There's something I remember reading about my IBM ThinkPad that there's a "compatibility mode" in the BIOS for USB and SATA booting. Something about it needs to be in that mode until the OS is installed. Rich Sent from my iPhone
On Sep 13, 2016, at 5:19 PM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:
Girlfriend's computer is 15 years old, so I installed a brand new mobo, processor, RAM, and SSD. Only old parts are the case, power supply, and DVD. I triple-checked that all the mobo connectors are in the right places and enabled all SATA ports in the BIOS.
First I tried booting with a live DVD to install Mint on her new SSD. I used a cheap IDE-SATA adapter to connect the DVD to her mobo -- the same adapter works fine on my computer. Doesn't work on hers. I get a message saying to insert boot media, the drive seeks, but it keeps returning to that message. I know the DVD that I burned is a good one. Checked the BIOS: it doesn't see the DVD at all.
Then I tried it with a bootable USB stick. Nothing happens.
Here's the really weird part. I disconnected the new SSD and put in her old HDD, which is also SATA, and I hear it spin up like it's booting normally (has Mint 18 on it), but I get nothing but a blank screen after the boot options menu. It * should * start right up like before.
I'm stumped.