Specifications

Windows 137GB Capacity Barrier Version 1.0
8 7-Mar-2003
the drive order. If two drives are attached on one serial ATA host adapter, the host operating
system views the two devices as if they were both “masters” on two separate ports.
Operating System Considerations
Microsoft supports 48-bit Addressing (ATA>137GB) in Windows XP SP1 and Windows 2000
SP3. While no other native Microsoft solutions are available for earlier versions of Windows,
some third-party support solutions exist for the legacy versions. Either way, updating the
operating system and then partitioning and formatting the hard drive is more complicated now in
this transition phase than it has been in many years. Similar transition phases occurred to the OS
at 32MB, the ATA interface at 528MB and to the motherboard BIOS at 8.4GB. Fortunately, those
previous transitions happened at separate times, unlike our current ATA>137GB.
A Windows Service Pack is a very large operating system update. Service Packs, which are
often larger than 100 megabytes, are available online and noted below. Service Packs are
usually updates to a working Windows system. This is an important distinction because it means
that even Windows XP and Windows 2000 had ATA>137GB limitations prior to the latest Service
Pack updates.
If you build a system with a single drive from scratch, then the boot drive's capacity is limited to
the capability of the original OS installation CD. This means that a large boot drive may not see
the benefit of 48-bit addressing during the first partitioning. At this time (Jan 2003) WinXP and
Win2000 Installation CDs with native 48-bit addressing are commercially available.
A complex procedure called "slipstreaming" allows you to merge a Windows Service Pack with an
original OS installation CD. You can search the Internet for "slipstreaming Windows " to find
instructions on this process. Seagate does not assist in preparing slipstream installation CDs.
Seagate does not recommend this method because even though the SP is integrated into the
OS, a specific required registry setting EnableBigLBA may not yet be activated.
The general approach when analyzing the Windows 137GB capacity barrier is to start from the
connection method and Windows OS version - then from either a new system single-drive
installation or a storage upgrade to a working system.
Connection
Method
Motherboard or
Controller
OS Version
Windows
XP, Me, 2000, 98SE, NT4
Mac OS, Linux
Device
Drivers
BIOS
Setup
Single-drive in
New System
Additional
Storage in
Working
System