# BIOS Doesn't Recognize CD/DVD Drive, HELP!



## markinphoenix (Mar 6, 2009)

I'm trying to boot Windows XP Pro OS from CD to reload my OS. But it won't boot from the CD/DVD drive, I think because the BIOS doesn't list the CD/DVD drive in the list of devices it sees. This CD/DVD drive works fine under the OS. I've been reading everything I could find from Intel about the motherboard and searching online for everything I can find on booting problems from CD/DVD drives. I've also replaced the drive with and old CD, and an older CD/DVD. They all work with the OS, but the BIOS doesn't recognize them. And I've read all about the cabling, jumpers, and master and slave configurations. Nothing has provided a solution. 

This system must have booted from CD originally because I built this system and loaded the XP OS from this same CD and drive.

I did a BIOS update about two weeks ago when troubleshooting another problem. Now I'm wondering if the new BIOS code doesn't support the CD/DVD boot? But how could they produce code that doesn't boot from CD/DVD? Surely they wouldn't. I don't know how to back up to the old BIOS code. I can't find anything in all the Intel documents to tell me if the BIOS does support boot from CD/DVD. Intel doesn't offer support on this product any more.

I'm out of ideas. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated.


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## Doby (Jan 17, 2006)

Try clearing the cmos and loading the defaults, another ide cable also, make sure your boot priority if your bios has that feature is set correctly.

Will it boot from any other bootable cd?


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## markinphoenix (Mar 6, 2009)

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately I don't know what you mean by clearing the cmos and loading the defaults. Please explain.

I'll try changing the IDE cable. I thought about that but since I didn't have one, and since the drives work perfectly with the OS reading and writing I didn't think that would fix it. But I'm out of ideas so I'll try anything.

I can't set the boot priority because the problem is that the CD/DVD entry in the BIOS doesn't show up. So you can't set any priority to the CD/DVD. That's the basic issue.

Can't boot from any other CD because the BIOS doesn't even show it as a device.

I'm thinking about trying to get the old BIOS the board shipped with from Intel to see if it works.

I'm also thinking of trying to put my disk drive on another PC and boot from the CD/DVD to load the OS. Then put the hard disk back in my PC and see if it will come up. I don't know if the OS will come up due to having loaded up and configuring itself for another motherboard. Any thoughts?

One fact I didn't include in the original post is that the IDE channel only has this one device on it, the CD/DVD, and it's strapped as the Master.

Thanks for the help.


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## Doby (Jan 17, 2006)

> I'm also thinking of trying to put my disk drive on another PC and boot from the CD/DVD to load the OS. Then put the hard disk back in my PC and see if it will come up. I don't know if the OS will come up due to having loaded up and configuring itself for another motherboard. Any thoughts?


Yea that won't work because of driver issues, as far as a cmos clear sorry I should have been more clear.

To clear the cmos there is a jumper on the motherboard you move this jumper for a few minutes and then replace it to its orginal position, you will have to enter bios/setup and reset the date and time and any other setting you may have setup. Your manual will explain this. I am hoping this will make the bios see the drive other then that I can't understand why the drive would work in windows yet bios don't see it.

And yes your right about the ide cable I would also think that if the drive works in windows the cable must be good but that was just a thought because they are inexpensive and sometimes we have them laying around.

Is the drive on the end of the ide cable? sometimes if it is not and the drive is jumperd as master this can cause problems, also place the drive on the end of the ide cable and try jumpering it to CS (cable select) to see if that makes any differance.

Also if you have a floppy drive read this

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310994


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