Have you encountered a faulty new SATA cable before?

[mikeymikec]

I think I've just encountered my first. I'm just running SeaTools on the drive in question with a replacement SATA cable.

At least, it seems like a distinct possibility that the cable was faulty - Windows 8.1 Setup (clean install from DVD) BSOD'd at the following points:

- Directly after putting the product key in
- Directly after choosing the hard disk to install on
- About 10 seconds in to the initial phase of copying files over to it.

So it doesn't seem like it's going to be a bizarro intermittent issue.

SeaTools also crashed immediately after starting a long test with the first cable. It's doing better now since replacing the cable, 13% so far and no problems.

 

[mikeymikec]

... and then SeaTools crashed... <expletive>

Plugging the drive in to my computer for testing now.

 

[Z15CAM]

From my experience RAM issues cause most Coping File Error's during Window Installations.

 

[mikeymikec]

I've tried a pass with memtest86+, no problems. Admittedly it could still be a RAM issue, but considering how glaringly obvious the problem is, I would have thought that if it was caused by bad RAM, a single pass would have found it.

I'm testing out the disk I originally wanted to use on my machine right now, and I'm trying the Windows install on another disk on the machine in question. The only other idea I have is to update the BIOS in case that's relevant, but none of the newer BIOS versions for the board suggested anything stability related that they fix.

- edit - seemingly not disk related, setup just crashed at the same spot, SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION with an ancient 80GB SATA disk.

 

[Z15CAM]

Possible corrupt file in your Win SetUp.

 

[mikeymikec]

Possible corrupt file in your Win SetUp.

Hmm, or a dodgy DVD drive. I can try both. Thanks for the suggestion

 

[Z15CAM]

Or Dirty or Damaged DVD. I make EFI Bootable USB's Flash Drives for installing Win.

 

[mikeymikec]

Looks like it was a BIOS issue; after upgrading the BIOS, Windows installed fine onto the ancient disk. I'm now trying it on the intended disk.

- edit - yay, it worked.

 

[Z15CAM]

Dirty BIOS - Good for you and well done - I was about to suggest use only 1 stick of ram for running the SetUp.

Lesson: Always have the MB flashed with the latest BIOS ;o)

 

[mikeymikec]

Yeah, I usually do but for this one I had to dig out floppy disks and drives. I hoped to get away without it, and especially because none of the BIOS updates suggested that they fixed anything to do with stability (except one that said "if you're running DDR2-800 at 533", which I'm not).