# Where Is The Sata Controller In Device Manager? P4C800-E with 74GB Raptor



## bbeermat (Jul 6, 2004)

Under Device Manager in WindowsXP Pro, I can see six entries as follows:

Intel® 82801EB Ultra ATA storage controller
Intel® 82801EB Ultra ATA storage controller
Primary IDE Channel
Primary IDE Channel
Secondary IDE Channel
Secondary IDE Channel

Why does the SATA controller not appear and where can I check that the Raptor is running in the correct mode?

Also I ran Bootvis, and it says that Disk Write Caching is disabled on C: which happens to be the Raptor. But under Disk Drives in Device Manager, the checkbox for Write Caching is ticked for the Raptor, and indeed for all hard drives (2 x 160GB 7K250's). 
What's going on?! I'm confused


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## clintfan (Sep 4, 2003)

It is there. But it doesn't look like it. That's because the ICH5x is designed to look to software (like Windows) exactly like a normal Ultra ATA controller. The hardware side is different (IDE or SATA) but the software side is the same.

If you switch DM to "View devices by connection", the SATA controller will be the second of the two "Intel 82801EB Ultra ATA storage controller" entries. It will have a Primary (SATA1 port) and a Secondary (SATA2 port) under it, but under that no drive would ever display as a Slave, only Master. Note these controllers are equivalent, not really primary/secondary... those are just names.

The first of the 2 entries will be your regular IDE controller for the PRI_IDE and SEC_IDE ports.

When you run the BIOS IDE Config in Enhanced Mode --as you should-- both controllers will be visible, revealing a total of 6 storage ports on the main chipset. This confuses the older OS's like Win98SE, hence they have the Compatability Mode to deal with those, and you get to choose which 2 out of the 6 ports to "hide" from the OS.

Because you have P4C800-E Deluxe, you will also have a promise SATA controller if you have the Promise set to IDE mode in the BIOS.

Sorry I don't know where to check the Raptor mode. Maybe try the Main- IDE Configuration screen, select Third IDE Master and hit Enter...?

Hope this helps,

-clintfan


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## bbeermat (Jul 6, 2004)

Okay, I had DM on View "Devices by type" to start with. Setting it to View "Devices by connection" did the trick! Thanks for that. :bgrin: I can still see the two _'Intel® 82801EB Ultra ATA storage controller'_ and the PATA and SATA controllers are where you said they would be. 

The difference is that now both _'Intel® 82801EB Ultra ATA storage controller'_ entries have sub-entries below them. The Raptor appears under the "Primary IDE Channel" from which I can see 'Properties' with Advanced Settings. Transfer mode is set to "DMA if available", but current transfer mode is set to UDMA Mode 5. Shouldn't it be in Mode 6 or is it not possible for that to be displayed, even if it is in that mode?


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## clintfan (Sep 4, 2003)

> The Raptor appears under the "Primary IDE Channel" from which I can see 'Properties' with Advanced Settings...Transfer mode is set to "DMA if available", but current transfer mode is set to UDMA Mode 5. Shouldn't it be in Mode 6 or is it not possible for that to be displayed, even if it is in that mode?


No. Raptors are SATA drives, but the "UDMAx" term has meaning only for PATA/IDE drives. For example UDMA4= ATA/66, UDMA5 = ATA/100, and UDMA6= ATA/133: these are all PATA drive terms. The reason you see UDMA5 is that the SATA controller looks (to software) like a UDMA controller, and to behave consistently the SATA controller has to return some speed value when queried. In this case the SATA controller must be returning UDMA5, i.e. something approximating the speed of a SATA150 drive, but without confusing any versions of Windows which might be too old to recognize UDMA6. Windows will then simply print what it's been told, the same as it would for any other PATA controller.

However this won't impact (or determine) the throughput rates. Any SATA drive will always drive the system with as much data as it can absorb, up to the limit of the interface (150MB/s in this case). 

EDIT: I just re--checked the major SATA register definitions (SDMA_TIM, IDE_CONFIG etc.) in the ICH5 datasheet. I couldn't find all the answers but I found some of it. The trick is, although all of the usual UDMA control and status fields are provided, notes at the top of many registers say they are provided for software compatability only, and have no effect whatsoever on SATA operations. 




> under Disk Drives in Device Manager, the checkbox for Write Caching is ticked for the Raptor, and indeed for all hard drives (2 x 160GB 7K250's).
> What's going on?


Sorry, I don't know. All this is probably set up automatically by the BIOS, and I would see no reason to change it.

-clintfan


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## bbeermat (Jul 6, 2004)

Good stuff, clintfan. Thanks for putting my mind at ease ....well to a certain extent anyway. I've had a myriad of niggling little nuisances since I got this new hardware so I'm working through them one at a time. Paradoxically my AthlonXP 1700+ on a cheap Soltek SL-DRV2 with VIA KT400A chipset gave me less trouble and seemed more responsive at half the price. Such is life I guess :wink:


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## clintfan (Sep 4, 2003)

> Paradoxically my AthlonXP 1700+ on a cheap Soltek SL-DRV2 with VIA KT400A chipset gave me less trouble and seemed more responsive at half the price.


Yes, but on the same WinXP Pro OS?


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## bbeermat (Jul 6, 2004)

Yes, also on WinXP Pro.

One of these frustrating annoyances is the occasional very sudden reboot, as if there's been a momentary power cut. I'm hoping it's the Antec SmartPower 350W power supply that came with the SLK3700-BQE case. Things seemed to be better when I was using the Enermax Noisetaker 460W, but that was in the very early stages of having the P4 system and I didn't test it with all the software I'm using now or with the same degree of multitasking, so it's hard to be absolutely certain that the SmartPower is to blame. 

The other difference was that the motherboard was not installed in any case when the Enermax was being used, it was just sitting on a book.

Yet another variable to consider is the multiple X-raying, and exposure to the dry, static prone environment of aircraft cabins the hardware went through before getting to it's new home.

Until I get the Enermax back I don't think it's worth attempting to try to iron out all the creases, when they may magically disappear. In the meantime I'm just trying to learn all I can about the hardware and how it works with the software. You and techsupportforum have been a great help to that end, so thank you.


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