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7.553 bytes |
Service Hints & Tips |
Document ID: RMIE-396BXH |
TP General - Floppy diskette drive failure under DOS/Windows 3.1x and Windows 95/98
Applicable to: World-Wide
Symptom:
Floppy drive (internal or external) does not appear to work under DOS/Windows 3.1x, Windows 95 or Windows 98 or floppy drive may not work correctly, e.g. will not format a diskette 1.44 meg.
Configuration:
Any ThinkPad running one of the operating systems mentioned above.
Solution:
Checking the external floppy drive cable
For those ThinkPads where the floppy drive attaches, externally, the first thing to check is the connection of the floppy drive to the ThinkPad. Make sure that the cable is attached securely to the ThinkPad as well as to the external floppy drive (on some models, the cable can be detached from both ends). Next make sure that the ThinkPad is setup to recognize the floppy drive externally. To do this, from a DOS command prompt, type PS2 FDD E (Note: You must have ThinkPad Features installed on your computer. This is only for the TP 755CD/CDV, 760, 765, 600/E, 770/E/X model ThinkPads).
Checking the floppy drive in DOS
If this does not resolve the problem then the next thing to do is to try testing the floppy drive in DOS mode.
For DOS/Windows 3.1x
After powering on the computer, when it states "Starting MS-DOS" or "Starting PC DOS" in the upper left hand corner of the screen, press the F5 key (you must be running MS-DOS 6.0 or PC-DOS 6.1 or later) to by-pass the Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files.
For Windows 95/98
During boot up, when it says "Starting Windows 95" or "Starting Windows 98" in the upper left hand corner, hit the F8 key. When you get the boot menu, select "Safe Mode Command Prompt Only" to by-pass the Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files.
Once you get to a C prompt, try reading a known good diskette. If it does not work, then there is a possible hardware problem and you want to test the floppy drive. Some ThinkPads have a built in diagnostics to test the floppy drive. Refer to your User's Guide for information on testing your floppy drive. If your ThinkPad does not have a built in diagnostics, you may need to contact an IBM Servicer to test your floppy drive.
If it works from a DOS prompt, then there is no hardware problem.
If an external tape backup or ZIP device was attached
Check and see if a tape backup unit or a zip drive was attached to the computer. If so, the drivers installed for the tape backup unit or the zip drive may have caused the problem with the floppy drive. A possible solution is provided by Iomega. Refer to http://www.iomega.com/support/documents/29.html for additional information or the Iomega Tech support phone number is 1-888-446-6342. The Tip is also available via Iomega's fax back phone number, 1 (801) 778 - 5763 document number 29.
If you have a SCSI controller listed in Device Manager
Another possible solution to correct this is in Device Manager, double click on SCSI controllers, then double click on the driver for the device that was added. Next, click on the Settings tab. First, make a note of the current setting in the field, and then change it to /DE. Click on OK and then exit Device Manager. You may need to restart your system for the changes to take effect.
None of the above solutions worked
If this does not resolve the problem, or no tape backup device was installed, then the next thing to try is to do the following:
Go into DEVICE MANAGER and choose FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLERS and then choose STANDARD FLOPPY DISK CONTROLLER and then choosing PROPERTIES and taking the check marks out under DEVICE USAGE and choosing OK and then rebooting the system.
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Search Keywords |
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Hint Category |
Diskette Drives, DOS/Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Windows 98 | |
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Date Created |
03-09-96 | |
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Last Updated |
06-04-99 | |
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Revision Date |
06-04-2000 | |
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Brand |
IBM ThinkPad | |
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Product Family |
ThinkPad 310, ThinkPad 315, ThinkPad 365X/XD, ThinkPad 365C/CS, ThinkPad 365CD/CSD, ThinkPad 365E/ED, ThinkPad 380, ThinkPad 380D, ThinkPad 380E, ThinkPad 380ED, ThinkPad 380XD, ThinkPad 380Z, ThinkPad 385D, ThinkPad 385E, ThinkPad 385ED, ThinkPad 385XD, ThinkPad 390, ThinkPad 390E, ThinkPad 560, ThinkPad 560E, ThinkPad 560X, ThinkPad 560Z, ThinkPad 600, ThinkPad 600E, ThinkPad 750, ThinkPad 755C/CS, ThinkPad 755CE/CSE, ThinkPad 755CX, ThinkPad 755CV, ThinkPad 755CD, ThinkPad 755CDV, ThinkPad 760C, ThinkPad 760E, ThinkPad 760CD, ThinkPad 760L/LD, ThinkPad 760ED, ThinkPad 760XD, ThinkPad 760EL/ELD, ThinkPad 760XL, ThinkPad 765L, ThinkPad 765D, ThinkPad 770, ThinkPad 770E/ED, ThinkPad 770X, ThinkPad 770Z, ThinkPad i Series 1400, ThinkPad i Series 172x | |
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Machine Type |
2600, 2625, 2635, 2636, 2626, 2640, 2641, 2645, 2646, 9545, 9546, 9547, 9548, 9549, 9544, 2611, 2627 | |
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Model |
Various | |
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