3 replies to this topic

[Mike69]

hi,


i wonder if anyone knows how to boot an u3 pen drive in usb-hdd mode!!!!
becouse i´ve made it to boot from usb-fdd but i cant boot usb-hdd like i do with a normal pen drive.


thanks in advance

[was_jaclaz]

I have no direct experience with U3 sticks, but I think that you will need to remove the "LaunchPad" partition.

It appears like there is no easy way back, so BE WARNED!

Read these:
http://episteme.arst.../m/611000617731
http://www.cse.mssta...rwm8/hackingU3/
http://www.u3.com/uninstall/
http://portableapps.com/node/2174
http://www.geekyjock...-usb-flash.html
http://seclists.org/...r-Jun/0207.html

Posting make and model of the stick might also help.


jaclaz

[Mike69]

its a kingston pen drive


tks for your help but i dont want to lose the u3 function...

thats why i bought it in the first place!!

[was_jaclaz]

tks for your help but i dont want to lose the u3 function...

thats why i bought it in the first place!!

Sorry, maybe I misinterpreted the question, but it could be interesting to know how you did that :

becouse i´ve made it to boot from usb-fdd but i cant boot usb-hdd like i do with a normal pen drive.

As said I have no direct experience with an U3 stick, but there are only two possible ways that it could work as it does:
1) A setting in the CONTROLLER programmable firmware that "sends" info to Windows about TWO devices connected, the first one a (Read Only) CD-ROM Drive, and the second a "normal" USB Mass Storage Removable device
2) A "special" MBR or some other kind of code, that emulates the above.

Personally and from experience from using Mass Production Tools from actual Controller Chip Manufacturers, I would swear by the first one above, though some posts I refeered to in my previous post "hint" that the second one is correct.
In my opinion, these posts are by people that do not know what they are talking about, but I may be wrong.

However,
if case 1) is true, the second "partition" is NOT a "partition" at all but rather a different device attached to the same USB bus, so you can use any of the current ways to write an MBR and partition it (HDD booting), just as you made it FDD or "superfloppy" bootable;
if case 2) is true, you simply CANNOT have made it FDD bootable

jaclaz