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Windows can't see my additional hard drives

Ok I know I've done this before without a hitch but I can't seem to remember how to do it now.

I just redid my system - switching from Win2k to WinME (because 2k won't support my $1000 piece of video capture hardware and there's NO way I'm buying an newer one).

The problem is I had 3 drives on that computer, drive C handled the windows system and the other two contain all my games, music, videos, etc. So I install ME on drive C, leaving the other two alone, but the new install of Windows can't see the other two drives. Bios sees them and so does Device Manager (but no drive letters have been assigned and I can't seem to assign them manually), but I can't access them. My first guess was some kind of incompatibility with partitioning in 2K, but even non-file managing programs like scandisk can't see them either. How do I fix this?

Chewchilla
Newbie Poster
2 posts since Nov 2003
Reputation Points: 10
Solved Threads: 0
 

your drives are most likly NTFS partition, and ive never been able to get any thing but Linux and NT to read NTFS file systems >.> so your sorta screwed

Zachery
The Geek Father
Team Colleague
894 posts since Nov 2003
Reputation Points: 96
Solved Threads: 21
 

I reinstalled Win2k and got access to the drives back, so I'll have to find somewhere to offload them, reformat them all, reinstall the OS, and then transfer the data back to my drives. Thanx for the tip about the the partitioning. I didn't know Win2k set them up in a way that no older OS could read.

Chewchilla
Newbie Poster
2 posts since Nov 2003
Reputation Points: 10
Solved Threads: 0
 

i know a software can solved that porblem, Partition Magic.it supports any window file system and Linux.
let say you are using fat32 in windows Me.You can acces to NTFS in diffrent drive location.
also be careful using this software,one mistake can delete you current OS.

LEX,

LEX,

LEXluthor
Newbie Poster
11 posts since Nov 2003
Reputation Points: 10
Solved Threads: 2
 
i know a software can solved that porblem, Partition Magic.it supports any window file system and Linux. let say you are using fat32 in windows Me.You can acces to NTFS in diffrent drive location. also be careful using this software,one mistake can delete you current OS. LEX, LEX,


Or breathing in a nondescript way can destroy the "work" that P.M. does.

Google for ntfsdos if you want read-only access to NTFS drives under a 9x system. There are some "additions" that give full access to the drives, but most likely you'll only need read to get the data off.

feigned
Posting Whiz
311 posts since Oct 2003
Reputation Points: 107
Solved Threads: 4
 

id go to XP if it was possible, or 98 but not ME >.>

Zachery
The Geek Father
Team Colleague
894 posts since Nov 2003
Reputation Points: 96
Solved Threads: 21
 
id go to XP if it was possible, or 98 but not ME >.>


I agree. ME is not a good OS. I had the same problem when I rebuilt my son's PC. I had XP on it, rebuilt it and used that drive as a backup. When I installed 98se and then did an ME upgrade, I couldn't see that drive. I installed XP and it fixed the prob. XP should be fine w/ the capture card too..

Outlander69
Newbie Poster
1 post since Sep 2004
Reputation Points: 10
Solved Threads: 0
 

Chewchilla, are you absolutely sure that video capture hardware can't be used under Windows 2000? What's the make and model number of the componet, please? There may be Windows 2000 drivers available for it, that you haven't located yet ;)

Windows Me is a terrible OS

Catweazle
Grandad
Team Colleague
4,335 posts since Mar 2004
Reputation Points: 229
Solved Threads: 149
 

This article has been dead for over three months

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