HP,Altiris Group

HP Computers and the New SATA ICH8M Drivers 

Aug 06, 2007 02:14 PM

Many of the new HP computers come equipped with the latest SATA drivers. This has caused a number of issues including Bluescreens and "Disk Drive Not Found" errors. For those of you who already have SATA set up in your Windows PE PXE image, you'll need to make adjustments to the Boot Disk Creator (BDC) in order to image this machine. We ran into this problem with the new HP 6910P laptop model, and more are sure to come.

This assumes Windows PE, and DS 6.5/8

The KB on adding the SATA drivers is still correct but you may find newer models that run the ICH8M or ICH9M driver, instead the ICH7M. Obviously you have to still support both, but they do not play well with each other when imaging with DS.

Originally, when you added SATA drivers, (ICH7M) you built the folder structure in the BDC under WinPE>I386>system32>diskdrivers>iaahci, per the KB article. Unfortunately, these older drivers do not work with the newer versions of SATA now appearing on the market (ICH8M & ICH9M), and vice versa.

Once the drivers are pulled down from the HP's website you need to adjust a few things:

The new files need to have the scsi=IaStor_ich8m line in TXTOEM file changed to scsi=IaACHI_ICH8M again just like before.

I was then able to get it to work by creating another (secondary) iaachi (iaachi1) folder under 'disk drivers' and by dropping the same 9 newer files from the HP website there. This process seems to allow for both kinds to be recognized when a machine boots into automation and is sent an imaging job.

Please note: You will have to make a folder for EACH instance of SATA. (i.e. diskdrivers1, diskdrivers2, diskdrivers3, etc)

Once you make these two changes, and recreate the PXE boot file, it works on both types of SATA drivers. The structure should look like this: (although I don't think the bottom level folder names matter)

WinPE Additional Files>
  I386>
    system32
      >diskdrivers
        >iaahci
        >iaahci1

As far as this HP model(s) goes, you do need to disable the Native SATA mode when building the image, but make sure you re-enable it when you test push the new image to ensure it works. I found that the system will blue screen on startup if disabled and the drivers are loaded.

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Apr 12, 2011 02:04 AM

I had the same problem but the discussion led to solve it.

Thanks everyone.

Toshiba laptops reviews

Mar 16, 2011 08:29 AM

HP Computers and the New SATA ICH8M Drivers..its a great news for HP company..

thanks..

mini laptop reviews

Mar 03, 2008 07:44 PM

You are not alone here. I switched it across to Linux at the end of '08 and was most impressed by the speed. With the 6910p I had to disable SATA on the BIOS but it works seamlessly.

Feb 28, 2008 05:03 PM

I would like to get a copy of the script that you were talking about in one of your posts. Can you send it to fed-eralli@hotmail.com
Thanks
I have been working on the SATA drivers to get them working within our image and have created a script that injects the driver into the correct directories and creates reg keys to allow the O/S to detect the driver on boot up and stop the BSOD situation.
If anyone would like a copy of the script and assosciated files let me know and I can send them to you.

Nov 28, 2007 01:06 PM

Have any of you folks tried using the Linux boot agent? My company uses both the 6910P and 2510p model computers without any of the above issues. Linux loads support for 32 bit imaging using a 10MB file system (unlike WinPE's 150MB PXE image). Very fast and works with almost everything flawlessly (including the new sata standards). Occasionally we need to use a post on here which describes how to compile .ko drivers for the network cards, but most of the time things work OOTB. Hope this information helps somebody.

Nov 06, 2007 11:08 AM

I didn't realize how many requests I would get for this so I have now posted it in the downloads section, at the time of writing this it is still pending approval.
Please leave feedback on your experience and any additional models you try this on.
http://juice.altiris.com/node/2834

Nov 05, 2007 04:54 AM

If you are after the driver injection package that I have got working, please use the contact me page on my account to e-mail me.
Andy

Oct 24, 2007 04:40 PM

Hello,
Can you please email me a copy of your script that injects the driver.
Thank you.

Oct 11, 2007 02:39 PM

We use DOS in PXE as well, and I am having a tough time getting the ICH8M driver for the 6910p to work. Can you please guide me? Thanks.

Oct 10, 2007 12:43 PM

I recently spent a fair amount of time working on this problem. I now have a working PE CD that works on all our hardware and includes the SATA drivers although I used a slightly different method.
Here are the additions I made to TXTSETUP.SIF. If you updating PE or an OS CD you’ll be working in the i386 folder as PE and the OS CD treat it like the Windows directory. I believe you can embed them into an existing C:\Windows installation using the same methods and therefore add SATA support to the images without needing to set it to compatibility mode first. It should also grant you a performance boost as the SATA controller will be able to run in a faster mode.
[SourceDisksFiles] ;Tells the system what kind of file it is and where and how it should be installed
iaStor.sys = 1,,,,,,4_,4,1,,,1,4
iastor.inf = 1,,,,,,,20,0,0
iaahci.inf = 1,,,,,,,20,0,0
iaahci.cat = 1,,,,,,_x,,3,3
iastor.cat = 1,,,,,,_x,,3,3
[HardwareIdsDatabase] ;Provides a mapping for the HardwareID to the driver reference
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2922&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_282A&CC_0104 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2829&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2822&CC_0104 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2821&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2682&CC_0104 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2681&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_27C3&CC_0104 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_27C6&CC_0104 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_27C1&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_27C5&CC_0106 = "iastor"
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2653&CC_0106 = "iastor"
[Map.SCSI] ;Defines the driver name reference Windows will use to install the files.
iastor = "IASTOR"
[SCSI.Load] ;Defines what file is to be loaded to support the hardware
iastor = iastor.sys,4
[SCSI] ;Specifies the device details.
iaAHCI_ICH9R = "Intel(R) ICH9 SATA AHCIController (Desktop ICH9R)"
iaStor_ICH8M = "Intel(R) 82801HEM SATA RAID Controller (Mobile ICH8M-E)"
iaAHCI_ICH8M = "Intel(R) 82801HEM/HBM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH8M-E/M)"
iaStor_ICH8R = "Intel(R) ICH8R/ICH9R SATA RAID Controller"
iaAHCI_ICH8R = "Intel(R) 82801HR/HH/HO SATA AHCI Controller (Desktop ICH8R)"
iaStor_ESB2 = "Intel(R) 631xESB/632xESB SATA RAID Controller (Server/Workstation ESB2)"
iaAHCI_ESB2 = "Intel(R) 631xESB/632xESB SATA AHCI Controller (Server/Workstation ESB2)"
iaStor_ICH7MDH = "Intel(R) 82801GHM SATA RAID Controller (Mobile ICH7MDH)"
iaStor_ICH7DH = "Intel(R) 82801GR/GH SATA RAID Controller (Desktop ICH7R/DH)"
iaAHCI_ICH7R = "Intel(R) 82801GR/GH SATA AHCI Controller (Desktop ICH7R/DH)"
iaAHCI_ICH7M = "Intel(R) 82801GBM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH7M/DH)"
iaAHCI_ICH6M = "Intel(R) 82801FBM SATA AHCI Controller (Mobile ICH6M)"
I then put in a winpeoem.sif file into System32 although I believe for the purpose of updating a image or existing installation this needs to be named winnt.sif.
[OemDriverParams] ;Tells the system where to look for extra driver files, the root is System32 by default
OemDriverRoot=""
OemDriverDirs=IntelSATA
This should allow the Windows Setup that runs on first boot after sysprep to automatically find and install the drivers. Happy hunting, if you dare…
If you'd like to download the files and structure take a look at my post on the Altiris Forums.
http://forums.altiris.com/messageview.aspx?catid=12&threadid=46033

Oct 10, 2007 11:31 AM

I agree, in the BIOS select compatibility under SATA configuration....
This will also take care of any blue screening after building an image.

Oct 10, 2007 06:14 AM

I have been working on the SATA drivers to get them working within our image and have created a script that injects the driver into the correct directories and creates reg keys to allow the O/S to detect the driver on boot up and stop the BSOD situation.
If anyone would like a copy of the script and assosciated files let me know and I can send them to you.

Sep 21, 2007 09:15 AM

Hi guys,
Just joined a forum and thought will share bit of my experience with Altiris Deployment Solution.
In our company we use HP client PCs and yes all new HP PCs come with SATA HDDs and it creates some problems with image building and deployment. We use DOS in PXE and it is real hustle to have DOS drivers for SATA HDD to build and deploy image.
As Vader40 mentioned we also disable Native SATA in BIOS and all our PCs working fine after imaging. I have used two machines my self every day one with Native SATA and one without it - did not notice much of the performance loss. I think that while we deploying XP images we will be using DOS for PXE and just disable Native SATA as it works for about 500+ client PCs.
Will try to post my guide for installing/configuring DS server and custom DS servers replication.
Andrey

Sep 20, 2007 01:08 PM

Vader40's solution will work, but you will be losing system performance, and obviously not be able to utilize the advantages of SATA drives.
The choice will most likely come down to your own environment and the requirements by the end users and management. In our case, our management purchased the HP 6910p partly because of the enhanced features associated with SATA drives, and speeds they can attain.
Please note: If this is permissible in your environment, the SATA native feature is ALWAYS Enabled by default. You will have to manually turn it off on every computer you deploy, and hope that some end user does not turn it back on.
Because every computer from every manufacturer will have SATA drives eventually, you may want to tackle this issue early on, as it relates to Sysprep, Deployment Solution, and Imaging, to avoid bigger hassles in the future.

Sep 20, 2007 12:50 PM

Not sure if this is feasible or not, depends on how many computers you have, but in the BIOS of the newer HP equiptment, under system configuration, go into device configuration and disable the SATA Native Mode. This is what I did and I had no problems creating and deploying images with our NC6400 Laptops, NC6230 laptops, and our new DC5700 desktops. What I did different, is I disable SATA Native Mode right away, and I never put the driver on the base image, and I have gotten it to work.

Sep 20, 2007 11:23 AM

Hi daondish and welcome to the Juice.
Probably the best place to ask users technical questions about Altiris products is in the free support forums at http://forums.altiris.com
HTH,
Juicemaster

Sep 20, 2007 11:08 AM

This may be a stupid question but I am new to Altiris so help would be appreciated. I have a quick question reguarding sysprepare restore and the sata drives. I can't figure out where to put this driver? B/c I have multiply pc's and drivers setup for each pc and laptop. It is for the 6910p. I created the a folder for the 6910p and put the sata driver in there. I get the sysprepare restore to work but the drivers dont load. And I'm not even sure the SATA driver installs, since i disabled the Sata boot in the bios. Any help would be appreciated.

Sep 18, 2007 09:51 PM

I am getting the same problem, you love some help.

Sep 12, 2007 07:25 PM

I actually found the real reason for my "Authenticating connection" problem. Its actually not a driver issue, but two fold. During preboot setup configuration (our server runs DS 6.8 sp2). When you set the server it does not properly set the variable "server" in the bdp config file. Instead it sets the server as the value for the "domain" variable and leaves "notset" for the server variable instead. So when the loginw command executes, which is in a bat file in system32 of your build source, it executes with a blank value for the -c argument--but is supposed to be the server to authenticate into.
The next problem that I noticed was that the weird format that the preboot configuration tool uses for drive mapping (i.e. server\vol1:share) is also used as the argument for the net use command in the file mapdrv.bat. This obviously is wrong. It should be a unc path like \\server\share. So I manually updated these settings in their respective files and the problem goes away. Hope this helps.

Sep 12, 2007 11:47 AM

The entry you are referencing is where you need to make the change from iastor_ich8m to iaachi_ich8m. It is an underscore, not a period. Sorry for the confusion.
Make the change, recreate your PXE files and try again.
Hope that helps!

Sep 11, 2007 05:46 PM

In my txtsetup.oem file there is a section called [Defaults] with this value scsi = iaStor_ICH8M. But I see no reference to either IaStor.ich8m or IaACHI_ICH8M in the whole file. So without the txtsetup.oem file updates I've copied the folders over as instructed on this article and it just hangs at "Authenticating connection"--which is exactly what it was doing even before I copied over the drivers. Our boxes are Hp 7600/7700 workstations. It seems to install the network drivers correctly and start up networking, but it just hangs at that last statement. Any thoughts?

Sep 04, 2007 12:40 AM

I've found your posts very useful but am seeking a way to confirm I’ve update my WinPE Automation option correctly, i followed the steps as outlined by the KB article, and everything looks ok. I also tried your suggestion, about creating two iaahci folders. after downloading the updated ICH8M Driver files from HP
What happens for me is, I can boot a WinPE 2.0 CD Rom, (VISTA) and access the C:\ Drive & Network Shares (even load rdeploy and take an image)
But When I use WinPE 1.6 (XP) via the Altiris deployment console, it will error out, and the WinPE 1.6 can't see or access the local disk.
I updated the drives as per the KB article, a it looks right.
I feel once i get the WinPE Automation right I will be underway again..(Got 225 HP 6910p's to image) but I’m just not sure how to tell if it's even using the driver.
Any ideas? I wish I could buy an updated WinPE CD from Altiris or something.
Thanks Heaps,
Mick.
AU
NS: 6.0.6074 (SP 3 + R4)
DS: 6.8 SP1 (Build 282)

Sep 03, 2007 07:51 PM

We too use these exact models in our production. The nc6400 uses the ICH7M (version 2005) , and the 6910p uses the newer ICH8M (version 2007) drivers. As stated in my original post, these do not play well together, and are not backward/forward compatible.
My suggestion is to re-sysprep your base image with both Mass Storage section entires for both SATA drivers.
We keep an un-sysprepped version for our Hardware Independent image (few or no drivers installed) on the nc6400.
It is important to remember to do this with SATA native mode disabled in the BIOS.
Once re-sysprepped with both entries in the answer file, pull the image (create) onto your DS, before allowing it to boot. Once created, re-enable the SATA native mode in the BIOS, and blow the image back onto one or both of these models.
We have found this was the solution for us, and allows us to use the same image for both the 6400 and 6910p because the proper SATA driver is injected post imaging.
Our setup is DS 6.5 SP1, HII Tool, and Windows PE.
Hope that helps!

Sep 02, 2007 09:27 PM

Hi Guys,
Currently at work we have two kinds of HP laptops, one is the HP NC 6400 and the other is the new one which is HP Compaq 6910p.
When i tried creating a build for the HP Compaq 6910p, i get the blue screen of death and that is because the SATA driver is not the correct driver. I tried the instructions as stated above but i am still having the same issue.
Is there any other ways to fix the above issue, please assist a.s.a.p...
Thanks a lot for your help...

Aug 30, 2007 03:20 PM

We just got in new DC5750's with ATI SATA Controller IDE Mode and I'm having BSOD issues as far a blue screen on startup. I tried this suggestion with no luck any suggestions?

Aug 06, 2007 05:08 PM

We recently had to go through this for the Dell Latitude D630 that had SATA AHCI turned on by default. Our WinPE disk is now working, however, our image is not. We built our image on a 745 that doesn't have AHCI support. I've tried all of the recommended steps of adding the mass storage drivers to our Sysprep config when building the image (OEMBootFiles, Textmode directory, etc.), but it blue screens. We're still working on it.

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