New harddrive problem - PC Help Forum - Free Computer Help, Windows, Hardware, Software and more!

coolrules · #1 04-08-2008

After replacing the old hard drive on my laptop with a new one I am now getting the error message:

media test failure check cable
exiting pxe rom

as the hard drive would still be blank i thought it would be a simple matter of booting from and installing xp from the cd. But even after i change the boot order from the laptop i still get the same error message.

I have went into bios and done the HDD self test and no problems were reported, so the HD itself seems fine.

I am now really stumped on what to do about the whole thing and as the harddrive was quite expensive it would be a shame not to get to use it.

P.S the harddrive is replacing the old hard drive, its not an additional hard drive.

Any help would be greatly appreciated and thanks for any time any of you might put into this thread trying to help me out.

joeyfine · #2 04-08-2008

Welcome to PCHF Coolrules.

The problem is caused because your computer is not launching the hard-drive when you turn it on.
There are several potential causes of this:
-The motherboard startup settings (BIOS) are out of wack. SOLUTION: Turn on the computer and press the F2 or F10 keys (at the top of the keyboard) as soon as you see anything on the monitor. You should see a message on the screen telling you which F key to press to get into SETUP (getting into toshiba satellite bios you need to keep holding the power button and the escape button until youve been aske to press F1). In setup, select the option to "Reset to Default Settings", and then the option to "Save and exit". If that does not work, go back into the Setup screen, and look for "Boot devices" or "Boot sequence"-- it may be inside a screen called "Boot Settings" or "CMOS Settings". You may have to dig through sub-menus. You want to make sure that LAN or Network is not in the boot device list ahead of HD or Hard Drive. The boot order should be:
1. Floppy
2. CD
3. Hard Drive
4. anything else
-The hard-drive has a mechanical problem, such as a loose connection, or incorrectly installed. SOLUTION: Unplug and open the tower, remove the hard drive gently, making note of all connections. If necessary, label each cable with a bit of masking tape before disconnecting. Get the dust out of the tower, and reinstall the hard-drive securely. If necessary, use a match or bit of cardboard to secure it-- be inventive, but GENTLE. Make sure the cables and jumpers are firmly and correctly connected. If this is a new or intermittent problem, you can assume the cables and jumpers are correct.
Other fixes from this page which may apply to you:
-due to a disconnected keyboard cable (forgot to plug it in after replacing the HDD), of all things.
-disable "Boot to LAN" or "Boot to network" in the BIOS boot sequence (first solution above).
-Check for a RAID setting on your HDD in your bios, switch to IDE.
-the hard drive power cable was not connected
-download and install new BIOS from your computer or motherboard manufacturer: On a working computer, go to their website, and download the correct BIOS Update for your computer. This may take some research. Install the BIOS onto a floppy or USB drive according to their directions. Put the floppy or USB stick into the sick computer, and turn it on (you may need to set startup sequence so that the USB stick is recognized, see first solution above). Your BIOS will get updated. Remove the floppy or stick, and restart the computer.
-if you used the restore disks to reinstall Windows, and your drive is larger than 80 GB, it's possible that the restore disks formatted the drive as a FAT32 system instead of NTFS. FAT32 cannot handle a boot disk larger than 32GB - it becomes unstable. SOLUTION: reformat the drive using the restore disks or a windows install disk as NTFS, not FAT.

coolrules · #3 04-08-2008

Thanks for the reply but none of the above has solved my problem. Reset bios to default, same problem, i have took out and put in the hard drive numerous times to ensure i was connected properly however it must be as it is being picked up in bios and passing the HDD self test every time, so that tells me that its installed correctly? but for some reason i am still getting this same message on startup. I am completly baffled as to why.

Thanks again for the response though, it is much appreciated.

joeyfine · #4 04-08-2008

Does this hard drive have any data on it?

joeyfine · #5 04-08-2008

it sounds like you are trying to boot from a drive that has no data installed on it. do you have a copy of windows that you plan on installing?

coolrules · #6 04-08-2008

yes i was hoping to boot from XP disk and install windows that way. I have no data on the hard drive what so ever. But it ont even let me boot from the CD ROM, i just get the same message.

Jelly Bean · #7 04-08-2008

This may help.

If this is and IDE hard drive check it is set to primary master no slave,as in jumper settings.

Getting media test failure, check cable error when computer boots.

Invalid / Non System Disk error

coolrules · #8 04-08-2008

Thanks, i also tried that, its set to master so shouldn't be any problems concerning that. Also tried it on cable SEL but again, didnt work

Jelly Bean · #9 04-08-2008

Set to Auto detect CD/DVD roms n hard drives.

Load fail safe defaults in BIOS.

Are you sure disk is ok that you are using?

Is hard drive set on its own IDE cable?Do not attach it to CD.DVD rom IDE cable.

Is the hard drive IDE cable plugged into correct port on mainboard?

Is the OS CD damaged/scratched.

coolrules · #10 04-08-2008

Yea the disk im using is fine, used it numerous times before and other laptops picking it up even now. HD is on its own IDE cable correctly placed in mother board. And bios settings are the defaults currently.

Ive tried all the stuff mentioned and still nothing hence why im so stumped as to whats causing the problem.

Thanks for the response though, apreciate the time you people are putting into this thread.