unable to initialize Disk - because of an I/O error

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  1. Posts : 759
    Windows 7 Enterprise x64
       #11

    CommonTater said:
    I just got a new usb drive the other day... plugged it in... black partion color... right click on the open area for the disk ... format and away it went. In fact, I don't even see "Initialize" anywhere on the menus... Hmmmmm... My system just keeps getting stranger and stranger....
    Windows still had to initialize it first, unless you already had a partition on it. That's just the way it works....always.

    You won't see ininitialize unless you have a disk without a partition on it already hooked up.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 759
    Windows 7 Enterprise x64
       #12

    DocBrown said:
    Are you saying win XP is installed on the 250GB IDE HD arealy with NTFS format ?
    Good catch! I can only assume the HDD was zeroed out first, or it wouldn't need to be initialized. If it wasn't, then we are looking at a whole new ball game.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 10
    seven
    Thread Starter
       #13

    hi and sorry about the delay, and thank you so much for your help

    I would try uninstalling the USB device in Device Manager, immediately reboot, and allow Windows to reinstall the driver before I did anything else.

    i just tried that, windows installed the same drivers





    What are you using to power the IDE HD with a USB adapter ? Could be not enough power to the HD ?
    the one provided with the adapter:




    Okay, that's the actual HDD model, not the controller. This has to to be a device driver issue I'm thinking.
    here is the HDD model if u like to:



    Ummm... take a close look at the original images... not the colors of the partitions behind the error dialogs? The disk in question is neither partitioned nor formatted...
    when i right click as u said, i ve only proprieties and Help


    Are you saying win XP is installed on the 250GB IDE HD arealy with NTFS format ?
    yes win xp is installed on it, not really sure about the file system, (certainly not FAT or FAT32)
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 9,606
    Win7 Enterprise, Win7 x86 (Ult 7600), Win7 x64 Ult 7600, TechNet RTM on AMD x64 (2.8Ghz)
       #14

    That looks similar to my power adapter, so that looks good.

    Do you need the win XP stuf on the 250gb HD ?

    Or would you like to clean it & start with an empty drive ?
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 10
    seven
    Thread Starter
       #15

    DocBrown said:
    What is the make & model of laptop you are connecting it to ? Have you tried different USB ports? Any USB errors in Device Manager ? USB 1.1 or 2.0 ?
    ACER aspire 5735z
    yes i tried different USB ports, and no USB errors in device manager
    i suppose USB 2.0, how to check on that please?
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 759
    Windows 7 Enterprise x64
       #16

    T1NT1N said:
    yes win xp is installed on it, not really sure about the file system, (certainly not FAT or FAT32)
    It has to be NTFS then. The odd thing is that you shouldn't have to initialize the disk if there's already a partition on it though. Try this once, just to test something. Try setting the 250GB HDD as the first boot device, and see if your machine will boot into XP.

    We'll go from there.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 10
    seven
    Thread Starter
       #17

    DocBrown said:
    That looks similar to my power adapter, so that looks good.

    Do you need the win XP stuf on the 250gb HD ?

    Or would you like to clean it & start with an empty drive ?
    i do have important files on it but if have to i wouldn't mind to clean it because i still need it to store some files and free space on my laptop
    my problem is that i have no PC at where i am now, only my laptop and that HDD

    It has to be NTFS then. The odd thing is that you shouldn't have to initialize the disk if there's already a partition on it though. Try this once, just to test something. Try setting the 250GB HDD as the first boot device, and see if your machine will boot into XP.

    We'll go from there.
    ok i will try that
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 759
    Windows 7 Enterprise x64
       #18

    T1NT1N said:
    i do have important files on it...
    That's why I suggested seeing if you could boot into XP. If you can, then you can move the files you want to save off that drive to your internal laptop drive. Then you can proceed to wipe the 250GB clean. I have software to wipe the drive clean if you need it too.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 10
    seven
    Thread Starter
       #19

    couldn't boot from it:



    been like one month since the last time i used it (home PC) .. i am starting to think it is damaged now
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 9,606
    Win7 Enterprise, Win7 x86 (Ult 7600), Win7 x64 Ult 7600, TechNet RTM on AMD x64 (2.8Ghz)
       #20

    Do you have any friends with XP or Vista computers that you could connect to to see it the files are accessable ? & could be move & saved to anoter drive?
      My Computer


 
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