Ok my new a64 rig is complete and just awaiting os installation. Would like to go xp64 but the drivers and software just doesn't seem to be in a worthwhile place at the moment.

Anyway my problem lies in getting xp to use my sata drivers. My original problem was that when pressing f6 it wasn't installing them and just error'd at me. So I slip streamed the drivers on to a new xp cd , and tried again. This time it all went nice and fast, went straight into the partitioning and copying system files (where as it previosuuly couldn't see the hdd's).

Comp restarts, xp loading screen comes up and i get a bsod 7b error. Tried reisntallation multiple times, still same bsod at exactly the same stage. I tried it on my other sata drive, with the other unplugged , and got exactly the same bsod at exactly the same place.

This leads me to think that the issue might be with my drivers, this seems a bit odd tho as the system files copied fine.

As I understand it a 7b means inaccessible boot device, tho this doesn't help me at all. I planned to try slip streaming the drivers off the driver cd, as there are ones on there that differ slightly to those on the floppy disk to see if this helps at all.

If anyone can help it'd be appreciated as always. I'm new to the sata business and so far its gotten right on my tits.

Specs:

Abit AV8
a64 3200+ winchester
512 2700 crucial ram (temporary until I get new ram)
80 gig & 200 gig seagate baracuda sata's
x800 pro
nec dvd rw

i had the same problem.
disable raid from bios and do not add the raid sata card to boot [so that your sata is showed in IDE 3 chanel-wich you didn't see before]. on x64 start do not press F6 key ...it will autodetect the sata so F6 is NOT needed.

I've had problems loading SATA Drivers with every Abit board I've owned lately. The floppy has Directories for Intel, Silicon Image and Via (usually). I just copy the files in the directory I need to it's own Floppy (with no sub-directories) and then use it instead of the supplied Floppy. It works everytime this way.

that is for windows xp [normal,sp1 and sp2] but for windows 64bit edition you don't need that floopy. i tried to made one for my Abit AV8 from the via hyperion pro package but the setup goes wrong at the very end...
like i sad - DISABLE RAID FROM BIOS, DO NOT BOOT FROM SATA RAID....at sequence.
DO NOT PRESS F6 IN WINDOWS SETUP. Worked for me and i had the same problem on same motherbord.

if your bios setup is ok like i sad you will see your sata hdd on sistem boot after the normal IDE1 , IDE2... something like ex: ID3 - Maxtor 120GB-SATA....
i bet you didn't see dat before

I was installing xp not xp64.


Turns out the key to getting it working was infact just to go non slip streamed and install without a usb keyboard.