Format fails @ 15% and "NLTDR is missing"

Imaginator · 01-10-2006, 08:03 PM

As recommended by Tumbleweed36, I'm posting this as a new thread:

I get the dreaded "NLTDR is missing" message after trying to set up Windows XP pro from a bootable CD. I tried formatting once and it failed at 15% - started getting intermittent warning beeps and then they continued consistently before I turned it off.

Everything is connected properly and I'm booting from my CD/DVD Burner with a Windows XP CD. The DVD is listed as first in the boot sequence but hard drive is listed as second. Should I try and install anyway with this NLTDR message that appears? Does it matter if the BIOS has the hard drive as Primary Master and the DVD drive as Secondary Master?

For clarity, I'm installing a completely new drive (120 GB ATA 100 IDE) and there are no other drives connected to the motherboard, just two other dvd burners.
Would be grateful for any help, this is quite infuriating.

Tumbleweed36 · 01-11-2006, 01:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Imaginator

As recommended by Tumbleweed36, I'm posting this as a new thread:

I get the dreaded "NLTDR is missing" message after trying to set up Windows XP pro from a bootable CD. I tried formatting once and it failed at 15% - started getting intermittent warning beeps and then they continued consistently before I turned it off.

Those beeps mean something. What you need to do is look at your manual and see what the code tells you (like, is it two short, one long, etc) about the beep.

Are you saying that the beeps happened AFTER you had it up and running and when you were loading the operating system?

Try only one stick of memory at a time and see what happens.

Everything is connected properly and I'm booting from my CD/DVD Burner with a Windows XP CD. The DVD is listed as first in the boot sequence but hard drive is listed as second.

O.K., I believe you have everything set up correctly, but tell me how it is set up. List all drives including brand names, how each is jumpered, where on the ribbon cable it is placed, and what is on IDE #1 and what is on IDE #2

Example:

IDE #1............................DVD........................Boot hard drive
brand..............................Benq.......................Western Digital
Jumpers...........................Slave.......................Master
placement.........................Middle or cable..........end of cable

Should I try and install anyway with this NLTDR message that appears?

If we have everything set up correctly and are doing a clean install, you should be able to get rid of that message....we will see.

Does it matter if the BIOS has the hard drive as Primary Master and the DVD drive as Secondary Master?

When you list the above requested information, I will know if it is set up so it will work.

For clarity, I'm installing a completely new drive (120 GB ATA 100 IDE) and there are no other drives connected to the motherboard, just two other dvd burners.

Refer back to the requested information...I need the name of that hard drive like what brand it is and is it alone on the ribbon cable like IDE #1.

Post back and let's try to get rid of these errors.

Would be grateful for any help, this is quite infuriating.

**freddyhard** · 01-11-2006, 04:54 AM

i'd check the windows XP disc. you can go here for a free download.

http://www.e-systems.ro/diskcheck.htm

this will rule out the disc as fault...

Imaginator · 01-11-2006, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Those beeps mean something. What you need to do is look at your manual and see what the code tells you (like, is it two short, one long, etc) about the beep.

Are you saying that the beeps happened AFTER you had it up and running and when you were loading the operating system?

The beeping occurs during the set-up, first time through at 15% of the set-up, second try at 9%. It almost sounds as if the computer is trying to re-boot itself.

Quote:

O.K., I believe you have everything set up correctly, but tell me how it is set up. List all drives including brand names, how each is jumpered, where on the ribbon cable it is placed, and what is on IDE #1 and what is on IDE #2

Example:

IDE #1............................DVD................. .......Boot hard drive
brand..............................Benq........... ............Western Digital
Jumpers...........................Slave........... ............Master
placement.........................Middle or cable..........end of cable

IDE #1 -- DVD -- Boot hard drive
brand -- NEC ND 3520A
Jumpers -- Master (secondary)
placement -- end of cable

IDE #2 Hard Drive
brand -- Seagate [ST3120026A - 120GB]
Jumpers -- Master (primary)
placement -- end of cable

Under my main BIOS set-up those two are listed in reverse, with primary master as the hard drive and secondary master as the DVD drive so I'm not really sure what would be considered IDE #1 or #2.

My boot sequence looks like this:
1. ATAPI CD-ROM [NEC DVD_RW ND-3520A]
2. Removable Device [Legacy Floppy]*
3. Other Boot Device [INT18 Device (Network)**
4. IDE Hard Drive [ST3120026A]

*Other options: Disabled, LS120, ZIP, ATAPI MO, USB FDD, USB ZIP
**Other options: Disabled, SCSI/Onboard ATA Boot Device

The only things I have connected to the PC are the keyboard, monitor, and the power cable. I have disconnected the cable to the second DVD burner (secondary slave) to see if that will help next time around. I haven't tried installing yet after removing a memory stick. My motherboard is an ASUS A7V8X and I have an Antec True 430 Watt power supply.

Thanks very much for your willingness to help and I'll check to see if that boot disc is reliable. Thanks for the link.

Tumbleweed36 · 01-11-2006, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Imaginator

The beeping occurs during the set-up, first time through at 15% of the set-up, second try at 9%. It almost sounds as if the computer is trying to re-boot itself.

IDE #1 -- DVD -- Boot hard drive
brand -- NEC ND 3520A
Jumpers -- Master (secondary)
placement -- end of cable

Do this:

IDE # 1 - Seagate Hard Drive, jumpers set as Master, on end of cable (middle connector nothing) (make sure you are using an 80 connector cable for your hard drive)
IDE #2 - DVD drive - Jumpers set as Master - on end of cable (middle connector nothing)

IDE #2 Hard Drive
brand -- Seagate [ST3120026A - 120GB]
Jumpers -- Master (primary)
placement -- end of cable

Under my main BIOS set-up those two are listed in reverse, with primary master as the hard drive and secondary master as the DVD drive so I'm not really sure what would be considered IDE #1 or #2.

Change it to this:

Boot sequence:

1. ATAPI CD-ROM [NEC DVD_RW ND-3520A]
2. Removable Device [Legacy Floppy]*
3. IDE Hard Drive (this will be your boot drive)

*Other options: Disabled, LS120, ZIP, ATAPI MO, USB FDD, USB ZIP
**Other options: Disabled, SCSI/Onboard ATA Boot Device

The only things I have connected to the PC are the keyboard, monitor, and the power cable. I have disconnected the cable to the second DVD burner (secondary slave) to see if that will help next time around. I haven't tried installing yet after removing a memory stick. My motherboard is an ASUS A7V8X and I have an Antec True 430 Watt power supply.

Thanks very much for your willingness to help and I'll check to see if that boot disc is reliable. Thanks for the link.

Put back the ATX connector from the power supply, the 12 volt sqaure molex connector to the motherboard, of course the motherboard, cpu/heatsink/fan connected to motherboard, one memory stick (make sure you have it in the slot as designated by your motherboard manual) video card, monitor, keyboard, ON/off switch wires, speaker wires/both drives as listed in the changes I gave you......try it and report back. I do think your boot order was a major cause of your difficulties, but we will see.

Imaginator · 01-11-2006, 09:00 AM

I'll have to try it when I get back from work but how do I know what is IDE #1 and what is IDE #2? The cable for the hard drive is the one supplied by Seagate. Do DVD drives require different cables? I was thinking of replacing the cable for that drive.

Quote:

IDE # 1 - Seagate Hard Drive, jumpers set as Master, on end of cable (middle connector nothing) (make sure you are using an 80 connector cable for your hard drive)
IDE #2 - DVD drive - Jumpers set as Master - on end of cable (middle connector nothing)

The drives are currently set like you state above. Nothing connected in the middle cable. Thanks again, will report back tonight.

**freddyhard** · 01-11-2006, 09:14 AM

IDE0 - the primary is in blue and IDE1 - the secondary is in black. normally the boot HD is master on the primary channel, but it'd be more important for both to be set as master on each channel. (as you have)

IDE0 gets IRQ14 and IDE1 gets IRQ 15, so on the mobo the CPU will listen to IDE0 first. you've probably done this already but make sure the IDE cables are working properly. use ones that were working okay.

it's very unlikely that it is the XP disc, but it wouldn't do any harm to check it.

Tumbleweed36 · 01-11-2006, 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Imaginator

I'll have to try it when I get back from work but how do I know what is IDE #1 and what is IDE #2?

Explained nicely by freddyhard.

The cable for the hard drive is the one supplied by Seagate.

Yes, use that one supplied by Seagate for the hard drive.

Do DVD drives require different cables? I was thinking of replacing the cable for that drive.

Normal DVD drives as a rule can use either the 40 or 80 connector cables with no consequences. It is also a good idea to keep an extra cable around and try one if the one you are using is not getting the results you want. Just be sure you check the jumpers on each drive before you try it, because if not set correctly, it will give you errors.

The drives are currently set like you state above. Nothing connected in the middle cable. Thanks again, will report back tonight.

Will await your report back. Good luck!

Imaginator · 01-11-2006, 12:14 PM

First, thanks to you guys for your help without making me feel like an idiot. You're all very thorough and really want to help. A lot of places aren't at all like that.

Regarding the cables, the one thing I know for certain is that the blue end of the ide hard drive cable is plugged into the corresponding blue slot on my motherboard. I haven't unplugged the dvd drive cable yet but will do that. I think it has seen better days.

Again, thank you.

Imaginator · 01-12-2006, 11:50 AM

I have failed to fix the problem despite following all advice. In all honesty, I have had many problems with this pc and might purchase a new one or build another using some of the newer parts (video card) from this pc. Thanks again for everyone's time and input.

Tumbleweed36 · 01-12-2006, 12:00 PM

Hi,

Sorry to hear you are giving up. I won't be around for another couple of hours of so, but if you decide to keep going and trying to get this one going, send me a PM and I will take another look to see if we have missed anything. I never say never, but do understand your frustration.

noobtastic · 01-12-2006, 04:14 PM

I think I had this problem or something similar. I thought it was the hard drive but it turned out it was a bad stick of ram. I can remember the exact error it gave me but the "nltdr" thing kinda looks familiar, along with the fact it cant seem to reformat and reboots in the middle. If you can try taking out the ram you have and try another stick. If multiple sticks try each one individually.

01-10-2006, 08:03 PM	#1 (permalink)
Imaginator Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 30 OS: winxp	Format fails @ 15% and "NLTDR is missing" As recommended by Tumbleweed36, I'm posting this as a new thread: I get the dreaded "NLTDR is missing" message after trying to set up Windows XP pro from a bootable CD. I tried formatting once and it failed at 15% - started getting intermittent warning beeps and then they continued consistently before I turned it off. Everything is connected properly and I'm booting from my CD/DVD Burner with a Windows XP CD. The DVD is listed as first in the boot sequence but hard drive is listed as second. Should I try and install anyway with this NLTDR message that appears? Does it matter if the BIOS has the hard drive as Primary Master and the DVD drive as Secondary Master? For clarity, I'm installing a completely new drive (120 GB ATA 100 IDE) and there are no other drives connected to the motherboard, just two other dvd burners. Would be grateful for any help, this is quite infuriating.

01-11-2006, 04:54 AM	#3 (permalink)
freddyhard Design Team Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Éire Posts: 1,543 OS: 2k (still!)	i'd check the windows XP disc. you can go here for a free download. http://www.e-systems.ro/diskcheck.htm this will rule out the disc as fault... Last edited by freddyhard : 01-11-2006 at 04:58 AM.

01-11-2006, 09:14 AM	#7 (permalink)
freddyhard Design Team Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Éire Posts: 1,543 OS: 2k (still!)	IDE0 - the primary is in blue and IDE1 - the secondary is in black. normally the boot HD is master on the primary channel, but it'd be more important for both to be set as master on each channel. (as you have) IDE0 gets IRQ14 and IDE1 gets IRQ 15, so on the mobo the CPU will listen to IDE0 first. you've probably done this already but make sure the IDE cables are working properly. use ones that were working okay. it's very unlikely that it is the XP disc, but it wouldn't do any harm to check it. Last edited by freddyhard : 01-11-2006 at 09:15 AM.

01-12-2006, 12:00 PM	#11 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 13,610 OS: XP Professional	Hi, Sorry to hear you are giving up. I won't be around for another couple of hours of so, but if you decide to keep going and trying to get this one going, send me a PM and I will take another look to see if we have missed anything. I never say never, but do understand your frustration. __________________ ----------

01-12-2006, 04:14 PM	#12 (permalink)
noobtastic Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 40 OS: xp home	I think I had this problem or something similar. I thought it was the hard drive but it turned out it was a bad stick of ram. I can remember the exact error it gave me but the "nltdr" thing kinda looks familiar, along with the fact it cant seem to reformat and reboots in the middle. If you can try taking out the ram you have and try another stick. If multiple sticks try each one individually. __________________ asus p4c800-e dlx ~ p4 3.0ghz @ 3.37 ~ kingston 4x 512 pc3200 ~x 800gto unlocked to 16 pipes 436/546 ~ seagate 80gig sata ~ western digital 200 gig sata Xfire = pappasquat

01-11-2006, 12:14 PM	#9 (permalink)
Imaginator Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 30 OS: winxp	First, thanks to you guys for your help without making me feel like an idiot. You're all very thorough and really want to help. A lot of places aren't at all like that. Regarding the cables, the one thing I know for certain is that the blue end of the ide hard drive cable is plugged into the corresponding blue slot on my motherboard. I haven't unplugged the dvd drive cable yet but will do that. I think it has seen better days. Again, thank you.

01-12-2006, 11:50 AM	#10 (permalink)
Imaginator Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 30 OS: winxp	I have failed to fix the problem despite following all advice. In all honesty, I have had many problems with this pc and might purchase a new one or build another using some of the newer parts (video card) from this pc. Thanks again for everyone's time and input.