hi friend , plz clear my doubt.

Can i install old versions of redhat linux
(like versions 3,4,5) for SATA type hard
disk. I heard that SATA disk will allow
new versions of redhat linux only.
Is it true?

by madhu

Uh, why would you want to install OLD versions? Especially VERY old versions?

Yes, it's true that old versions won't necessarily support new hardware.

SUGGESTION:
If you need to run an old Redhat (for example, for a legacy application), then why don't you "virtualize" it?

That is, why don't you install the old Redhat on virtual machine (Xen, Vmware - whatever) that's running on a CURRENT Linux on your NEW hardware?

It's more economical, it's easier to maintain, and it's likely a far more robust solution going forward.

IMHO...

PS:
If you go with a VM, you'll automatically get "standard" hard drives, display adapters and network cards. Which ELIMINATES most of the driver problems you're likely to encounter trying to install on "real hardware".

I tend to agree with the virtulization approach but if you want investigate further try this:
http://linuxmafia.com/faq/Hardware/sata.html
I think a version of RHEL4 or later will support SATA.

EL3 and the free version CentOS 3.9 : IDE ( ATA ) hard disk only.

EL4 + CentOS 4.8 : OK with older SATA controllers.

EL5 + CentOS 5.5 : OK for SATA.

..

IIRC sata support only came with rhel 4.4 or newer. We tested it on a desktop machine.