[modest0ne]

I have a Macbook pro Core 2 Duo. The 2nd generation Macbook pro. I am trying to install a 640GB Western Digital Scorpio Blue hard drive. I have formatted the new drive to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) with the GUID table though an external USB enclosure. I have installed OSX from the CD's onto this new drive and can boot from it externally. When I install it internally and try to boot I get a gray screen with a stop sign (circle with a line through it). If I boot from the install CD and use disk utility the comupter sees the drive as 4.6TB rather than 640GB and can't format it. I think it gives an "input/output error".

Why would this drive work in an external enclosure but not internally?

-I can boot from the drive in the external enclosure and could install OSX on to it so the drive is good and the formatting is correct.
-My original HDD works in the computer so the SATA connection is good.

I am confused. Any help that can be offered would be appreciated.

 

[Andrew Pratt]

What I would do is leave your old drive in the laptop and boot normally. Then install Carbon Copy Cloner (free) and then use disk utility to wipe that new drive to MacOS Journaled and then use Carbon to do a full backup to that drive. Once that's done you can swap the new hard drive in and the computer should boot properly. If it pauses on boot then you might have to go into preferences and make sure the boot drive is the correct one.

 

[rgray]

Be aware that cloning will bring with it any software/settings issues that might have been developing on your old drive. Personally I favour a fresh clean install going to a new drive.

You say you can boot from the install disk. Have tried reformatting the drive from the install disk? Do a fresh parition as a first step.

 

[modest0ne]

I have the old drive in the computer now and I booted from the internal drive and used disk utility to format the new drive and the I installed the OS from the CD onto the new drive. So a working copy of OSX with the correct formating should exist on the external drive. Particularly as I can boot from this drive if I hold "alt" during start up and select the external. From what I can see the drive should be good to go but when I install it internally and select to boot from it there is no HDD noise and in disk utility the new drive, which is not now internal, shows as being 4.6TB but in the external enclosure it shows as the correct size of ~600GB usable.

So the symptoms when the new drive is installed internally are:
-No HDD noise when I attempt to boot from the new drive internally.
-When I try and boot from the new drive internally I get a gray screen with a stop sign (circle with a line through it).
-In disk utility the new HDD installed internally shows as 4.6TB but it shows correctly when in the external enclosure.
-I can drag and drop files tot he new HDD when it is in the external enclosure so it is reading and writing correctly.

At first I thought it might be a BIOS issue where the motherboard can only recognize drives to a certain size then it flips out but I can't find anything about this in various forums. There is a forum on the apple support page (Apple - Support - Discussions - Western Digital Scorpio Blue 640 Drive ...) discussing various issues with this drive. I think it is an issue with the drive and I'll have to return it for a different make.

Thanks,

 

[pm-r]

What specific MBP and WD Scorpio drive models do you have?

Does the Scorpio and/or the MBP have the "Sudden Motion Sensor? If both do, there could be a conflict between them and I believer the MBP's can be disabled.

Many of the later WD Scorpios are SATA 3 Gbit/s and your MBP may only be SATA 1.5 Gbit/s and a jumper may need to be used for compatibility that wasn't needed when used in the external.

Various general SATA info at:
Serial ATA - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Then there's always the chance of a SMC and PRAM reset being needed on the MBP.

 

[Newdeal]

not sure why that happened however I would put your drive in, boot from the install CD and just install the OS while the drive is internal

 

[pm-r]

Hmmm... joined Feb '11, two posts then nothing more???