Solved Operating system not found - Vista Home Basic

Acer Aspire 3680
WD 80GB HDD
Phoenix BIOS 3502

Unable to boot, operating system not found.
Computer belongs to a co-worker and I have no reliable history.
No Vista disk available..probably a recovery partition.
BIOS Information Tab shows correct WD HDD model.
(it is labeled IDE1 ???? even though it is a SATA drive - I don't understand that)
BIOS Boot Tab has HDD at #1 (here it is called IDE 0 ????).
Clock OK..BIOS settings holding.
HDD removed and reinserted.
BIOS 3508 is available but I'm not sure if I should flash at this point (or how to flash from DOS).
F8 fails to bring up alternative boot menu.
Tried clean install of XP Pro which failed during setup with this:
"setup cannot access this disk"
This may be due to absence of SATA drivers on XP disk.
I don't seem to hear typical HDD activity when trying to boot, but this may because I am predisposed to think the HDD is dead.

Thanks for any thoughts.

Regards,
John

Welcome
Rather than give you one possible fix, here is a thread on the subject. It has posts by some of our best; administrators and moderators.
http://www.vistax64.com/general-discussion/179270-operating-system-not-found.html

Thanks Richard,

I had read this thread as well as a few others without finding anything else I could try.

Maybe you can try creating a recovery DVD and trying to solve the problem from recovery
http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/141820-create-recovery-disc.html

Try from safe mode

After trying all options that are suggested by me and others, if you still have a problem back up
Use Ubuntu Live CD to Backup Files from Your Dead Windows Computer - How-To Geek

Causes of your problem
If you can get to BIOS make sure that HD is listed as the primary Boot.
You may have a defective MBR-Usually with dual booting
Hard Drive may be damaged
Partition containing the MBR may no longer be marked as active
If none of these causes are the problem the hard drive has probably failed.

Hello Richard,

I did create a recovery disc, but none of the options worked because no hard drive can be seen. For this same reason, I cannot access bootrec.exe because the "choose operating system to repair" field is empty.

I also tried a bootable Partition Magic CD in an attempt to verify that the partition was marked active, but that program couldn't see the HDD either.

Hi ooddad,

Welcome to Vista Forums!

After trying all the options suggested above by Richard (and those you tried on your own) and still being unable to access the drive, I suspect that the hard drive has gone bad (though it could be some other hardware failure, but that's much less likely). Although you could take it to a computer repair shop for confirmation, with the cost of hard drives these days it is probably cheaper to simply replace the drive (and get a bigger and better one at the same time if you want - just make sure it is compatible with the computer and with your version of Vista). I would also confirm you can return it for a full refund in case it doesn't work as then you may need to consider that the problem is elsewhere (the motherboard, the connector cables, or something else) and then a visit to a computer repair shop may be warranted (assuming you don't decide to simply get another computer).

Were you able to access it with Ubuntu to backup the data or did the drive deny access using that method as well? If so, you can try slaving the drive to another computer and seeing if you can access it from the other computer. If so, you should at least be able to salvage your data (and it increases the possibility that the problem may not be the hard drive despite the overwhelming odds). If even that doesn't work, then chances that the drive is completely shot are virtually certain.

In the meantime, the recovery partition will be worthless, so you need to contact the manufacturer to get a set of recovery disks (at a nominal fee) to restore the computer to factory-original conditions and re-install Vista - though you'll most likely need to install the new hard drive drivers in the process (and I recommend you discuss the procedure for that with the manufacturer when you purchase the disks). You can also borrow a genuine full Vista Installation Disk of the same bit-size from ANYONE and use it to do the installation along with your Product Key for activation - this way it costs nothing (and you can then make a copy of the disk in case you ever need it again).

I hope this helps.

Good luck!

Hello Lorien,

Thank you for this thoughtful response. Fortunately, there is no data on the HDD that the owner needs to save. So we will simply replace it and try to borrow a Vista Installation Disk.

I remain puzzled about one thing regarding this version of the Phoenix BIOS. Despite the fact that this is a SATA drive, both the information tab and the boot order tab identify it as an IDE drive. Is that of any significance at all?

Regards,
John

Hi John,

I too am confused by that and can offer no definitive explanation.

It probably is significant (and may even be the underlying cause), but I don't know how BIOS makes that determination. I assume you used SATA cables to connect the drive and not IDE cables (if the drive had both options available) and that there were no jumpers or settings on the drive to identify whether it was SATA or IDE. I assume you confirmed in BIOS that there's no setting to differentiate between SATA and IDE drives - it simply reports but does not allow configuration. Did you check the motherboard to see if there's some type of jumper or setting to distinguish between SATA and IDE - it might be worth a shot to see if there is and it's set incorrectly (though how the drive would have ever worked from the day it was first installed if the setting was wrong and enough to cause what is happening now is then beyond my understanding - and that goes for several of these other checks as well). Then again, this misidentification could simply be another symptom of the defective drive.

If it was a new drive and couldn't be recognized and was misidentified in BIOS, then I would strongly suspect that as the cause (though somewhat at a loss as to how to resolve the problem - it would take a bit of research including how to update the BIOS from a DVD which I've frankly never needed to do before so even I don't know the methodology though I suspect - but am not sure by any means - that it is possible somehow and I'm not even sure if that would help) - but the drive was working so unless something changed (and I'm not sure what that could have been that you didn't learn when discussing the situation with your co-worker or that would cause this level of problem unless it was some sort of automatic BIOS update or, heaven forbid, some form of BIOS infection - they're rare but they do exist and it's all but impossible to determine how that might impact the system unless identified, though what is happening isn't out of the question - or, of course, the drive failure we suspect).

I otherwise don't understand why it would suddenly stop being recognized (after all the options you tried) or able to be accessed when it was working fine before. Do you know if it was ever recognized as a SATA drive or was this only checked after the problem started and you noticed the IDE report? And that it differs from IDE1 to IDE0 between Tabs has me at a loss as well - though again while it seems significant, I can't see how the drive would ever have worked if this misidentification was the case and the cause all along. Once again, this could simply be a symptom of the defective drive.

I imagine when you go to install a new drive, we'll discover if the same problem exists and if it still can't recognize SATA from IDE and if it can't detect the new drive any more than the old one. Then we'll need to examine other causes and options (or have the computer seviced).

I realize I didn't answer your question, but I'm just as perplexed as you are and I'm truly hoping that a new drive and a fresh installation (if it can access the drive) resolves the problem. Then it might be interesting to see what BIOS says concerning the new drive.

I hope this helps even if it didn't come close to addressing your very good but very hard to answer questions.

Good luck and please keep us advised as things progress.

Hello Lorien,

You and I have taken similar lines of reasoning in an attempt to understand this. I also tried Acer support regarding the Phoenix BIOS question, but they simply wore me out with irrelevant questions until I gave up. Here is a summary:

We know the HDD worked fine at one point.
It can only install as a SATA disk.
There are no related options in the BIOS other than boot order.
The user was actually a child who doesn't know what "BIOS" is.
I tried unsuccessfully to flash the BIOS to a newer version using a bootable USB key and a pure DOS environment; the flash utility (phlash16) could not open the BIOS file I downloaded from the Acer site.
I am hopeful that the writer of this Phoenix code did not consider labeling the drive as SATA vs IDE to be a significant point!
I ordered a replacement SATA HDD (Fujitsu 120 GB) and borrowed a Vista Installation DVD.

Thanks again Lorien.....I'll let you know how it goes.

Hi ooddad,

Thanks for the update and well-written summary.

I hope that the new drive and a re-installation resolve the problem.

And, if it helps put your mind at ease just a bit, remember that the drive DID work before - so unless someone or something changed something in the BIOS (which is not likely but also not impossible), this misidentification while confusing (to say the least) is probably not the primary cause. I can't give you a 100% guarantee by any means, but it simply doesn't seem likely to me. It would be convenient if we could update them, but let's see if the simpler approach you're planning works before we delve into those depths.

Good luck!

Here's the procedure I just got from Acer to update BIOS using a bootable CD. You can't just copy the file to the CD. There are other steps first.

MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE INSERTED A BLANK FLOPPY DISK OR CD / DVD INTO YOUR DRIVE. .Download the self-extracting file and save it to your desktop. Once the download completes, double-Click on the file name, and follow the instructions to extract all the files to a floppy disk or cd / dvd. Copy all the extracted files to floppy or cd / dvd. .Leave the floppy disk or cd / dvd in the drive, and reboot your computer. .The system will boot to the floppy or cd / dvd and short flash utility will take place--DO NOT INTERRUPT THIS PROCESS .When the update process is finished you will see an A:> prompt at the bottom of the screen. It is very important to wait until the process completes.Please eject the floppy disk or cd / dvd and then restart your system by pressing the power button. At this point you have successfully flashed your systems BIOS.

Maybe this will help. It will obviously need some changes as you are using different computers, but those should be obvious. Anyway I just got off Chat with Acer and after 30 minutes of them trying to get the serial number out of me, they finally relented and provided the above. It's up to you if you want to try or just wait and do what you've already planned.

Good luck!

Hello Lorien,

Unfortunately, this method seems to be designed to work from a Windows environment. Since I cannot load the operating system, I need a method that will work from pure DOS. Using another computer, I did copy the flash update files to a CD, but it would not boot. When I copied the files to a bootable USD key, the computer did boot to a command prompt, but the flash utility provided by Acer is Windows software and would not work. I also copied the DOS flash utility (phlash16.exe) to the USB key. Executing that program at least started the flash process, but the Acer .WPH file did not open.

Soooooooo....I'm back to waiting for my replacement HDD to arrive.

Regards,
John

Excellent news. I'm glad to hear the problem is resolved. It was our pleasure to be of assistance.

I will report this thread as solved. Thanks for the feedback and letting us know what happened - it may help others in a similar situation. And I have absolutely no idea why BIOS thinks it's IDE - perhaps when you can flash them, that problem will be corrected.

And welcome to Vista Forums! Now that you know where we are, bookmark the site and post anytime you have further questions or problems or if you just want to browse and learn (especially the Tutorial section offers some excellent advice on a wide variety of topics) or even if you want to try to help answer a question if you happen to see one where you know the answer and it hasn't already been posted. While it most likely won't be us the next time (though it might), there are many very skilled, experienced, knowledgeable, and friendly people here who, like us, volunteer their time to help others and one or maybe even several will respond to your post to assist you. While there are other forums on the web that do this sort of thing, you've now found what I think is the best (and I've posted in and/or checked out quite a few) so don't lose this link - you never know when it might come in handy again.

Good luck and best wishes.