Error Message When You Run ScanDisk or Fdisk: No Fixed Disks Present (309459)

SYMPTOMS

When you attempt to run the MS-DOS command-line utility fdisk.exe, or when you run ScanDisk from within Windows, you may receive an error message similar to the following:

No fixed disks present.

NOTE: This error message may occur intermittently, and you may receive this error message even though your computer's hard disk is detected in the computer Power On Self Test (POST).

CAUSE

This behavior can occur because of any of the following hardware issues:

The hard disk is defective or too hot.
The jumper settings on the hard disk are incorrectly configured.
The hard disk data cable is defective or too long.
The hard disk controller is defective or incorrectly configured in the computer BIOS.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, contact your computer manufacturer to obtain a computer diagnostic program or further troubleshooting information.

For information about how to contact computer hardware manufacturers, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, A-K

60781 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, L-P

60782 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, Q-Z

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.