HDD drive letter confilct

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Another problemette that I can’t seem to figure out.

I have a drive from an old system that failed (not through HDD fault).

Placed in USB caddy and, in a new machine, XP finds drive, but I can’t access the info presumably because both drives are ‘C’.

Disk management simply hangs.

I obviosly need to change the old C, but how?

Or is it possible to call the new C (say) D and do it that way?

David

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If disk management hangs then this is probably your issue. This would not be caused by simply adding a drive that “used to be” a C drive on another system.

I suspect the disk may have a serious hardware error, have you looked in the event log?

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What the drive letter was in it’s previous life shouldn’t matter. Once it is slaved to another system, via USB or connected internally, the system assigns the drive a new letter.

I’d agree with Stuart. Sounds like a hardware issue. The only thing you might check is the Master Boot Record, but that’s a stretch.

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Sorry to disagree with such eminent people, but I’ve had this problem before.

The first time you plug in a USB drive and ‘give’ it a drive letter (either automatically or manually) the drive rembers that letter and if you then plug it into a different machine it remembers the drive letter. If the letter is say F, the problem is easily resolved, plug into a machine that doesn’t have an F drive and then reallocate a drive letter that doesn’t conflict with either machine. This is one of the most common problems I have where people use backups, sticks, etc.

My problem here is that all machines have a C drive.

When I plug in the ‘broken’ drive before booting up, the BIOS recognises it perfectly. Trouble is I cant see any way of changing the drive letter.

David

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Sorry to disagree with such eminent people, but I’ve had this problem before.

The first time you plug in a USB drive and ‘give’ it a drive letter (either automatically or manually) the drive rembers that letter and if you then plug it into a different machine it remembers the drive letter. If the letter is say F, the problem is easily resolved, plug into a machine that doesn’t have an F drive and then reallocate a drive letter that doesn’t conflict with either machine. This is one of the most common problems I have where people use backups, sticks, etc.

My problem here is that all machines have a C drive.

When I plug in the ‘broken’ drive before booting up, the BIOS recognises it perfectly. Trouble is I cant see any way of changing the drive letter.

David

Your statement about a drive retaining a drive letter is not how XP (or any other Microsoft operating system works). See Control USC drive letter assignment and Find your missing USB drive[/url] for more information.

If you are running XP SP-2, see New drive not available in Windows Explorer for a hotfix.

Joe

--Joe

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Sorry to disagree with such eminent people, but I’ve had this problem before.

The first time you plug in a USB drive and ‘give’ it a drive letter (either automatically or manually) the drive rembers that letter and if you then plug it into a different machine it remembers the drive letter. If the letter is say F, the problem is easily resolved, plug into a machine that doesn’t have an F drive and then reallocate a drive letter that doesn’t conflict with either machine. This is one of the most common problems I have where people use backups, sticks, etc.

My problem here is that all machines have a C drive.

When I plug in the ‘broken’ drive before booting up, the BIOS recognises it perfectly. Trouble is I cant see any way of changing the drive letter.

David

Simply because the BIOS recognizes the drive properly, does not mean it is in good working order.
The drive letter assignment does not follow the drive unless you give the drive NAMELABEL the letter C.

See Joe’s http://www.wopr.com/…ndpost&p=802995

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This might be a drive mapping issue. Take a look here for some ideas.

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Are you sure that you are not reading the “Label” of the drive which will travel with it?

I carry 2 thumb drives with me all the time, and use them on a LOT of machines and have never seen what you are saying is happening! I even move our USB external drives between the six machines here and each comes up with the NEXT drive letter of that machine.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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