htravis{at}attglobal.net wrote:
 
> SCSI has spared me these concerns for 10 years. In looking for a PIII
> system for non-win use, I am considering switching to IDE, and putting
> one of the >60gig drives in.
 
> Does DFSEE spare me drive size-bios compatibility concerns?

DFSee depends on the OS. It plays no part in limitations, only suffering
from them if they exist.
 
> Or, is there a recommended IDE card that does it?

New ones should, but older ones likely suffer from the 137 GB limit.
However, be mindful that add-in cards are treated like SCSI cards. BIOS
HD settings to not apply to drives connected to them. If you want to use
one in a mixed SCSI-IDE HD system, you'll need a BIOS capable of
choosing to scan either low-to-high or high-to-low if you want to be
able to select one or the other to have boot priority.
 
> I need an FAQ and flow chart to lead me to avoid these problems rather
> than invest know-how in solving them for my SOHO use. IOW, if spending
> $100 more a newer used system with BIOS that will see the large drive
> keeps me out of trouble, I'd rather that.

Looking at http://storagereview.com/guide2000/ref/hdd/bios/size.html
you'll find only the 137 GB and 33 GB limitations might apply. P3
systems mostly are new enough that the 33 GB limit shouldn't apply, but
the 137 GB likely will, but if so, might have a BIOS upgrade to overcome
it.

Don't forget to consider HD warranties. All ATA drive makers have had
pretty lousy failure rates the past few years compared to previously,
and they lowered their warranties rather than improving their products
not so long ago. SCSI typically retains 5 year, while PATA is usually
only 1 year. To get a longer warranty for ATA you'll need either to buy
an optional warranty if available, or one of the super-capacity drives
with a longer warranty, or go for SATA instead of PATA.
-- 
"Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every
opportunity."                                        Colossians 4:5 NIV

 Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409

Felix Miata  ***  http://members.ij.net/mrmazda/partitioningindex.html



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