Quote:
Ah, good catch. Any idea which of the drives it likely is?


Could be hda -- that drive doesn't display its ID until the error mysteriously resolves itself:

Code:

ide_data_test: wrote 0x0000 read 0x0080
ide_data_test: wrote 0xffff read 0x0080
ide_data_test: wrote 0xaaaa read 0x0080
ide_data_test: wrote 0x5555 read 0x0080
hdb: IC25N080ATMR04-0, ATA DISK drive
ide_data_test: wrote 0x0000 read 0x0000
ide_data_test: wrote 0xffff read 0xffff
ide_data_test: wrote 0xaaaa read 0xaaaa
ide_data_test: wrote 0x5555 read 0x5555
hda: HTS548080M9AT00, ATA DISK drive
hdb: IC25N080ATMR04-0, ATA DISK drive


In case you've forgotten which one's which, that model number (HTS...) is a Hitachi TravelStar 5K80. The other one (IC25...), which appears to be working OK, is a Hitachi/IBM TravelStar 80GN. I apologise if you already knew that, but I had a quick google for the model numbers in case the ID string was also corrupted.

On the other hand, it might not be a specific disk. It might be the cable or the header. See all of the other threads on this subject for more information.
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-- roger