Hard drive problems...

[sonofJack3]

Hey all,

I have a Toshiba Satellite C650 Laptop running Windows 7 64-bit, and about a month ago I turned it on to find that I could get into Windows. I tried Safe Mode and even Startup Repair, but I would always get stuck at a black screen with a moveable mouse cursor. I have tried using a repair DVD (iso's downloaded from NeoSmart), and that would get me into Startup Repair, but it would always get stuck, saying that there were missing drivers.

I am now trying a Windows 7 Installation Disc (iso also from the internet), and I can only start the installation process if my BIOS settings are as follows: SATA mode is set to Compatibility and the boot order is set to HDD/SSD first and CD/DVD second. When I get into the installation process, I get stuck at the "Where do you want to install Windows?" page, where I can see three disk partitions:
Disk 0 Partition 1 (Total Size: 1.5 GB, Free Space: 1.5 GB, Type: OEM (Reserved)
Disk 0 Partition 2 (Total Size: 286.0 GB, Free Space: 286 GB, Type: Primary)
Disk 0 Partition 3: HDDRECOVERY (Total Size: 10.6 GB, Free Space: 970.0 MB)
The page says, however, that "Windows cannot be installed to Disk 0 Partition X" for every partition. When I click "Show details" for partition 2 it says "Windows cannot be installed to this disk. This computer's hardware may not support booting to this disk. Ensure that the disk's controller is enabled in the computer's BIOS menu." For partition 1 it says the same thing, except it also says that "Windows cannot be installed to this hard disk space. The partition was reserved by the computer's Orginal Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)." Details for partition 3 say the same thing as partition 2 but also say that there is not enough space (8797 MB required). I have tried formatting partition 2, but it fails (Error: 0x80070057). I'm really not sure what I'm doing wrong here... do I have some BIOS settings messed up, is this a bad disc, or is my hard drive just totally broken? I'm out of ideas guys, please help

P.S. I noticed that in BIOS (InsydeH2O Rev. 3.5) under "Main", my HDD/SSD will show up as "None" when my Boot order is set to HDD/SSD first, but will display my Hard Drive name when the order is set to CD/DVD first.... not sure if that actually means anything, but I thought I might as well write everything.
P.P.S. Thanks in advance!

 

[Woz]

Did you try setting the BIOS values to a "failsafe" or "default" mode?

 

[sonofJack3]

How do I go about doing that?

 

[Woz]

Reading your earlier posts, I assume you've been in the BIOS setup screen.

I've no experience with the BIOS you're using, but on every BIOS I've used, there are options on the final tab/menu for saving changes, discarding changes, loading defaults, etc.

To me, it seems like the Windows install disc doesn't recognize the HDD as being a bootable drive. Resetting the BIOS to defaults may solve the problem.

 

[sonofJack3]

I tried what you suggested, and am now stuck at "Setup is starting..." in the Windows installation... I appreciate your help, btw.

 

[Woz]

It has been my experience that "Setup is starting..." can be on screen a LOOOOONG time, making you think it is locked up. I'd give it a while to work. If it sits at that screen for 30 minutes or so, then you have a problem.