I recently undertook the task of getting an inexpensive but powerful server togeather for work. It is Dual MP 1800+ with 512MB Corsair DDR, with a Tyan Tiger MP MoBo. I also got a Western Digital 80GB 8MB cahce drive. When I boot the machine up it takes a while to detect the HD. Once It does I begin to install Red Hat. If I check for bad sectors it locks!!! I thought eww Bad HD.. But I can install without badsector check but when it is time to finish up installation it has stopps the install with an error. I was just wondering before I send this HD back to the manufacturer if there is a problem with the 8MB cache HDs and Linux. That way I can get a standard 2MB cache drive.

Can I guess you're using Redhat 7.2 ?

I found Redhat 7.2 to be particularly bad. Redhat 7.3 upgrade strongly recommended.

Bert

Actually It is 7.3 and I tried Slackware 8.0 and it locked on install as well.

Hmm.

Have you tried installing Windoze - any version?

It sounds like a hardware problem, but if you can say to the vendor you tried installing windows they'll listen.

Bert

uggg... I am sure that you are right though about saying I tried winblows and it locked. I will have to waist my time...

If you really want to try and diagnose this, I recomend dropping in the Slackware 8.0 CD, going through the normal install procedure, on a low-level format, switching to a virtual term with CTRL+ALT+F2, and running:

dmesg | tail -f

while the box is running the format. Hopefully it will burp the hardware error before it locks up. Also, if its having seek and cluster errors as it goes, it will hiccup them into dmesg as well.

Linux doesn't have an issue with 8mb cache drives, nor the uber-cool Tyan SMP boards, so it might indeed just be the drive. Also, do you have this thing hooked up to a normal IDE controller or an ata100/133?

Cheers,

Finegan

It is on the Primary IDE channel on the Tiger MP I think that is 100. Thanks for the tip on the format I will try that.

Ohh BTW I am now trying gentoo on it and I have an intel 4 port 10/100 NIC. Does anyone know what driver module works with this. And for those who say that intel doesn't make a 4 port NIC well it says Intel on it and it has 4 ports, and it is in my machine now.

Gentoo will do a PCI scan in the initial installation, doesn't detect your nic?

I suspect that it could be a eepro100. Just a guess.

Gentoo is kinda difficult too. I am enjoying it but it ain't no Red Hat installer.

yeah, I sounds like it is probably a bad HD. And like finegan said, there aren't any problems with linux and 8meg cache or big hardrives. And also, RH7.3 will do just fine if you install that after you change the drive.

Well I am not sure what to think now I think my Red Hat and Slackware CDs were bad. I reburned them and they both installed fine this time. I don't understand there were no scratches, and I have used them to install perfect before. I am confused... We will see.