"Ken" <noreply@charter.net> wrote in message
news:w0FXj.13$aq.12@newsfe05.lga...
>I purchased a mobile rack and three interchangeable trays for storing data
>I don't need very often. I installed it first in my Windows 2000 system
>and it functions just fine--the disks are recognized when inserted and the
>powered up, and I can interchange them at will without problems.
>
> I recently built a new system based on Windows XP SP3. I purchased a
> second mobile rack for that unit with the expectation that I could use the
> mobile hdd's in either workstation.
>
> On the XPstation I have a C: drive active partition, a D: DVD writer, an
> E: partition (on the same drive as the C: drive) and an F: drive on its
> own partition (separate drive). I have 6 SATA connectors on my Intel
> DP35DP mb with the DVD writer on the first, disk 0 on the second, disk 1
> on the third, and the mobile rack on the fourth (as they appear in the
> BIOS)
>
> When I insert the tray/drive into the internal mobile rack into the XP
> unit, one of two things happens:
> 1. the drive is not recognized
> 2. the drive is recognized but my drive letter for my DVD writer is
> reassigned from D: to G: drive.
> 3. the mobile rack is not recognized in the BIOS as existingMobile
>
> I thought it was the cables, but that is not an issue. I thought it was
> the connectors, but those are not the issue. It is not the units, as both
> mobile racks work in the Win2K station without problem. Thinking it might
> be data written to the hdd by Win2K that was causing the problem, I
> reformatted the disks, but that did not help.
>
> Does anyone have any suggestions? Is there something that needs to be
> changed in the BIOS of the new Intel motherboard? Is this a problem with
> the mobile rack that is installed in my XP machine? (the unit in the
> Win2K machine is IDE and in the XP machine it is a SATA connection)
>
> Thanks

I have had some mobile racks that were marginal. Sometimes the
disks inside were recognised, sometimes they weren't. These days
I use external USB cases. They always work and I can connect/
disconnect them while Windows is up and running.

If you intend to stick to mobile racks then you should examine the
boot messages generated by your BIOS. Does it recognise the
disks?

You can resolve the drive letter issue by running diskmgmt.msc
from the Start/Run box and assigning a letter of your choice to
the mobile rack disks.