Sata Controller Driver missing form Wndows 8 for Acer Aspi

[nikos]

Even as that it was a nice try system didnt managed to boot correctly perhaps because system reserve partitions werent correctly placed

350 MB (system reserve) and Win8 OS partition.

But the files for win8 were copied to the hdd and then i booted again form scretahc form USB Win8 installation dvd and magically this time i was presented the HDD partition info. I deleteed the partion created an unallocated space and then windows copied again and booted successfulyl.

Problem was indded solved but iamnot sure how this happened.

It was nice to see though that

a) No Bios update needed
b) No Intel F6 Sata controller drivers needed to be downloaded.

Vista was helpfull because its installation DVD could identify Sata AHCI controller correctly and then i took it from there. but with problem as i mentioned above and BCD invalid and missing popups.

Yes the problem is solved but what happened exactly so we know for next time how to handle this situation.....

 

[nikos]

Someone explain please....?

 

[alphanumeric]

Not being there to see exactly what you did I really can't explain why you had so much trouble. Installing windows 8 on my 5920 was fairly easy. I also don't know what the difference is between a 5920 and a 5920g or whether that had anything to do with it. My 5920 also came with Vista pre installed. Acer does have some Windows 7 drivers for download for the 5920 so that was a bonus for me.

 

[nikos]

I Boot From Vista DVD
When HDD being presented i delete partion and i leve a big unallocated space
i Remove the Vista USB and i insert the Win8 USB
Copy begins and all fiels successfully expanded.
When 5920g get sits 1st restart a BCD error popup mentioning that Boot Configuration Data is invalid or missing.


I was so happy that 8 files were copied successfully and expanded to the drive but boot fails. Why?

 

[alphanumeric]

I Boot From Vista DVD
When HDD being presented i delete partion and i leve a big unallocated space
i Remove the Vista USB and i insert the Win8 USB < Did you reboot to the Win 8 USB?
Copy begins and all fiels successfully expanded.
When 5920g get sits 1st restart a BCD error popup mentioning that Boot Configuration Data is invalid or missing.


I was so happy that 8 files were copied successfully and expanded to the drive but boot fails. Why?

See bold text above.

 

[nikos]

No, if i was to do that then Win8 installation USB wouldn't show me the hdd info again(as Vista did) so to select a partition and start the installation proccess.

If i was being able to Boot from a Win8 USB and be presented the HDD info in the 1st place i wouldnt have had tried to download and burn Vista to a USB Key and Boot from that so to correctly identify the sata drivers thus showing me the hdd partitioning info.

 

[alphanumeric]

Windows Vista's boot loader is different from the Windows 8 boot loader. Starting the install from one OS and switching part way though is almost certainly going to mess things up. And more than likely why you got a BCD error on the next boot.

 

[nikos]

Problem solved but i'am not sure how this happened.

It was nice to see though that:

a) No Bios update needed
b) No Intel F6 Sata controller drivers needed to be downloaded.


Scenario 1:
-----------
I Boot From Vista DVD
When HDD being presented i delete partion and i leve a big unallocated space
i Remove the Vista USB and i insert the Windows 8 USB
Copy begins and all fiels successfully expanded.
When 5920g get sits 1st restart a BCD error popup mentioning that Boot Configuration Data is invalid or missing.


I was so happy that 8 files were copied successfully and expanded to the drive but boot fails. Why?


Scenario 2:
-----------
I started the install with Vista Setup for to see the hdd, when i switched usbs from vista => 8 then Vista setup should have been complained about this and not start copying and expanding files giving me the impression that it will manage to install 8.
I wonder why it didnt do that.

Scenario 2:
I installed Vista
Rebooted, pressed F8 and selectted "Start in Safe Mode with CMD support"
Inserted Windows 8 USB and then initiated the Windows 8 setup process
It displayed the HDD ppartitioning info but a message bottom down in status told me that i can only see it and not re-partition it.
i selectet the unallocated space hit enter and Windows 8 copying started.
In the next Boot it gave me Boot Configuration Data missing or invalid.

Why? THIS TIME the Windows 8 setup process started from the Windows 8 Setup and not within Vista Setup.
Why not boot correctly this time?

Scenario 3:
-----------
After ALL the above steps i booted again from within tha Win8 USB Setup and this time partitions were detected and presented.
I clicked on unallocated space, field copied Botted Ok, Win8 Started FINALLY.

HOW ON EARTH THIS TIME Win8 Setup identified the HDD which up until now it couldn't detect?


Th job is done without the need of the following:

a) No Bios update needed
b) No Intel F6 Sata controller drivers needed to be downloaded.

 

[alphanumeric]

The Boot Loader is what starts the Operating System. It's what gives you the recovery options etc when you press F8. In a dual boot setup its what gives you the menu to select the OS.
Windows won't let you delete the partition its currently running from. If you boot up into safe mode the OS is running from the hard drive and using it. Its going to lock out the partition its running from. If it didn't it would crash when you deleted it. If you do manage to boot into windows it would help if you posted an expanded view of your disk management window.
"Rebooted, pressed F8 and selected "Start in Safe Mode with CMD support" < Doing that loads Vista to a command prompt window. You're in the Vista environment not Windows 8's pre installation environment. Launching the Windows 8 setup from there is not the correct way to install it. Every Windows OS has its own Pre Installation environment that is used to prepare the hard drive for the OS. Starting the process in one OS and then switching part way though is just going to muck things up.
Where did you get your Windows 8 install media from? Also what procedure did you use to make your bootable thumb drive?
You really need to figure out why your hard drive doesn't show up during the windows 8 install. The other way to do it is to do an upgrade install from Vista, not a custom install.

 

[nikos]

See above i edited my previous post which i manages to install Win8 without

a) No Bios update needed
b) No Intel F6 Sata controller drivers needed to be downloaded.

Win8 is UNTOUCHED and i used a veru nice little app called "Rufus" to extract the Win8 ISO there. Its a well testes and workign tool to many cases i encountered.


In SCENARIO 2: I maybe Botetd into Vista's safe cmd mode but when iam initiating a Win8 Setup...then Windows 8 pre installation enviroment takes place ....but yes this is a child process derived from Vista within thats why it doesnt let me partition it.

 

[alphanumeric]

Well OK, it seems one way or another you managed to get it done. I have no idea why it proved to be so difficult? Hopefully you don't run into any other problems that would force a re-install.

 

[nikos]

It works fine and very fast two the 64bit OS to a 64bit Acer Aspire's 5920g arch.

But i still need an anser for:

a) I forgot to mention that in all 3 cases above the Setup didn't told me when i hit enter in the unallocated sbpace that Win8 Setup must create apart from the Win8 OS partiton a 350MB system reserved partition. This is maybe relevant here concering the BCD invalid or missing display screen.

b) In SCENARIO 2: I maybe Booted into Vista's safe cmd mode but when iam initiating a Windows 8 Setup...then Windows 8 pre installation enviroment takes place.
Is it because Win8 Setup is a child process derived from Vista itself that's why it wont allow me to partition it?

 

[nikos]

Scenario 3:
-----------
After ALL the above steps i booted again from within the Win8 USB Setup and this time partitions were detected and presented.
I clicked on unallocated space, files copied and re-booted OK, Win8 Started FINALLY.

HOW ON EARTH THIS TIME Win8 Setup identified the HDD which up until now it couldn't detect?

Same USB, same slipsteamed image, same BIOS.

The job got done without extra drivers and without BIOS upate but still leave blanks.
After ALL this hassle it would be nice to know why it finally worked (I can use the same trick other times in other old machines too).

 

[alphanumeric]

It works fine and very fast two the 64bit OS to a 64bit Acer Aspire's 5920g arch.

But i still need an anser for:

a) I forgot to mention that in all 3 cases above the Setup didn't told me when i hit enter in the unallocated sbpace that Win8 Setup must create apart from the Win8 OS partiton a 350MB system reserved partition. This is maybe relevant here concering the BCD invalid or missing display screen.

b) In SCENARIO 2: I maybe Booted into Vista's safe cmd mode but when iam initiating a Windows 8 Setup...then Windows 8 pre installation enviroment takes place.
Is it because Win8 Setup is a child process derived from Vista itself that's why it wont allow me to partition it?

In answer to a), I personally don't remember ever doing an install of Win 7 or 8 without the system reserved being created. I have heard people say it may be skipped if the drive is pre-partitioned.


In answer to b), you're still running the Windows 8 setup from within Windows Vista. The Windows 8 setup doesn't completely take over and replace the Vista environment. Once you boot up to Vista even in safe mode with command prompt its resident and doesn't go away until you reboot.

My drive is partitioned into [system reserved][OS partition][data partition]. When I do a reinstall I delete the system reserved and the OS partition. Then I create a new partition in the unallocated space. When I do that Windows prompts me that it may need to create the system reserved and it does. I leave the data partition alone, that's where my documents, pictures and music files are. I haven't installed from a CD or DVD in ages, not since I ditched XP. I do everything from thumb drives. The only thing I can think of that may be the cause of your problems is that there may have been a custom boot sector on the drive for the factory restore option. When I went from Vista to 7 on my 5920 I deleted all the partitions on the drive including the factory restore partition. My drive was completely blank.

 

[alphanumeric]

Scenario 3:
-----------
After ALL the above steps i booted again from within the Win8 USB Setup and this time partitions were detected and presented.
I clicked on unallocated space, files copied and re-booted OK, Win8 Started FINALLY.

HOW ON EARTH THIS TIME Win8 Setup identified the HDD which up until now it couldn't detect?

Same USB, same slipsteamed image, same BIOS.

The job got done without extra drivers and without BIOS upate but still leave blanks.
After ALL this hassle it would be nice to know why it finally worked (I can use the same trick other times in other old machines too).

I've seen you use the term "unallocated space" a few times and just want to make sure we are on the same page. Unallocated space is unformatted unpartitioned space. Is that what you are referring to when you use that term? If the space is already partitioned but empty and you install to that partition that may explain why your not getting a system reserved.

Also what do you mean by "same slipstreamed image". Slipstreamed to me means something was added to the original image.

 

[nikos]

My drive is partitioned into [system reserved][OS partition][data partition]
We use the same partition setup.
By Unallocated space i, as you, mean unformatted unpartitioned space, yes.

The only thing I can think of that may be the cause of your problems is that there may have been a custom boot sector on the drive for the factory restore option.
When I went from Vista to 7 on my 5920 I deleted all the partitions on the drive including the factory restore partition. My drive was completely blank.

There isnt a custom boot sector from factory years now i use the same perspective as you do.
Even if it was like that or if the partition or boot sector was "affected" by Vista when i shutdown and open 5920G and Boot from Win8 USB Setup it can present me the HDD info which it couldn't all previous steps before see.

Are you implying that it reads ths info from the HDD looking the Boot Sector?
That is not possible!
How could it be able to read somethign from the Sata HDD when it Cannot detect the Sata Controller itself?

I delet ALL partition and create one unallocated space, i dont partition it just i hit enter on that, and then Win8 popups and tellsme that it will need to create a system reserve partition for its instalaltion purposes.
I hit enetr on unallocatesd space i dont partition the unallocated space first and then hit enter on one of the available partitions.




ps:Slipstemens image by using nLite that ahs embedded both x32 and x64 version of win8 flavots.Total 8 diffWin8 version but every one of them UNTOUCHED.

 

[alphanumeric]

All I can say is "I don't know the same things you don't know". It's still a mystery to me as to why the drive didn't show up?

 

[nikos]

All I can say is "I don't know the same things you don't know". It's still a mystery to me as to why the drive didn't show up?

Yes the drive wasn't showing up within Win8 Setup attempts from scratch, but IT DID show up after initiating and completing the Win8 OS installation process via Vista's Safe mode with CMD, which in their turn it didn't boot the computer successfully and provided the BCD invalid or missing error.

In the next boot form Win8 Setup from scratch this time HDD info was provided.......

But thats a mystery as to how since the hdd sata controller driver wasnt present and bios didnt got updated, so that leaved the question "From where the hell did it found information to identify the HDD".
Certainly NOT from the HDD itself since to read soemthign from the HDD you must prior detect the Media(HDD) which you need to access the information from.

I'am about to snap any moment now.....


ps: Also

If i Boot with GParted and create [350MB System Reserve for Win8 BCD][OS partition][Data partition]

save that partition table and then re-boot from Win8 USB Setup will it be able to present me the hdd partition info?

But what makes me think booting Win8 from scratch that it will display the HDD partitioning table correctly that time?

But how come it did with the Win8 Setup installation from within Vista before?

 

[alphanumeric]

I don't know? Since I'm not there to see exactly what's happening I can only guess. If you mess around with gparted now you'll likely mess something up. There is more to it than just creating the partitions, the correct files have to be in the correct place for the OS to boot up correctly. As we've already seen, if they are miss matched you get errors. My suspicion is it's your all in one install media. I'd like to see what happens if you boot from unmodified install media.

 

[nikos]

I tried it other MSDN untouched versions, same situation.

One other thing:

Is it the same
Deleting all partitions and hiting enter to the unallocated space to install Win8

opposed to
Deleting all partitions, create a whole space new Win8 partition and hiting enter to that selection to install Win8 there?

Wont in both cases a popup appear telling you that a system reserved partition needs to be placed to for win8 to work properly?


And by the way what info is being placed on the system reserved partition anyway? Boot Configuration Data?
Why it need tl be 350 MB too?

As for GParted:
GParted will only create the partion table and save it.
Then we can only hope Win8 Setup will identify the partition GParted saved and act from there.