist time.

i'll be back with the results

 

[carstea1]

finished. i have big hopes right now, should i install the sata drivers if im using a sata2 HD ? guess not.

 

[grooge]

Originally posted by: carstea1
finished. i have big hopes right now, should i install the sata drivers if im using a sata2 HD ? guess not.

I left it in IDE mode.. rather have used and trusted Microsoft drivers than some obscur unknown comnpany drivers.. Just like with nvidia.. I never install them.. unless I use RAID.

When compatibility and stability is needed, MS drivers are still the best

 

[imported_Imp]

Well, currently I don't really know how stable it is; only just managed to reinstall windows and got about half an hour's use out of it (lost sleep + eating). Pretty much HAD to reinstall windows since it was so unstable and pretty unusable witht the constant hardware interrupts, shoulda just bought a new video card with a better board:rollya, you're probably saying that I wouldn't know that a different board would work better, and that people do get it to run). I'm pretty pessimistic this time around, literally running with the side panels off now (no 2mm steel to protect the pos now when I kick it:|). Also, I am using good ole microsoft generic drivers since I'm running in IDE mode on the SATAII channel. I just really hope that the horrendous amount of reboots, plug pulling and messing with the parts doesn't break any of the parts that ARE working.

 

[grooge]

is it the first fresh install you did with this mobo? If you were using an instllation from a past mobo, then no wonder it was unstable..

 

[imported_Imp]

Nope, the last install was the first ever on the HD and of the entire system. I formatted the partition and redid it the second. Also, just adding some observations since I switched over to SATAII port:

-POST is slower in checking the Ram~took <1 second before, now it's 2 seconds-ish.
- Stuff(windows/programs) seems to load slightly slower.

 

[carstea1]

everything seems fine till now, no freezing for that last 2 start ups. i once got this thing after post that said something about selecting the proper boot device, as if it didnt recognise my hard disk. i had previously set the boot order in BIOS and my sata controller is set to strong

PS : I have also disabled the 32 bit transfer for both ide and sata2. i remeber turning them on a while ago. maybe this was causing all this trouble ...

 

[racquel]

Is that could cause a problem if I plug a sata2 HDD into a Sata1 port ?

 

[grooge]

Originally posted by: racquel
Is that could cause a problem if I plug a sata2 HDD into a Sata1 port ?

It might if the jumper for the drive is still set as SATA2. You'll want to set it as a SATA1 drive for better compatibility.

Or, you could just plug it on the SATA2 port, and set the SATA2 controller to IDE in BIOS for the best compatibility.

 

[imported_Imp]

Hope it works out well carstea 1, last few times I 'raved' about how it was fixed, it was actually just toying with me; thing crapped out after 1 week, then a few days, then 1 day. Why I won't put my case back together yet.

Also, just wondering. I know that this issue is occurring with both SATA1 and SATA2 drives, but has anyone tried turning OFF(disabling not just set on AUTO with nothing pludgged in) the SATA1 controller in BIOS before? It seems that it is that controller that is the origin of my problems; all errors in windows deal with the m5289 controller.