Missing inf File?

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

Hello everyone!


So recently I have been trying to slipstream the proper and needed drivers into a windows XP disc so I can install XP on my laptop, a compaq presario CQ56-115DX. I'm sure it goes without saying I need the SATA driver(s) in order to do this. Now normally I'd just get them through the use of Google, but sadly I have found nothing. I checked the manufacturer's website and again, nothing. That being said, can anyone recommend a place to look? I'm serious when I say I've exhausted every link I've found; even the ones I don't fully trust. -.- Thanks in advance!

 

[Hefemeister]

Disable sata in the bios.

To resolve this, and disable the native SATA configuration in the BIOS, do the following steps.

Open the CD/DVD optical drive to remove the XP installation disc, and turn off the computer.

Press the power button and press f10 to open the BIOS Setup.

Use the keyboard to navigate the Configuration options to find the Native-SATA setting.

If there is a SATA setting, select the Disable option, and then press F10 to save the change and restart the computer.

If there is no SATA setting, you will have to find a third-party tool to change the settings.

Problems when Installing Windows XP Compaq Presario CQ56-115DX Notebook PC | HP® Support

 

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

Disable sata in the bios.

Problems when Installing Windows XP Compaq Presario CQ56-115DX Notebook PC | HP® Support

Tried it. There is no option to disable SATA. The BIOS version I have is annoyingly limited and utterly useless.

 

[Hefemeister]

I found this. It seems many are having this issue and solved it in the roundabout way.

Many thanks and repped!

Yeah, you gave me the key to unlock my dilemma. I now have XP nicely installed on my CQ56-115DX. I needed to know it's an AMD chipset.

For anyone wanting the AMD SATA F6 disk software to enable installing XP onto the CQ56-115DX laptop:

First download HP softpaq sp43839 and double click the icon to expand the softpaq.

Locate and open the included folder called: RAID7xx

(there's a bunch of other stuff you can ignore)

Copy the six items you see inside straightaway onto a floppy disk. There are two folders and four files, about 450k in all which fits easily on a floppy. Copy the items so they appear individually on the floppy, not inside the RAID7xx folder (the XP OS installer program isn't smart enough to reach inside a folder).

You now have the F6 floppy you need to enable installation of XP. The contents of that floppy will handshake properly with the XP OS installer.

When you are presented with the two options, make your selection depending on whether you are installing the 32 bit or the 64 bit version of the XP OS. And unlike with Intel, there are only two options. It's much easier with AMD. There is no guesswork at all.

That's the hard part of the install. There are numerous other drivers you need to install in order to complete things. But HP makes these readily available here:

Software & Driver Downloads Compaq Presario CQ56-115DX Notebook PC - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

Note to would-be slipstreamers:

You can most likely download fully slipstreamed SP3 versions of XP which contain all drivers from all chipset manufacturers. I just can't tell you exactly how to do that. I chose to use my own slipstreamed (up to SP3) install disk. It does not have the SATA drivers but it has the advantage that I did the slipstream work personally and I trust that the disk is free of viruses and problems. So F6 disk creation was the best approach, for me, to insert the SATA drivers.

For anyone thinking of a more all-encompassing approach and wanting to slipstream everything, there is a pretty good compendium of chipset manufacturers at the bottom of this web page:

Coping with the Compaq CQ56-115DX - Life After the NVIDIA Settlement

 

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

I found this. It seems many are having this issue and solved it in the roundabout way.

Coping with the Compaq CQ56-115DX - Life After the NVIDIA Settlement

Thanks, but I am unable to find the file they specified anywhere. None of the drivers I've found match the they mentioned.