Windows 7 can't format my WD6401AALS

[fenrir888]

Well i just recently got this system together everything is brand new, and when i try to install windows 7 64-bit home premium it cant see any drives. when i try to load my hard drive it requests that i format the drive. But windows immediately replies saying that "Windows cannot format c:" telling me to check if the drive is connected of if its a read-only file. The BIOS can detect all 640GB of the hard drive, so i know its connected, and there is nothing inside the hard drive at all, so i doubt its a read-only file. I did some surfing and learned that this Hard Drive should not require additional software for windows 7, yet windows 7 appear to say the opposite. I've been working on this build for over a month now and would really like it if i could get this thing up and running already.

 

[theog]

Try a full clean & full format in command prompt.
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/52129-disk-clean-clean-all-diskpart-command.html
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/2668-partition-volume-delete.html?ltr=P
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/2674-partition-volume-create-new.html?ltr=P
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/71432-partition-mark-active.html?ltr=P
1) Boot DVD, & Press Shift+F10 (for command prompt)
2) Boot DVD, & http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/682-command-prompt-startup.html(for command prompt)

Type in command line
DISKPART
LIST DISK OR List Volume (If you have partitions)
SELECT DISK # (win HD)
CLEAN ALL
CREATE PARTITION PRIMARY
SELECT PARTITION 1
ACTIVE
FORMAT=NTFS
ASSIGN
EXIT
EXIT



http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/91339-ssd-optimize-windows-re-installation.html

 

[fenrir888]

that's impossible. It is a blank hard drive, that is intended to be the main hard drive. I'm not simply upgrading the drive from an older version of windows. I'm trying to do a Clean Install of windows 7. so i cannot open a command prompt

 

[Lomai]

Hi fenrir888

Welcome to Seven Forums
Have a look at this thread (2nd post) - it's based on Vista but works for Windows 7 too.

More info here

Hope this helps and regards

 

[theog]

that's impossible. It is a blank hard drive, that is intended to be the main hard drive. I'm not simply upgrading the drive from an older version of windows. I'm trying to do a Clean Install of windows 7. so i cannot open a command prompt

1) Boot DVD, & Press Shift+F10 (for command prompt)



2) Boot DVD, & Command Prompt at Startup command prompt)

 

[fenrir888]

Hi fenrir888

Welcome to Seven Forums
Have a look at this thread (2nd post) - it's based on Vista but works for Windows 7 too.

More info here

Hope this helps and regards

these links seem to instruct how to initialize a hard drive on an already installed OS, my system is new, and does not have an OS installed yet, and that is the problem i'm trying to fix.

 

[Lomai]

Hi fenrir888

Have a look at what theog has posted above.
If you still cannot access that - then have a look at this (especially screen-shots 6, 8 and 9 - they are not numbered as such but you can count them in sequence from the first)
Hope this helps

Regards

 

[theog]

Can setup see your HD at this screen?

 

[fenrir888]

no it cant, but the command prompt could, i'm currently in the middle of the clean all waiting for everything to be 0 out.

 

[theog]

no it cant, but the command prompt could, i'm currently in the middle of the clean all waiting for everything to be 0 out.

You may need to load Sata Controller drivers, download the F6 Sata drivers from here:
GA-M68M-S2P (rev. 1.0) - GIGABYTE - Product - Motherboard - Overview



http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/68505-sata-driver-load-windows-7-vista-setup.html

 

[fenrir888]

okay, so i just downloaded that driver you told me to get, but first i want to finish this thing on the command prompt. when i typed in FORMAT=NTFS it said the command was invalid, was there a typo?

 

[fseal]

Make sure that you have no USB drives, card readers or thumbdrives or anything like that connected to your machine.

Also, make sure that the one drive you are trying to install to is the ONLY driver currentlly connected to the machine.

 

[fenrir888]

only other things connected to the sata slots are the cd/dvd drive and the esata thats part of my tower

 

[theog]

okay, so i just downloaded that driver you told me to get, but first i want to finish this thing on the command prompt. when i typed in FORMAT=NTFS it said the command was invalid, was there a typo?

Sorry,typo

FORMAT FS=NTFS

 

[fenrir888]

well thanks to your advice my new pc is up and running. the command prompt format fixed it right up. thanks a lot!

 

[theog]

well thanks to your advice my new pc is up and running. the command prompt format fixed it right up. thanks a lot!

That is good news, You are welcome.