FZ190 Vista clean install

Let's start a thread for folks trying to do a clean install. I am trying it right now.

First I made a copy of the C:\Windows\Drivers folder to a cd prior to wiping the main partion clean. (I left the recovery partion as is!)

During the Vista install when it asked where to put the installation there is an option to specify a driver. I pointed it to the SATA folder on the CD I just created. Vista seemed to like that driver just fine and completed the installation.

Now when I look in device manager though, I see a "Mass Storage Controller" under "Other devices" and a yellow warning icon. I tried updating the driver and pointing it to the same SATA folder but got an error "Windows was unable to install your Mass Storage Controller".

Anyone else been able to do a clean install WITH the SATA driver functioning?

Gary

P.S. I am documenting the entire process and will share the results here.

 

Why didn't you just go on Sony's site before you did the install to download all the drivers and utilities? They are all laid out right there, packed within EXEs, so loading them is simple.

 

That is exactly what I am doing right now. But I was under the mistaken impression that the Recovery Disk utility or the backup of the C:\windows\drivers directory had the same things. But alas, it appears they do not.

Have you done a clean install? Did you have to enable the Administrator login to utilize the driver installers from the website? I am wondring if MAYBE that was the issue I was fighting. Actually, before I start anew I am going to try that just to satisfy my curiosity. It seems odd that Sony would provide all these driver in the Recovery Disk Utility and not have a way to actually apply them. It attempts to but fails. Odd.

Gary

 

I did a clean install of Vista Ultimate. I didn't have to enable Administrator login.

 

DOH! The "mass storage controller" turned out to be the Flash/SD card reader. It looks like Vista DID install the SATA driver I pointed it to during the install process. So there is no need to run the installer afterward.

How did those of you who did a clean install deal with the SATA driver. Did you point VISTA to it prior/ during the initial install. Or did you wait and update it after Vista was installed?

Gary

 

Put the Vista CD in the drive and boot from CD.

 

So you didn't install any SATA driver DURING the install? Did you install one after the fact, or did Vista have the correct one in it's manifest of drivers and automatically include that?

What of the Vista drivers on the Sony website did you apply? I have completed phase one of the clean install. I have all of the drivers from the Sony website installed. (Some were a bit odd in how they installed. More on that when I post the chronicle I am compiling.) Next step is to install the updates to the original drivers. Then I will install the Sony applications. And finally the updates to those apps.

Gary

 

No, it's not like SATA drives are brand new....Vista has adequate built in drivers for them. I applied all applicable drivers that showed up on the esupport website that are listed under my model.

 

Did you install the SATA drivers from the esupport wensite?

Gary

 

I don't remember if there were SATA drivers or not...I just installed them all. But what I'm trying to say is, a manual load of SATA drivers is not necessary for the install.

 

I realize that you don't need to install them, at least initially. However I was under the imprssion that the "stocK" ones from Microsoft were generic and not optimized to the chipset in our FZ190's. Like I said, I was able to easily have the Vista install "slipstream" the Intel ones into the install process.
I was curious if anyone had tried to apply them AFTER the install.

Can you look in device manager and see if you are using the Intel or Microsoft ones?

Thanks,
Gary