Hi, I'm actually using both system, Ubuntu 9.04 and Windows XP, I got an HDD Western Digital (WD4000YR) with 400GB capacity, I have this weird problem (confirmed on other MoBo's with the same problem):

Power on the PC > In BIOS, disk capacity is 150GB > Start on Linux > In linux, disk capacity is correctly display: 400GB > Reboot > Start on Windows > disk capacity is correctly display: 400GB

BUT IF

Power on the PC > In BIOS, disk capacity is 150GB > Start on WINDOWS > in Windows, disk capacity is incorrectly display: 150GB

Linux its the solution to my problems, if I start on linux and then i REBOOT to windows works fine, but it doesn't if I turn OFF the PC. I need both systems due to incompatible software.

My question is: Why in LINUX the disk works fine and if I reboot the disk continues doing just fine? What linux do that windows doesn't on the disk thing?

Please don't tell me that this is a win question, because the answer is linux. I though maybe adding a line in windows option of the GRUB or something.

What I tried:

Fill with zeros using the WD tool, resign and format in Windows
Fill with zeros using the WD tool, resign and format in Linux
Format in Windows
Format in Linux

I have to say that the disk works great, when I do that (start linux then reboot to windows) the disk works just great, I had large movie files in there and works. So maybe the disk its not.

I saw something similar in this post: http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...dd-size-96451/

Thanks!

Greetings

I can tell you why linux works fine for starters. Your system bios is improperly detecting the hard drive size as 150GB instead of 400GB. I'm not sure why; older bioses had a maximum capacity of 137GB but any motherboard with sata shouldn't have that old of a bios. You may want to see if there is a bios update for your motherboard that corrects this problem. Translating from 150GB decimal to binary would give you about 137GB so it may be a bios size limit. Also, the drive may be jumpered in such a way to limit the size the bios can see.

At any rate, windows is bound to that bios size limit; linux is not. Once the linux kernel loads, it kisses the bios hard drive size limits good bye. You used to see this demonstrated all the time in older motherboards with the 137GB hard drive size limits. Windows couldn't handle an oversized drive and linux would see the full size of the drive beyond the bios limits.

More puzzling is what's happening on reboot. I have no idea why windows would see the full drive size on a reboot from linux. Windows should be bound by the size in your bios so I'm guessing that if you went into the bios setup on reboot from linux you would see the full 400GB in the bios. You might want to check that. Again, all this points to a problem with your system bios and there may be updates to correct this. You may also want to post your motherboard.

To China, or Mars or somewhere.

Yes, I forgot about that, when I reboot from linux, the bios shows the full disk space (400GB), then windows recognize the full size.

I have a msi k9a2vm-f v2, but I guess its not the MoBo, I had another MoBo and it was the same problem, I tried the disk in an intel DG33FB and nothing.

In my k9a2vm-f v2 I have another sata disk, with 500 GB capacity and it works great, without any problems. I guess the bios and mobo its ok.

This is desesperating, you think if I install linux on the disk, it will be forced to be recognized at the GRUB point?

I think your hard drive is defective, most likely a defective circuit board on the drive since other 500GB sata drives are detected properly in the bios. It's not clear from your post but if you put the drive in another system and it was not detected, then for sure the drive is bad. I think WD has a five year warranty so you may want to contact them and see if you can get a warranty replacement.

I thought Windows XP didn't really have full support for SATA HDDs? XP setup used to hang for me at "Setup in inspecting your hardware..." unless I connected the drive after that screen.

I remember when I first used Knoppix. I went in the bios to disable the HDD, and Knoppix still was able to find and mount the drives correctly.

I have problems to send back the disk to WD, I just keep using like this, I'm using ubuntu more than windows, I think I will use the other one to transfer large files between win and linux, and the other one just to store on linux.

Thanks, I was trying to understand whats going on but I think its a puzzle! Thanks to everyone!