Struggling with SATA in the Bios Setup

[JD]

Hello Experts :-)

Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.

The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.

The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs but
there is little information about how to handle the situations.

There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.

When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.

Struggle on old clown :-(

HEELLPPPP :-)

[Paul]

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs but
there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

A couple of pages along, you'll find "Sata Configuration", which is
shown on the main screen as well.

In there is "Onchip SATA Channel" [Enabled] and you can check
that it is enabled. The submenu breaks the six SATA ports down
into two groups. A group of four ports, and a group of two ports.
The default mode for each group is "IDE" and that's sufficient
to get you started. Many OSes will be able to install to "IDE"
mode as a setting, without additional drivers.

On your SATA drives, make sure both a SATA power and a SATA data
cable are connected.

It's not likely to be a cable interface issue. Only if you
had a VIA chipset, one of the older ones, might you have
problems with SATA II or SATA III drives. Your chipset Southbridge
is ATI/AMD (SB850), and should be relatively compatible.

The port breakdown, is five SATA ports on the motherboard, and
the sixth port is used for an ESATA connection. So there are
up to six SATA related things that can be detected.

The board also has a VT6330 to run an IDE ribbon cable interface,
which could give you room for two more drives. The ribbon cable
connector is in the lower right corner.

Good luck,
Paul

[JD]

Post by Paul

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs
but there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

A couple of pages along, you'll find "Sata Configuration", which is
shown on the main screen as well.
In there is "Onchip SATA Channel" [Enabled] and you can check
that it is enabled. The submenu breaks the six SATA ports down
into two groups. A group of four ports, and a group of two ports.
The default mode for each group is "IDE" and that's sufficient
to get you started. Many OSes will be able to install to "IDE"
mode as a setting, without additional drivers.
On your SATA drives, make sure both a SATA power and a SATA data
cable are connected.
It's not likely to be a cable interface issue. Only if you
had a VIA chipset, one of the older ones, might you have
problems with SATA II or SATA III drives. Your chipset Southbridge
is ATI/AMD (SB850), and should be relatively compatible.
The port breakdown, is five SATA ports on the motherboard, and
the sixth port is used for an ESATA connection. So there are
up to six SATA related things that can be detected.
The board also has a VT6330 to run an IDE ribbon cable interface,
which could give you room for two more drives. The ribbon cable
connector is in the lower right corner.
Good luck,
Paul

Thanks you Paul. You are always ready :-)

While working on the SATA1 of Sony monitor the image on the screen slid
a bit to the left side and out of sight. I tried all of the buttons
along the right side of the monitor but they did not move the image at all.

This is the first time that I have been this far into the BIOS. Up to
the present, when I bought a motherboard, there was no need to do so
much work.

Once more, my THANKS!!!

[Jeff Strickland]

Post by JD

Post by Paul

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs
but there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

A couple of pages along, you'll find "Sata Configuration", which is
shown on the main screen as well.
In there is "Onchip SATA Channel" [Enabled] and you can check
that it is enabled. The submenu breaks the six SATA ports down
into two groups. A group of four ports, and a group of two ports.
The default mode for each group is "IDE" and that's sufficient
to get you started. Many OSes will be able to install to "IDE"
mode as a setting, without additional drivers.
On your SATA drives, make sure both a SATA power and a SATA data
cable are connected.
It's not likely to be a cable interface issue. Only if you
had a VIA chipset, one of the older ones, might you have
problems with SATA II or SATA III drives. Your chipset Southbridge
is ATI/AMD (SB850), and should be relatively compatible.
The port breakdown, is five SATA ports on the motherboard, and
the sixth port is used for an ESATA connection. So there are
up to six SATA related things that can be detected.
The board also has a VT6330 to run an IDE ribbon cable interface,
which could give you room for two more drives. The ribbon cable
connector is in the lower right corner.
Good luck,
Paul

Thanks you Paul. You are always ready :-)
While working on the SATA1 of Sony monitor the image on the screen slid a
bit to the left side and out of sight. I tried all of the buttons along
the right side of the monitor but they did not move the image at all.
This is the first time that I have been this far into the BIOS. Up to the
present, when I bought a motherboard, there was no need to do so much
work.
Once more, my THANKS!!!

SATA 1 of Sony monitor? What does that mean?

SATA is a scheme for connecting drives, both hard drives and optical drives.
SATA1 is a port (connector) on the moterhboard where you plug a drive in. A
typical motherboard will support 4 SATA devices.

The thing that has me scratching my head is how you correlate a SATA port
with the monitor. There is no correlation.

[JD]

Post by Paul

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs
but there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

A couple of pages along, you'll find "Sata Configuration", which is
shown on the main screen as well.
In there is "Onchip SATA Channel" [Enabled] and you can check
that it is enabled. The submenu breaks the six SATA ports down
into two groups. A group of four ports, and a group of two ports.
The default mode for each group is "IDE" and that's sufficient
to get you started. Many OSes will be able to install to "IDE"
mode as a setting, without additional drivers.
On your SATA drives, make sure both a SATA power and a SATA data
cable are connected.
It's not likely to be a cable interface issue. Only if you
had a VIA chipset, one of the older ones, might you have
problems with SATA II or SATA III drives. Your chipset Southbridge
is ATI/AMD (SB850), and should be relatively compatible.
The port breakdown, is five SATA ports on the motherboard, and
the sixth port is used for an ESATA connection. So there are
up to six SATA related things that can be detected.
The board also has a VT6330 to run an IDE ribbon cable interface,
which could give you room for two more drives. The ribbon cable
connector is in the lower right corner.
Good luck,
Paul

Thanks you Paul. You are always ready :-)
While working on the SATA1 of Sony monitor the image on the screen slid a
bit to the left side and out of sight. I tried all of the buttons along
the right side of the monitor but they did not move the image at all.
This is the first time that I have been this far into the BIOS. Up to the
present, when I bought a motherboard, there was no need to do so much
work.
Once more, my THANKS!!!
SATA 1 of Sony monitor? What does that mean?

Post by Paul
Oooppss, it should have been a line "SATA 1 ON the Sony monitor." I
was looking at the Sony monitor.

SATA is a scheme for connecting drives, both hard drives and optical drives.

Post by Paul
Yup!

SATA1 is a port (connector) on the motherboard where you plug a drive in. A
typical motherboard will support 4 SATA devices.

Post by Paul
Yup :-) I'm just learning things like that.

The thing that has me scratching my head is how you correlate a SATA port
with the monitor. There is no correlation.

I was able to see a list of all the SATA ports on my Sony monitor. I
have the ASUS manual and it is mostly a piece of junk, very especially
when it comes to the BIOS section.

[Jeff Strickland]

Post by Paul

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs
but there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

A couple of pages along, you'll find "Sata Configuration", which is
shown on the main screen as well.
In there is "Onchip SATA Channel" [Enabled] and you can check
that it is enabled. The submenu breaks the six SATA ports down
into two groups. A group of four ports, and a group of two ports.
The default mode for each group is "IDE" and that's sufficient
to get you started. Many OSes will be able to install to "IDE"
mode as a setting, without additional drivers.
On your SATA drives, make sure both a SATA power and a SATA data
cable are connected.
It's not likely to be a cable interface issue. Only if you
had a VIA chipset, one of the older ones, might you have
problems with SATA II or SATA III drives. Your chipset Southbridge
is ATI/AMD (SB850), and should be relatively compatible.
The port breakdown, is five SATA ports on the motherboard, and
the sixth port is used for an ESATA connection. So there are
up to six SATA related things that can be detected.
The board also has a VT6330 to run an IDE ribbon cable interface,
which could give you room for two more drives. The ribbon cable
connector is in the lower right corner.
Good luck,
Paul

Thanks you Paul. You are always ready :-)
While working on the SATA1 of Sony monitor the image on the screen slid a
bit to the left side and out of sight. I tried all of the buttons along
the right side of the monitor but they did not move the image at all.
This is the first time that I have been this far into the BIOS. Up to the
present, when I bought a motherboard, there was no need to do so much
work.
Once more, my THANKS!!!
SATA 1 of Sony monitor? What does that mean?

Post by Paul
Oooppss, it should have been a line "SATA 1 ON the Sony monitor." I
was looking at the Sony monitor.

SATA is a scheme for connecting drives, both hard drives and optical drives.

Post by Paul
Yup!

SATA1 is a port (connector) on the motherboard where you plug a drive in. A
typical motherboard will support 4 SATA devices.

Post by Paul
Yup :-) I'm just learning things like that.

The thing that has me scratching my head is how you correlate a SATA port
with the monitor. There is no correlation.

I was able to see a list of all the SATA ports on my Sony monitor. I have
the ASUS manual and it is mostly a piece of junk, very especially when it
comes to the BIOS section.

Of course you can. The monitor will display BIOS information if it can
display anything at all. But what the monitor displays has nothing to do
with SATA, or not.

BIOS _means_ Basic Instruction, if you have any sort of video output at all,
the BIOS will display. You can see all of the devices that the motherboard
cares about in the BIOS screen. You can also use the BIOS to specify the
Boor Sequence -- the order in which the motherboard looks for boot drive
information. I suggest your boot sequence be set so that your optical
drive(s) come before the HDD. If the HDD takes a bye, and you have a
bootable CD, then you can still get the machine going with a CD. Of course,
since you can get to BIOS pretty much anytime you want, you can set the boot
sequence for the HDD first, and then if the HDD takes a dump on you then you
can set the BIOS so an optical drive is first and then boot to the CD.

I'm an old-school guy where we had our machine set to boot first from a
floopy disc, then go to the hard drive if there was no bootable information
in the floppy. I suppose those days are past...

Sorry, I'm rambling. I set my machines to boot from a CD or other removable
boot source in case my HDD fails. It takes an extra second or two for my
machine to come up as a result, but I can throw in/connect any bootable
media before powering up, and boot from someplace that isn't the HDD.
There's an upside there that I have done a poor job of explaining, but the
upside exists despite my shortfalls.

[[e-mail]]

Jeff Strickland wrote:

<Snip>
Sorry, to be picky, but,

Post by Jeff Strickland
BIOS _means_ Basic Instruction,

BIOS _means_ Basic Input Output System

Daniel

[Dizz Nutts O'mine]

Post by ***@teranews.com
<Snip>
Sorry, to be picky, but,

Post by Jeff Strickland
BIOS _means_ Basic Instruction,

BIOS _means_ Basic Input Output System
Daniel

And I always thought it meant:

"Bullshit InOperable System"

-DNO

[Jeff Strickland]

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in my
old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that came
with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs but
there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should open
up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

The SATA drives have two cables, a power cable and a data cable. If the
drives are not detected, then one of the cables is missing or otherwise has
a poor connection.

Odds are very high that the box you are putting the motherboard into does
not have SATA power connectors. You can replace the power supply with one
that supports SATA, or you can get some adaptors that convert the standard
4-pin connections to the SATA-style.

[JD]

Post by Jeff Strickland

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in
my old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that
came with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs
but there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

The SATA drives have two cables, a power cable and a data cable. If the
drives are not detected, then one of the cables is missing or otherwise
has a poor connection.

I knew that. I have 2 such SATA drives attached.

Post by Jeff Strickland
Odds are very high that the box you are putting the motherboard into
does not have SATA power connectors. You can replace the power supply
with one that supports SATA, or you can get some adaptors that convert
the standard 4-pin connections to the SATA-style.

I have a whopping power supply - Corsair TX750, with a 5 year warranty
and it has so many cable connections that I almost get dizzy. I counted
the 4-pin power supply plugs and found 7. Many other plugs are SATA
types. No shortage of plugs there :-)

Thanks for your interest Jeff.

[JD]

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in my
old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that came
with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs but
there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

===========================================================
EXTRACT from:
ASUS - M4A88TD-V Evo/USB3

Section 3.3, Page 3-9. BIOS Setup Program

A BIOS Setup Program is provided for BIOS item modification. When you
start up the computer, the system provides you with the opportunity to
run this program. Press <Del> during the Power-on-Self-Test (POST) to
enter the Setup utility. Otherwise, POST continues with its test routines.

If you wish to enter Setup after POST, restart the system by pressing
<Cntrl>+<Alt>+<Delete> or by pressing the reset button on the system
chassis. You can also restart by turning the system off and back on. Do
this last option only if the first two failed.

The Setup program is designed to make it as easy to use as possible.
Being a menu-driven program, it lets you scroll through the various
submenus and select from the available options using the navigation keys.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Working on the above information was very messy. I hit the right chord
only once.

Does anyone have a clear set of instructions for this situation?

===========================================================

Now I have an added problem. The screen on Sony has shifted to the left.
There are 6 "roller buttons" along the right hand side of the monitor
but I can't get the image back to the right side where it should be.

The only success I have had was that I have a SATA hard drive running
happily with that motherboard :-)

Happy weekend to all.

[JD]

Post by JD

Post by JD
Hello Experts :-)
Today I tried to install a new ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3 motherboard in my
old computer and I am far from satisfied with the instructions that came
with the motherboard.
The installation of the board was simple and the users guide is quite
good, until it hits the BIOS and there much information is missing,
leaving me out in the cold.
The 'BIOS setup Program' On page 3-9 shows all the 8 different SATAs but
there is little information about how to handle the situations.
There is a VGA contact on the computer for the Sony monitor and that
appears to work ok.
When starting up the computer, press DEL key, and the monitor should
open up - at the BIOS. But the SATA1, Sata2, etc. are as yet undetected.
Struggle on old clown :-(
HEELLPPPP :-)

===========================================================
ASUS - M4A88TD-V Evo/USB3
Section 3.3, Page 3-9. BIOS Setup Program
A BIOS Setup Program is provided for BIOS item modification. When you
start up the computer, the system provides you with the opportunity to
run this program. Press <Del> during the Power-on-Self-Test (POST) to
enter the Setup utility. Otherwise, POST continues with its test routines.
If you wish to enter Setup after POST, restart the system by pressing
<Cntrl>+<Alt>+<Delete> or by pressing the reset button on the system
chassis. You can also restart by turning the system off and back on. Do
this last option only if the first two failed.
The Setup program is designed to make it as easy to use as possible.
Being a menu-driven program, it lets you scroll through the various
submenus and select from the available options using the navigation keys.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Working on the above information was very messy. I hit the right chord
only once.
Does anyone have a clear set of instructions for this situation?
===========================================================
Now I have an added problem. The screen on Sony has shifted to the left.
There are 6 "roller buttons" along the right hand side of the monitor
but I can't get the image back to the right side where it should be.

I fixed this one, after a struggle.

Post by JD
The only success I have had was that I have a SATA hard drive running
happily with that motherboard :-)
Happy weekend to all.

Happy weekend :-)