through (windows98) A:\fdisk, i installed WD160 IDE as second HD but it only show up with 2GB capacity. so, what do i do?

Does it show up as a 2 GB HD in both BIOS and in Windows?
Did you partition it using FAT16 or FAT32?
How many partitions did you use?

It sounds like you answered "N" to this screen, which would result in a maximum usable space of 2 GB.

http://radified.com/FDISK/JPEGs/fdisk_01.gif

i did choose (N) for large disk support but on the second attempt (Y), creating primary DOS partition only allow 10GB to be shown. i did use WD's Data Lifeguard 10.0 to install but no more than 10GB too.

The maximum physical capacity that you can use in a hard drive will be
determined by your computer's hardware and BIOS.

Note that the largest FAT32 partition that can be safely used and
maintained is 128 gb (137 billion bytes). You will not be able to use
Scandisk or Defrag on partitions larger than that, and Norton will
also not work with them I believe.

So if you do install a drive that is larger than 128 gb you should
seriously consider partitioning it into two or more logical drives,
each no larger than 128 gb.

Good luck

Here a Solution (http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;Q263044)

This might help you out.
cya

for fdisk, i chose "Change Current Fixed Disk". it displayed my master drive correctly but the second drive (before partition!) only has 10GB shown. btw, i have installed the fix for Win98.

What model,year, and type is your motherboard?
The motherboard could be the culprit.

would installing an IDE controller card help?

We'll need some good system info, I think Diurnal is on the right track. Older motherboards had BIOS drive size limitations, the BIOS couldn't recognize more than a certain number of Cylinders, Heads and Tracks, limiting the hard drive to specific sizes. I think 10GB is one of those limits. If that's the case, nothing you do will get your machine to see the full capacity of your drive.

In some cases a third party utility like EZ-Drive will allow larger drive sizes, but I doubt if the 160 will be usable, especially if you've already tried the manufacturer's software and it won't work using that. It should be able to install such a utility, called a Dynamic Drive Overlay.

In my experience, if you have BIOS that does not support large disk drives, then a controller card will not help either. I know I installed a controller card one time. The instructions said I could install the contoller BIOS and it would work. In short, it never worked. However I was fixing a HP, you might have a different experience.

Cya

i'm using Compaq Presario 7500. if i'm installing under XP (on another PC), would i be able to see the full capacity on Compaq? or perhaps, an upgrade to WinMe would do?

The information you gave me (presario 7500) told me that you have a 600MHZ processer. Although i would need your product# to know exactly what parts you have. I would not give that out though because it gives out information about you as well.

Anyway XP or Me would not solve your problem. The reason for this is that your motherboad bios still would not support a 160GB harddrive. In other words, it will refuse to recognize your drive. Therefore, windows will have no way of knowing that there is a drive there.

I think 40GB harddrive is the max you can have with that Presario. However, you can try and update your BIOS. This is not an easy task if you have an older model computer. Heres a link to help you.Compaq BIOS Info (http://h20015.www2.hp.com/en/document.jhtml?reg=&plc=&lc=en&cc=us&cat=prodinfo&prodId=compaqpres94505&docName=c00007682)

Ok, if you a do it yourselfer then go for it. However get ready to spend some time on this procedure. If you need help call or email tech support about your situation. Also make sure that these new BIOS will solve your hard drive problem. So look for the exact thing your trying to accomplish (example: BIOS version 3.0 , support for large disks drives).

i'm able to install a 120gb drive...

Compaq Software & Driver downloads (http://h20015.www2.hp.com/en/softwareList.jhtml?reg=&cc=us&prodId=compaqpres94505&lc=en&plc=&softitem=Microsoft%20Windows%2098&sw_lang=en&pagetype=software) - none of which addresses the problem

DO NOT use fdisk and format. Use the software supplied by the hard drive manufacturer to do it all. Pay attention to the screens and you should be fine

yes, i did use WD's software but it didnt work.

anyway, on WD's download page.....
IDE Upgrade Utility (Non-3Ware controller cards) (http://support.wdc.com/download/index.asp)

The utility runs within DOS and is used to update WD drives connected to a host system via the primary IDE controller on the system's motherboard.
Affected drives:
- WD drives with capacities between 40GB & 120GB
- WD drives with greater than 120GB capacity with Mfg. date codes earlier than 3/25/03

i'm desperate...would this help?

Check the date code on the drive and don't be afraid to call tech support at Western Digital.