X25-M SSD, 2009 mac mini and XP in bootcamp

[Chak64]

Hi, I download the firmware update from intel,
I burned it into a disk, but when I boot from
that disk it do not found my SSD Drive?

Any Idea?
Thank you,
angelitos

Upgrade in the Mini is not possible.
you have to do the upgrade in a PC.


I have done few installation's without any problem after the upgrade
Win2003 (native)
WinXP SP2
WinXp SP3

On the Windows 2003 I was running Vmware server
Vmware had some problems with the virtual disks (2 different machines)
This problem can only happen when there are bad sectors on the disk..
Repair was possible..but I'm a bit concerned about the disk writes..this is still a problem

When using Windows XP only 2.8 Gb memory is availibile
When using Windows 2003 all the memory (4gb) is availibile.

few other problems:
When the Nvidia drivers (video) is not installed mini will consume 22 watt memory in idle mode.
When the drivers from Apple CD are installed this will drop to 12 watt.
After installation of the drivers RDP will no longer work....

You can Install the drivers form Nvidia Website they will do the same job and RDP will works in Windows 2003

 

[ux4all]

Hi, I download the firmware update from intel,
I burned it into a disk, but when I boot from
that disk it do not found my SSD Drive?

Any Idea?
Thank you,
angelitos

Are you doing this update on a Macbook? You will not be able to flash the SSD on an NVIDIA machine.

 

[Chak64]

I have installed Windows XP and Windows 2003 on the SSD

My main reasons for the Mac Mini was running Vmware Server.
Vmware machines keep crashing with the fallowing error

Operation on file "C:\Virtual Machines\HomeSeer\HomeSeer.vmdk" failed. If the file resides on a remote file system, please make sure your network connection and the server where this disk resides are functioning properly. If the file resides on removable media, reattach the media. Choose Retry to attempt the operation again. Choose Abort to terminate this session. Choose Continue to forward the error to the guest operating system.

I'm almost sure this has nothing to do with the SSD.
I have tested the SSD few weeks in a PC without any problem running VMware on it.

I think the combination of chip set and SSD is still a problem when running windows.

 

[QuantumLo0p]

Here is a good review of installing the new firmware and benchmarking the results. http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=691&type=expert&pid=1


I think it was the seven pages into the article...

The MAC thing

Some MacBook users have reported their X25-M failing to cooperate with Bootcamp. This is caused by a timing issue related to the SATA handshake process that does not play nicely with some of the newer MacBook hardware. Low level handshake timings are only partially controlled by the user-flashable firmware. The earlier part of the power-on process is controlled by the bootloader, which is unfortunately not end user flashable.

There is a very narrow slice of drives affected by this issue. It really boils down to how much of an early adopter you were. While all current (as of this writing) X25-M drives have shipped with the same 8610 firmware, the bootloader ROM *was* revised about a month into retail sales. The 160GB model is not affected, as it went into production with the newer ROM. This is a very rare timing issue that depends on variables other than just the bootloader. It is entirely possible you will never be affected, even if you own a MacBook and a first run X25-M. Intel is making things right and encourages those effected users to contact their support team for resolution. One of our pre-production review units showed this problem, and the 8820 firmware did not correct the issue.

Maybe not the answer the OP wanted to hear but I would contact Intel if still having issues with the drive.

 

[Chak64]

Thanks you for the information.

At the moment I can't access the SSD any more
also when connected to a PC.
I think that the boot sector is damaged.

 

[QuantumLo0p]

Thanks you for the information.

At the moment I can't access the SSD any more
also when connected to a PC.
I think that the boot sector is damaged.

Sorry to hear that. Perhaps a call to Intel customer service would help. Sounds like they have been supporting customers well.

 

[red42]

sorry to resurrect this old thread but im having some problems.

I have an Intel X18-M and I'm trying to install Windows 7 via Bootcamp on my mac mini.

It will not detect the SSD. I've tried to install the updater from Intel, that is not working either.

please help?