HIGH CAPACITY DISK PATCH Version 4.5 09/16/2005 Copyright (C) 2003-2005 By Rudolph R. Loew The High Capacity Disk Patch Program patches Windows 98/98SE/ME to provide direct support for Hard Drives larger than 137GB without requiring a controller card or the Intel Application Accelerator which can only be used with some Intel Chipset Motherboards. The Patch installs support for the 48-Bit LBA addressing mode required for Hard Drives larger than 137GB. This patch updates the standard IDE controller (ESDI_506.PDR in the Windows SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS Directory). If you are using a controller card such as the Promise Card included with some Maxtor or Western Digital drives, this Patch will not affect drives connected to the Card(s). If you have installed the Intel Application Accelerator, this driver may no longer be used and the Patch is not needed and may not have any effect. SATA drives may or may not be supported depending on configuration. NOTE: Some documentation and utilities use a different definition of Gigabytes (GB) based on powers of 2. The 28-Bit addressing limit using this definition is 128GB. REQUIREMENTS Windows 98, 98SE or ME (Read WINDOWS ME Section Below if using Windows ME) Motherboard IDE Controller recognized by the Default ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver BIOS support for hard drives >137GB (48-Bit LBA) or A Windows Compatable Boot Manager that supports hard drives >137GB A Mini Boot Manager is now available from Rudolph R. Loew IMPORTANT: If you have installed a Version older than 1.0 you MUST Uninstall it using the Original Version before attempting to Install this Version of the Patch. You can Uninstall the old Version and Install the new Version without risk of data loss as long as you do not Boot Windows while the Patch is not Installed. Windows ME users must Boot into DOS or SAFE MODE to install the new Version. After you have successfully updated the Patch to your system you will need to replace the old Patch program and update your AUTOEXEC.BAT if you are using the Automatic Installation/Verification feature described later. NOTE: The name of the Patch program in the Full Versions is PATCHATA.EXE while the name in the Demo Versions is PATCH137.EXE. BIOS SUPPORT VERIFICATION The 48BITLBA program tests your Computer's support for Large Hard Drives. You will need at least one Hard Drive larger than 137GB connected to either of the IDE connectors on your Motherboard. Run the Program from DOS, not a DOS Box, to verify BIOS, or Boot Manager, support for Large Hard Drives. A "48 BIT Support Verified" message should be displayed next to the Large Hard Drive's Number and Size Report. Otherwise your BIOS may not support Large Hard Drives. If you get a "Last 28 Bit Sector Unsupported" message, your BIOS or Boot Manager has a bug making it incompatable with your Hard Drive. DRIVER USAGE VERIFICATION The DISKDVR Program scans the Registry and displays the Port Driver being used by Windows for each IDE Bus and it's associated Info (.INF) file. This Program must be run from a Windows DOS Box. The Port Driver used for each IDE Bus that will be used with Large Hard Drives must be ESDI_506.PDR for the Patch to work. This is the Windows Default Port Driver. If you have loaded other IDE Drivers, Windows may no longer use the ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver. If the Port driver is reported as INTELATA.MPD, the Intel Application Accelerator is controlling that IDE Bus. The Intel Application Accelerator must be uninstalled before using the High Capacity Disk Patch. If the Port driver is reported as VIADSK.MPD, the IDE Bus is being controlled by a VIA MiniPort Driver. The June 2003 version of the VIA MiniPort Driver, the latest version as of this release, is not compatable with some Hard Drives and cannot be easily removed. A Patched version of the MiniPort Driver is available, please contact Author for further information. If any other Port Driver is reported, please contact the Author for further information. NOTE: Running DISKDVR +ALL will display all Hard Disk Controllers (hdc) in the Registry. This includes many USB Drives. Running DISKDVR -SCSI will display all SCSI Disk Controllers (SCSIAdapter) in the Registry.. PATCH INSTALLATION Windows ME users should read the WINDOWS ME Section Below before Installing. 1. Download and UnZip the Program to a known location. Do not UnZip the Program to the C:\ Directory if you do not want the AUTOEXEC.BAT File to be replaced. 2. Open a MS-DOS Box (Windows 98 or 98SE Only) or Boot into DOS. WARNING Do not Install the Patch from Windows ME. Boot from DOS or Windows ME SAFE MODE. 3. Go to the Directory where the program is located. 4. Run PATCHATA to install the patch. 5. The Patch will take effect the next time Windows is Booted. AUTOMATIC PATCH INSTALLATION/VERIFICATION (Windows 98 and 98SE Only) This method can be used when installing Windows 98 or 98SE or after installation to Install or Verify the Patch on each Reboot. 1. Download and UnZip the Program to a known location. 2. Copy the PATCHATA.EXE to C:\PATCHATA.EXE 3. If there is no C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file or it is empty, copy the supplied UnZipped AUTOEXEC.BAT to C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT. 4. If you already have a C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file, add the following line to it: C:\PATCHATA.EXE -V Do not use LOADHIGH or LH with this program, it is not needed. See the AUTOMATIC VERIFICATION AND UPDATE Section below if you wish to put the PATCHATA.EXE Program in a different Folder. WARNING: If the Patch Program ever interrupts the Boot Sequence and reports an error. It is STRONGLY recommended that you do NOT press ENTER to Continue if you have already defined Partitions extending above the 137GB limit on any Drive. You should Press RESET to Reboot the Computer and either use a Boot Floppy or the "Command Prompt Only" from the Windows Startup Menu until the problem is resolved. WINDOWS ME Windows ME contains a number of changes that affect the Installation and Verification of the High Capacity Disk Patch. Windows ME does not use the AUTOEXEC.BAT file during boot so Automatic Installation and Verification cannot be performed. Commands placed in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file will be ignored. Microsoft added a function called "System File Protection" (SFP) that prevents changes to System files including the ESDI_506.PDR file Patched by the High Capacity Disk Patch. This function cannot be disabled. If any file protected by SFP is changed, SFP will replace it with the old version a few seconds later without any warning or indication. The Patch can only be Installed from DOS, not a DOS Box, or from SAFE MODE where SFP is not active. The Patch can be Uninstalled in Windows but a Reinstallation will be lost. To stop SFP from protecting the ESDI_506.PDR file, perform the following steps: 1. Boot from DOS 2. Edit the FILELIST.XML file in the Windows SYSTEM\RESTORE folder. 3. Remove the lines referring to the FILELIST.XML and ESDI_506.PDR files. 4. Save the updated file. Windows ME has a new feature called "System Restore" which allows changes to be rolled back. If you use System Restore to rollback before the Patch was installed, you will lose the Patch and risk corruption. WINDOWS SUPPORT VERIFICATION The 48BITLBA Program can be run from Windows, in a DOS Box, to verify proper operation of the Patch after you have installed it. NOTE: If you just installed or upgraded the Patch, you must reboot before performing this test. If you have existing data on your Hard Drive above the 137GB limit there is a very small chance that Windows might access sector 268435456 which is temporarily modified during the test. To eliminate this possibility, run the command as follows: 48BITLBA -LOCK NOTE: If your DOS Box is displayed as a Window, running this Program with the -LOCK option will force the DOS Box to Full Screen Mode and you will have to reset the Screen Mode from the DOS Box's Properties to return to Window Mode. If some of your Hard Drives are not displayed, you can increase the range of Physical Drives that the Program will scan by specifying the number of Drives to scan as follows: 48BITLBA ### Where ### is the number of Drives to scan (1 to 127). If you get a "Last 28 Bit Sector Unsupported" message, Windows is using a Driver that has a bug making it incompatable with your Hard Drive. UNINSTALL PATCH (See WARNING Section Below) 1. Download and UnZip the Program to a known location (if necessary). 2. Open a MS-DOS Box or Boot into DOS. 3. Go to the Directory where the program is located. 4. Run PATCHATA. 5. Type Yes to the Uninstall request to uninstall the patch. 6. Remove the C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file or the line in it that invokes the PATCHATA Program if you are using the Automatic Installation/Verification Mode of the Program. OTHER PROGRAMS, PATCHES, DRIVERS AND UPDATES There are a number of other programs which can disable this Patch if they are installed. Some overwrite the ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver, while others reassign the IDE driver in the Registry bypassing the ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver. The following is a list of known programs that will disable this Patch. There are probably others. Any program that promises to improve Hard Disk performance, except defraggers, or provide monitoring of Hard Disk operations, is suspect. Microsoft Fix Q243450. This Fix updates the ESDI_506.PDR in Windows 98 or 98SE to fix a problem with some Phoenix BIOSes. This Fix does not provide 48-Bit LBA support. The High Capacity Disk Patch can Patch this Fix. 1. Run the Microsoft Patch but do NOT reboot. 2. Rerun the High Capacity Disk Patch. 3. Reboot Intel Application Accelerator. The Intel Application Accelerator provides Large Hard Drive Support and other features for certain Intel Chipsets. This program will bypass the ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver and use one called INTELATA.MPD instead. This program can be used as is. The 48BITLBA Program will no longer be able to verify proper operation on WIndows ME systems. VIA IDE Miniport Driver. The VIA IDE Miniport Driver provides Large Hard Drive Support and other features for certain VIA Chipsets. This program will bypass the ESDI_506.PDR Port Driver and use one called VIADSK.MPD instead. Version 3.20B is the most recent version to date (08/03). The Driver has a flaw that can cause errors to appear on Large Seagate Drives and possibly others. This program CANNOT be uninstalled. Use of this program is NOT recommended. If you do install this program, I have an updated Port Driver file that corrects the flaw in this Driver. You can order this file by contacting me by E-Mail. Unfortunately there is no way to determine what effect other programs will have until they are installed. Some installations cannot be undone. If the program does not support Large Hard Drives and this Patch cannot be reapplied, you risk corruption if the program cannot be uninstalled before rebooting Windows. Doing a complete backup of your system is STRONGLY recommended before installing any such program. WARNING THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR DATA LOSS TO OCCUR DUE TO ERRORS IN THE PATCH OR IF THE PATCHED DRIVER IS BYPASSED OR OVERWRITTEN. DO NOT USE IN CRITICAL SYSTEMS OR WHERE HUMAN SAFETY IS INVOLVED. Please E-Mail any Bug Reports to RLoew@hotmail.com. If you install a Windows update that replaces the ESDI_506.PDR file or uninstalls the Patch, and have Partitions defined that extend above the 137GB limit there is a possibility of data loss anywhere on that drive. This is due to a flaw in the original version of the ESDI_506.PDR file that misinterprets sectors above the 137GB limit as being sectors below it. Since Microsoft has decided not to add large disk support to any Windows before 2000, any updates are likely to have the same flaw. If in doubt, rerun the PATCHATA Program BEFORE allowing Windows to Reboot and Answer NO to the Uninstall Request if it appears. If the Computer Reboots before you can run the Program, make it boot in Safe Mode, apply the Patch and Reboot again. See the AUTOMATIC PATCH INSTALLATION/VERIFICATION Section above for instructions to setup Windows to have the Patch Verified and Reinstalled (if necessary) on each boot. Installing this Patch on a Computer without BIOS Support for large drives is not recommended. The Patch is bypassed if Windows disables the Driver or if Windows is in Safe Mode. In either case, the BIOS may cause data loss if it mishandles sectors above the 137GB limit as does the Microsoft Driver. A bad shutdown will trigger SCANDISK which is very likely to corrupt your Hard Disk. Usage with a Disk Manager other than BOOTMAN (See Below) may or may not work. Proper operation in Windows Mode is uncertain and may corrupt your system. Installing this Patch on Windows NT, 2000, or XP has not been tested and may corrupt your Hard Drive. If you are installing Windows in a system which has partitions on any drive extending above the 137GB limit you must apply the Patch after Windows installs it's unpatched driver but before it tries to use it. If you are installing Windows 98 or 98SE, see the AUTOMATIC PATCH INSTALLATION/VERIFICATION Section Steps 1-3 above. If you are installing Windows ME, use the alternate method described in the NEW WINDOWS INSTALLATION section below for instructions. OPTIONS The Program automatically examines the Computer to locate the Driver File. The Program can be redirected to Patch a specific File by specifying a FileName as follows: PATCHATA MYDRIVER.PDR The Drive File is renamed to provide a Backup File before the Patched Driver File is written. The Backup File has the same name as the Driver File but the extension is changed to .bak provided the FileName has an extension. If not, a .bak extension is added. If an earlier Version of the Patch is found, or a Demo Version, it is replaced with the new Version. The Backup File is used to create the new Patch so it must be present. The Patched Driver File is deleted and the Backup File is renamed back if the Patch is Uninstalled. If the Backup File is not present, the Patch cannot be Uninstalled. The INSTALL/VERIFY mode is specified by adding "-V" (ex. PATCHATA -V). The Program will verify if the Patch is present or not. If present, the Program will print a report and exit. If not, the Program will attempt to Install the Patch. If successful, the Program will print a report and exit. If not, the Program will print a failure report and wait until you press ENTER or you REBOOT the Computer (Strongly recommened). HARD DRIVE SIZE LIMITS The High Capacity Disk Patch provides support for Hard Drives up to the 32 Bit Addressing Limit of 2199GB. Possible DOS, BIOS or Windows flaws may limit support to 1099GB or less. The Patch has been tested with Drives up to 400GB. Raw Disk access tools may have their own limits. Microsoft claims that FDISK is limited to 512GB. PARTITION SIZE LIMITS The size of individual Partitions are subject to additional limitations due to FileSystem design and Partition management tools. Microsoft specifies a maximum Partition size of 128GB. Third Party Partition Management tools may have other limits. DEFRAG and SCANDISK (in Windows Mode) are limited to less than 136.9GB Some people have reported limits as low as 127GB. DOS, WINDOWS and SCANDISK (in DOS Mode) can handle at least 400GB. It is recommended that you Partition your Large Hard Drive with 2 or more Partitions so that no single Primary or Logical Partition is larger than 127GB. FDISK can be used to Partition Large Hard Drives but will incorrectly report sizes above 64GB. You will need to enter sizes as Percentages in order to use the full capacity of the Hard Drive. The 128GB Version of FDISK from Microsoft is NOT recommended. Under some circumstances, it creates corrupt Partitions. NEW WINDOWS INSTALLATIONS If you are doing a clean install of Windows into a Computer where any of the drives has a partition extending above the 137GB limit you must install the Patch before Windows has a chance to use it's unpatched driver. Corruption may occur before you can complete the installation otherwise. If the Windows partition itself is above the 137GB limit it will DEFINTELY CRASH. The simplest way of installing the Patch on a new Installation of Windows 98 or 98SE is to place the instructions to patch the driver in the C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT startup Batch File. See the AUTOMATIC PATCH INSTALLATION/VERIFICATION Section Steps 1-3 above for instructions. If you do not wish to install the Patch using the C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file, or you are installing Windows ME, you can install the Patch using the following steps: 1. Place the Patch Program on a Bootable DOS Floppy Disk. 2. Perform the Windows installation until the FIRST reboot. Do not leave the Computer unattended in case Windows reboots without prompting. 3. Insert the Floppy Disk before Windows Reboots. If Windows Reboots without warning, insert the Floppy Disk as soon as the Screen goes Blank. Ignore any instructions to remove any Floppy Disks. 4. Let Windows Reboot the Computer if it doesn't Reboot automatically. 5. When DOS finishes Booting, run the Patch Program. If the Program cannot find the driver skip to Step 9. 6. Remove the Floppy Disk. 7. Press the Reset Button or CTRL-ALT-DEL. 8. Continue the Windows Installation. 9. If the driver was not found in Step 5, perform Steps 6 and 7, then repeat steps 2 thru 5 at the Second Windows Reboot. If the Program still cannot find the driver, you will have to look for the ESDI_506.PDR and use the Specific File option described above. DO NOT allow Windows to startup after the Second Reboot until the Patch has been Installed successfully. If you have a CD Burner or you install Windows from files placed on the hard drive, you can purchase a pre-patched Installation Cabinet File for your version of Windows. By replacing the original Cabinet File in the Installation CD or Folder you can installs Windows without further patching. This will not protect you if an update replaces the Patched driver or it is corrupted. WARNING: If you install Motherboard Drivers provided by the manufacturer of the Motherboard, you may disable the Patched Driver. Please contact the Motherboard manufacturer to insure any IDE, ATA or ATAPI Drivers they install are 48-Bit LBA compatable. You may also have the option to skip installation of these Drivers. Run the DISKDVR.EXE Program after installing the Drivers but BEFORE you reboot the Computer. You may have to choose the "Reboot Later" option if asked to Reboot to run the Program. If the DISKDVR.EXE Program reports that a Port Driver other than ESDI_506.PDR is now selected, you will have to uninstall it before rebooting unless you have verified that it supports Large Hard Drives. If you can't uninstall it, you will have to start the Windows Installation from scratch. MULTIPLE BOOT WITH OTHER OPERATING SYSTEMS The Patch is compatable with multiple boot systems. Each separate Windows 98/98SE/ME System must be Patched individually. All other Operating Systems must be 48-Bit LBA compatable to avoid corrupting the Windows 98/98SE/ME Systems and/or each other. WARNING: Installing an Operating System that is NOT 48-Bit LBA compatable into an existing system or one where Partitions, of any kind, cross or are above the 137GB limit risks causing corruption. This is true even if a 48-Bit LBA compatable Service Pack will be installed immediately after, or the Partition, the Operating System will be installed on, is entirely below the 137GB limit. Windows XP users must use a copy of XP with SP1 or later already incorporated. If you wish to install Windows XP Original Edition, you can contact the Author to purchase an upgrade kit that provides the necessary files. The rest of SP1 or SP2 can then be installed later. AUTOMATIC VERIFICATION AND UPDATE: (Windows 98 and 98SE Only) IMPORTANT: Do not use this method with Windows ME. The Program can be setup to automatically verify and repatch, if necessary, each time the computer is booted. This will prevent corruption if the Patch is overwritten by other software. Add the following line to your C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file: X:\PATH\PATCHATA.EXE -V Where X:\PATH is the Drive and Folder where the Program is located. If an unrecognized or corrupt driver is found, the Program will prevent Bootup from progressing to prevent possible corruption. WARNING: If the Patch Program ever interrupts the Boot Sequence and reports an error. It is STRONGLY recommended that you do NOT press ENTER to Continue if you have already defined Partitions extending above the 137GB limit on any Drive. You should Press RESET to Reboot the Computer and either use a Boot Floppy or the "Command Prompt Only" from the Windows Startup Menu until the problem is resolved. BOOTMAN BOOTMAN is a Mini Boot Manager designed to provide Large Hard Drive support for BIOSes that only support 137GB. It is compatable with DOS, Windows and the High Capacity Disk Patch. Please contact Rudolph R. Loew (See Below) for more information on this Product. RELATED PRODUCTS RFDISK Nondestructive partitioning Program with Large Disk support and support for multiple boot and selectable partition configurations. QFORMAT Quick formatter for FAT Partitions. PARTS Partition Mapper. WINXX.CAB Windows Cabinet File with Patch already applied. BIOS Large Disk Support Patches for Tyan S1590 Motherboard and others. DOS Patches to DOS 6.2 to access drives larger than 8GB. XPPATCH Updates to Windows XP Original Edition to provide 48-Bit LBA support during installation. CONTACT INFORMATION Rudolph R. Loew 506 Bieling Rd. Elmont, NY 11003 1-516-352-9078 RLoew@hotmail.com Website: http://members.aol.com/rloew1 IP = conference.no-ip.org PORT = 8192 (Conference Console)