Thank you so much for the feedback and all of the time and effort! I really appreciate everything you all have done! I wish it would have had a different outcome, but if the drive is hosed, it's hosed. Thanks for the advice...I'm going to spend a while looking over eBay...thanks again!
...wow...okay...the saga continues...got a new DVD player in...installed it...right away, the BIOS does not read it correctly...first part ID okay, but the rest of the identification is jibberish--symbols and odd characters...the good news is that the laptop will boot up with the new drive in it; however, the drive is not ID correctly in Windows 7 and a pop-up message says there is not a valid hardware ID for the device. Further, Device Manager does not show the drive at all and even trying to add it via Windows or manually does not work correctly. So, I think the BIOS must have gotten messed up too...I'm back to my original issue: how do I flash a 64-bit OS with a flasher made by Phoenix as a 32-bit flasher? When I use two different Phoenix 64-bit flashers, I get an error message that says the image is not valid. Yes, I have re-downloaded them again and again taking a corrupt file out of the loop. Truly, any assistance would be appreciated!
Thanks so much for replying! I guess I should back up a bit, b/c I seem to be missing something very basic. I have a 4 GB Swiss USB Drive, which I have formatted with the HP utility. I formatted it in FAT and created a DOS startup disk using Win98 DOS that I directed it to. The HP utility said it was successful. I set the laptop BIOS to boot from a USB device and inserted the Swiss Drive. I get a big blank screen. Hmmmm, I thought. So, I went back and manually added the 2 files from minidos to the USB key and same thing. Right now, the USB stick has command.com, msdos.sys, kernel.sys, and io.sys on it. Would someone mind telling me what in the world I'm doing wrong in this process, please. I cannot imagine what other files the stick needs to be bootable. Thanks in advance.
Wow! Okay, this keeps getting deeper and deeper. 1) I was able to create a DOS bootable flash drive and flash the BIOS with the Dell spec. version, using the old (original DVD). Even after flashing the BIOS, the DVD is still incorrectly identified. Hmmm, I thought. Upon re-boot, the laptop still hangs when it transitions from the splash screen to the desktop. So, next, I shut down, took out the original DVD and inserted the brand new Dell-purchased DVD (different make and model) and flashed the BIOS again. The new drive was incorrectly identified in the BIOS. However, as before, I can (with this new drive) actually get the laptop to boot into Win 7 Ultimate; however, the DVD drive is not recognized within Windows, is not even seen in Device Manager, and does not show up in My Computer. Hmmm...any thoughts? I have not tried the modified BIOS yet; although, I will try that tomorrow morning and see if I get a different result. I have no thoughts on how come a BIOS flash does not fix the incorrect DVD id. You all have some ideas? It seems like, if the modified BIOS flash doesn't fix this, I have little choice expect to not use a DVD with the laptop or I send the laptop back to Dell to have them insert a new BIOS chip, huh? Thoughts?
Perhaps your RAM is flakey?...you should run Memtest86+. How many sticks of RAM do you have installed?...could you try removing one?
...great thought about the memory...I have two sticks of Kingston KVR 512 MB, 1.8 volts...I tried booting and then re-flashing with only one stick in the laptop...BIOS still mis-reads DVD and re-flashing didn't correct either...will run memtest, but I don't think it will show anything substantive...any thoughts about how to proceed from this point? Dell wants $400 to replace system board at their facility and they charge $279 USD for a new system board...yikes! Anyone have any thoughts what got messed up? I can't even fathom why a BIOS flash won't fix it--especially with two different DVDs! Thoughts or ideas? Thanks!
You tried both sticks of memory by themselves right? Also perhaps remove the hard drive and see what the BIOS says about the DVD drive string? Perhaps something corrupted your hard drive firmware?
Yes, that's correct...I tried booting up with each stick of memory independently and had the same BIOS error. Additionally, I tried each stick individually with both the old and new DVD drive and both were mis-identified by the BIOS. I then tried to flash the BIOS with each stick of RAM independently, with the same result being the DVD drive is mis-identified in the BIOS. I just tried to flash the BIOS with the HD removed and both the old and brand new DVD drive is/are mis-identified. Thoughts?
...I'll tell you something I find intriguing (and have no idea what the significance is): with the old DVD drive in the laptop, even after flashing the BIOS (of the laptop), the computer will lock-up when going from the Win 7 splash screen to what should be the desktop. However, with the brand new DVD drive from Dell (different manufacturer from the first drive), the laptop will go from the Win 7 splash screen into the desktop. However, the DVD drive is not identified in in My Computer or Device Manager or even in Disk Management. Moreover, even when scanning for changes via Device Manager, the DVD drive will not be found. Lastly, with the new DVD drive, when Windows is finalizing boot-up, I get a "Hardware ID missing" error message. While I don't know the significance of all of that, it seems like it tells a meaningful story somehow. Any thoughts about this stuff? Thanks so much, to everyone, who has spent so much time answering post after post after post from me! I appreciate it!
It sure sounds like you have some kind of problem with the IDE connector on the laptop chassis. The fact that Windows can't query the drive correctly isn't too shocking since the BIOS can't really do it either. Have you used a flash light to visually inspect the connector from the outside? Also since I'm not familiar with the Inspiron 1501 BIOS, have you checked to make sure your BIOS is set for AUTO on the IDE port?
...okay, here's yet another update: I did more than take a flash light...I took apart the laptop keyboard and RAM, HD, and battery and blew out to make sure nothing was lodged in there. It sure looks clean to me--no loose wires, bent connectors, or such that I can see. Also, removed the CMOS battery. Just for kicks (not being a BIOS guy), I left out the CMOS battery and flashed the BIOS again. Still finds both the old and new DVD drives incorrectly. However, after booting into Windows and going to Device Manager, I think I noticed something odd (not knowing how it should be to begin with), which is that I have two ATA Chanel 0 listed and one ATA Chanel 1 listed, along with the other standard items under that branch. So, Hmmm...I thought why not uninstall all of the IDE stuff and let Windows try to re-install it by itself. Well, I'm sure you all can sort of guess the outcome, but what I found odd is that I couldn't un-install the ATA Chanel 0 that had the DVD drive on it. I even went into Safe Mode and tried to un-install it there, along with the relevant IDE controller, but it will not allow it. That seems a bit curious to me since I could remove every other item under the branch. Any thoughts about that? If someone knows the right registry entries for the DVD/IDE controllers, do you think it might be worthwhile removing those from the registry and seeing if that forces something different? Also, of note, since I took out the CMOS battery (and blew out the laptop), the DVD drive is now found as an ATAPI CDROM. Does that suggest anything to anyone? Again, thanks for all of the help! Overall, I just don't see how Remove WAT could physically ruin the IDE controller for the DVD drive, but who knows! Thanks, again! You all have a good day and I'll check back for replies.
Oh, also, you asked about the BIOS and IDE setting...in the 1501 BIOS, there is no option to set anything related to the CDROM or IDE...it's all grayed out...the 1501 BIOS is really limited in user-settings!
...sorry, I had one more thing I was going to mention. The second ATA Chanel 0 has a message that reads: "This device is working properly. There is a secondary device connected to this hardware that Windows cannot identify because it does not have a valid hardware identification number." Does that give anybody and ideas? I sure hope so!
I still don't think this was a bios problem sounds more like your windows install or your ide controller.
...well, it would have to the IDE Controller...in desperation last night, I took an Acronis image of the laptop, from about 4-months ago, I re-imaged the laptop. Same exact issue with the BIOS not identifying the DVD drive correctly and same issue with it hanging when transferring from the Win 7 splash screen to the desktop. If we assume it's the IDE Controller, does anyone know of a way to get it fixed? I cannot fathom how Remove WAT ruined an IDE Controller, but it seems there must be a way to try to remove it from the registry and see what that does...any thoughts or suggestions about that?