PCI-Express to SATA II ...updating :-)

Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

....a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to SATAII
card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID btw.
....and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for
updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a slight
driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
...yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

....before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios, flash
updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult the more I
read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the
"base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed with
an "r"
....and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though one
would be using a Windows DOS box ?
....perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

....other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1 SATA
II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

....anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7 is
wise ?

....also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab ...says
"Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1 (1.5Gb/s)",
though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of months ago, that
this was simply a labelling error, and that hd benchmarking utility would
disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd benchmark gimme a reading, ..it
will not!

....anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for
updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the
"base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed
with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7
is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for
updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the
"base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed
with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7
is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

.... I do keep an eye out for windows update tricks :-)

After wading through SIL's bios and driver download pages yet again, I seem
to have deduced that I needed a "base" bios file, and a "base" (non-raid)
driver.

Taking the plunge I flashed b7507.bin onto the card, and "updated" the
driver to v.1.0.22.0 ..(a non-raid driver ..I think).
SIL's description :-
" Use this driver with the latest BASE BIOS to access non-RAID hard disk
drives, CD-ROMs, CDRWs, DVD-ROMs, and DVD-RWs. Latest SiI3132 BIOS::7.4.03;
Please see the latest SiI3132 documents. "

I suspect that I've "improved" something, somewhere, because my boot-up bios
screens are not now looking for a RAID array, which I think the driver
that's always been "in there," which was v1.5.19.0 - " * SiI 3132 32-bit
Windows SATARAID5 Driver," which was perhpas erroneously, originally
installed into my Windows platform, thanks to the hideous installation CD
that came with the card :-)

regards, Richard


"DL" wrote in message
...
Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain
drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for
updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the
"base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed
with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7
is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

.... I do keep an eye out for windows update tricks :-)

After wading through SIL's bios and driver download pages yet again, I seem
to have deduced that I needed a "base" bios file, and a "base" (non-raid)
driver.

Taking the plunge I flashed b7507.bin onto the card, and "updated" the
driver to v.1.0.22.0 ..(a non-raid driver ..I think).
SIL's description :-
" Use this driver with the latest BASE BIOS to access non-RAID hard disk
drives, CD-ROMs, CDRWs, DVD-ROMs, and DVD-RWs. Latest SiI3132 BIOS::7.4.03;
Please see the latest SiI3132 documents. "

I suspect that I've "improved" something, somewhere, because my boot-up bios
screens are not now looking for a RAID array, which I think the driver
that's always been "in there," which was v1.5.19.0 - " * SiI 3132 32-bit
Windows SATARAID5 Driver," which was perhpas erroneously, originally
installed into my Windows platform, thanks to the hideous installation CD
that came with the card :-)

regards, Richard


"DL" wrote in message
...
Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain
drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for
updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the
"base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed
with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7
is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

Having said that :-
bios version 7.4.0.5 and driver version 1.0.22.0 seems to be a better match,

....wouldn't it have been a LOT nicer if Silicon Image had put a little more
effort into their installation CD !!!

regards, Richard



"RJK" wrote in message
...
... I do keep an eye out for windows update tricks :-)

After wading through SIL's bios and driver download pages yet again, I
seem to have deduced that I needed a "base" bios file, and a "base"
(non-raid) driver.

Taking the plunge I flashed b7507.bin onto the card, and "updated" the
driver to v.1.0.22.0 ..(a non-raid driver ..I think).
SIL's description :-
" Use this driver with the latest BASE BIOS to access non-RAID hard disk
drives, CD-ROMs, CDRWs, DVD-ROMs, and DVD-RWs. Latest SiI3132
BIOS::7.4.03; Please see the latest SiI3132 documents. "

I suspect that I've "improved" something, somewhere, because my boot-up
bios screens are not now looking for a RAID array, which I think the
driver that's always been "in there," which was v1.5.19.0 - " * SiI 3132
32-bit Windows SATARAID5 Driver," which was perhpas erroneously,
originally installed into my Windows platform, thanks to the hideous
installation CD that came with the card :-)

regards, Richard


"DL" wrote in message
...
Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain
drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's"
for updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid
the "base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is
prefixed with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version
7.5.0.7 is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

Having said that :-
bios version 7.4.0.5 and driver version 1.0.22.0 seems to be a better match,

....wouldn't it have been a LOT nicer if Silicon Image had put a little more
effort into their installation CD !!!

regards, Richard



"RJK" wrote in message
...
... I do keep an eye out for windows update tricks :-)

After wading through SIL's bios and driver download pages yet again, I
seem to have deduced that I needed a "base" bios file, and a "base"
(non-raid) driver.

Taking the plunge I flashed b7507.bin onto the card, and "updated" the
driver to v.1.0.22.0 ..(a non-raid driver ..I think).
SIL's description :-
" Use this driver with the latest BASE BIOS to access non-RAID hard disk
drives, CD-ROMs, CDRWs, DVD-ROMs, and DVD-RWs. Latest SiI3132
BIOS::7.4.03; Please see the latest SiI3132 documents. "

I suspect that I've "improved" something, somewhere, because my boot-up
bios screens are not now looking for a RAID array, which I think the
driver that's always been "in there," which was v1.5.19.0 - " * SiI 3132
32-bit Windows SATARAID5 Driver," which was perhpas erroneously,
originally installed into my Windows platform, thanks to the hideous
installation CD that came with the card :-)

regards, Richard


"DL" wrote in message
...
Version missmatches can be as a result of using MS Update to obtain
drivers

"RJK" wrote in message
...
Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??]
x6000 Windsor
2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and
voltage, but, that's a whole different story!)
XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates.

...a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to
SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID
btw.
...and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's"
for updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a
slight driver/bios version mismatch.
http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32

I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver
installed into Windows.
..yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0
http://www.siliconimage.com/support/...x?pid=32&cat=3
suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which
appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3

...before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just
having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios,
flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult
the more I read !

i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers
that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid
the "base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is
prefixed with an "r"
...and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun
JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though
one would be using a Windows DOS box ?
...perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !!

...other considerations a-
I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its'
supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of
choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1
SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-(

...anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version
7.5.0.7 is wise ?

...also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab
...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1
(1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of
months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd
benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd
benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not!

...anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated.

regards, Richard.

RJK wrote:

Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??] x6000 Windsor 2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and voltage, but, that's a whole different story!) XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates. ....a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID btw. ....and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a slight driver/bios version mismatch. http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32 I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver installed into Windows. ...yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0 http://www.siliconimage.com/support/searchresults.aspx?pid=32&cat=3 suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3 ....before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios, flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult the more I read ! i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the "base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed with an "r" ....and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though one would be using a Windows DOS box ? ....perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !! ....other considerations a- I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its' supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1 SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-( ....anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7 is wise ? ....also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab ...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1 (1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not! ....anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated. regards, Richard.

I would recommend hdparm for the benchmark tests because hdparm is free software under the BSD license.
http://hdparm-win32.dyndns.org/hdparm/

I have the same card and didn't really have any problems installing and using it under Windows XP.
As far as I can remember the driver that came with the card includes RAID software and so I went to the Silicon website and downloaded the SiI 3132 32-bit Windows BASE Driver that went with the BIOS version on the card.

In my opinion flashing the BIOS unless absolutely necessary is not a good idea but that's just my opinion.

From your post I can't see what the problem is apart from the


"Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1 (1.5Gb/s)"

labelling issue and that you can't get a reading from the Lavalys trial.


--
Mark Mckee
CompTIA A+ Certified

RJK wrote:

Asus M3N78 (plain one ...i.e. not a [M3N78-??] x6000 Windsor 2x1gb Crucial Ballistix ...(that will now only run at normal timings and voltage, but, that's a whole different story!) XP Home ed. SP3+ subsequent updates. ....a little while ago I fitted a Silcon Image SIL 3132 PCI-Express to SATAII card, (in order to add in a 3rd SATA II hd). ...not using RAID btw. ....and I've been wading through the downloads and related "read-me's" for updating it's flash bios, mainly out of interest but, now I notice a slight driver/bios version mismatch. http://www.siliconimage.com/products...ct.aspx?pid=32 I currently have versions / 7.3.1.3 bios on the card and 1.5.19.0 driver installed into Windows. ...yet the description for driver 1.5.19.0 http://www.siliconimage.com/support/searchresults.aspx?pid=32&cat=3 suggests that I should be using bios 7.5.0.7 with that driver, which appears to be newer than the bios currently on the card i.e - 7.3.1.3 ....before someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it," ...I was just having a rummage around, and collecting up the relevant (newer) bios, flash updater etc. and selecting the relevant files gets more difficult the more I read ! i.e. I've obviously got to avoid the bios files for motherboard tweakers that want to add SIL3132 code into a motherboard bios, and also avoid the "base" version ? ... meaning I think the bios file I want is prefixed with an "r" ....and I eventaully spotted that the Windows flash updater requires Sun JAVA, which I will not allow into my machine ! ..I think ..even though one would be using a Windows DOS box ? ....perhaps I should do it in DOS ? ...hang on, ..no floppy drive !! ....other considerations a- I do not use RAID, ... and when I first installed the card, (using its' supplied CD), it was a "hit and miss" affair in that one had to sort of choose RAID, in order to get the driver installed so that I could use 1 SATA II hd connected to it, for use as a non-raid disk :-( ....anyhow, do you think that flashing the card with bios version 7.5.0.7 is wise ? ....also Device Manager | SCSI and RAID controllers | Device Info tab ...says "Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1 (1.5Gb/s)", though I think I spotted in a discussion forum a couple of months ago, that this was simply a labelling error, and that hd benchmarking utility would disprove this. ...will Lavalys trial, hd benchmark gimme a reading, ..it will not! ....anyhooooo, any tips muchly appreciated. regards, Richard.

I would recommend hdparm for the benchmark tests because hdparm is free software under the BSD license.
http://hdparm-win32.dyndns.org/hdparm/

I have the same card and didn't really have any problems installing and using it under Windows XP.
As far as I can remember the driver that came with the card includes RAID software and so I went to the Silicon website and downloaded the SiI 3132 32-bit Windows BASE Driver that went with the BIOS version on the card.

In my opinion flashing the BIOS unless absolutely necessary is not a good idea but that's just my opinion.

From your post I can't see what the problem is apart from the


"Host Link Speed" & "Device Link Speed" are both "Generation 1 (1.5Gb/s)"

labelling issue and that you can't get a reading from the Lavalys trial.


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Mark Mckee
CompTIA A+ Certified