CIC HDD to SSD - Working through issues

Christopher72

Christopher72

Active member
 Ohio
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It usually starts like this. Pulled out the HDD, imaged, hoped for the best. How hard can it be???
No joy.

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CIC boots fine, but no Nav. Initially ran image with Macrium Reflect
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Several hours later -- Restored to Yansen/Kingspec 128GB PATA.. recommended settings. Nav is greyed out, no Navi.
I do have a 2021 premium north america map files plus a working FSC generator and my proper 1b.hex, but it doesn't seem to be a mapfile issue.

Lots of thread reading accross models here... going to change imaging method to using HDD Raw Copy Tool and go sector by sector.
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Anyone with experience, wanting to chime in, I'll welcome support. If not i'll therapeutically blog my path to success.

Several hours of imaging to go...
 
Several hours later... still Raw Dog sector copying the toshiba...

While I'm down here... I'm just tempted to try a few paths -- ordered an MSATA/IDE and a M.2/IDE as well... One is a Marvel , the other JMicron. based controller.. All of the history I've seen on this is all over the place in products.
 
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Christopher72 said:
...but it doesn't seem to be a mapfile issue.
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It isn't!
Success depends on controller geometries of the disks. Some work, others not.

Have a look:
RobbiZ4

Post in thread 'What have you done to your E89 today'

B21 said:
Something nice n geeky for those whose previous technical forays were agonising over which colour to paint their alloys…
Here is the CIC computer which powers the idrive screen and system.
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My starter into this topic back in 2019:

Welches Dateisystem hat die interne Festplatte?

Das wird bestimmt ein längerer Sonntagnachmittag mit den ganzen Downloads und Installationen der QNX Betriebssysteme, die man für die QNX Partitionen braucht :D Ok ich hätte jetzt eher vermutet, dass der untere Temperaturbereich
www.zroadster.com www.zroadster.com
B21 said:
There's a chicken and egg issue..you have to copy the image of the hard drive BEFORE it fails..then its too late.
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Yes, so it is.
But there is a fallback solution available.

B21 said:
The drive was formatted and used in a Unix system (QNX)...
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  • Like
Tricky are IDE2SATA adpaters in combination with 128GB SSD's. Much easier is an SSD with PATA interface, should work on the 1st try, but...
SectorBySector Imaging is required!
Take the free Acronis TruImage, if you are on Windows. On Linux DD should do the work.
 
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One CIC unit…my original has taken the SSD drive with no issues..my backup one no matter what hasn’t taken to the SSD come what may..

In addition a map update doesn’t work FSC code not accepted…the original one map update went fine..

So something amiss…

I did a raw copy in all cases…
 
B21 said:
One CIC unit…my original has taken the SSD drive with no issues..my backup one no matter what hasn’t taken to the SSD come what may..
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If still available, try your HDD on the 2nd CIC, to check if the issue is based on the SSD at all.
 
RobbiZ4 said:
If still available, try your HDD on the 2nd CIC, to check if the issue is based on the SSD at all.
Click to expand...
Tried 3 different SSDs..no difference…only thing that works is the original HDD..didn’t try the now redundant other HDD from the one that ‘works’..
 
I'll venture back out to the garage this weekend and see what works during the forecasted blizzard.... currently have the marvel based IDE contoller/Msata, the JMicron based M.2 IDE on the way, and the Kingspec PATA...

Created another sector based backup Last night from the Toshiba with Hasleo Backup Suite Free. So i have 3 sector based images from different apps to try.

This is a time-stealing experiment due to the slowness of transfers, and my lack of interest to heat the garage above freezing for an idrive check. I need to have something else lined up to do out there to justify the propane burn! I may hardwire a Vantrue N4S dashcam I received to review while Im out there. It has the external rear cam. Looks interesting. I just installed the interior rear version of the N4S (RC18) on one of my winter cars.

But initially getting those T8 screws removed from the Toshiba-- seemed like permanent threadlock.
 
AnubisZed said:
@Christopher72 here....
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Thank you - I drank two glasses of bourbon reading through that blind-leading-the-blind thread. Once I figure out which combo works we can do a How to: for z4-forum thats current for a straight replacement.

Most of the QNX/Linux VM guidance is pretty dated on volume expansion. We should be able to find an efffective method that doesn't require a virtual environment setup. Perhaps I'm overconfident of figuring it out.. but that's what 2 glasses of bourbon bolster you for🍹
 
Christopher72 said:
Once I figure out which combo works we can do a How to: for z4-forum thats current for a straight replacement.
Click to expand...
Well, that is what I did over years, documented in the ZRoadster thread linked above: checked a matrix of controlllers and SSDs, which in many cases did not work. Success in a bunch of combos (i.e. Renkforce/Delock Adapter, or alternativ, one PATA SSD.

Translated post:

Welches Dateisystem hat die interne Festplatte?

Das wird bestimmt ein längerer Sonntagnachmittag mit den ganzen Downloads und Installationen der QNX Betriebssysteme, die man für die QNX Partitionen braucht :D Ok ich hätte jetzt eher vermutet, dass der untere Temperaturbereich
www.zroadster.com www.zroadster.com
 
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Christopher72 said:
Most of the QNX/Linux VM guidance is pretty dated on volume expansion. We should be able to find an efffective method that doesn't require a virtual environment setup
Click to expand...
Have a look into WSL if you're on Windows. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install

(Apologies if you're aware and this is teaching you to suck eggs!)

This will let you run linux programs natively on Windows

Code: 
C:\Users\Joe\repos\> (get-computerinfo).WindowsProductName
Windows 10 Pro
C:\Users\Joe\repos\> bash
joe@Joe-Laptop:/mnt/c/Users/Joe/repos/
$ uname -a
Linux Joe-Laptop 6.6.87.2-microsoft-standard-WSL2 #1 SMP PREEMPT_DYNAMIC Thu Jun  5 18:30:46 UTC 2025 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux
joe@Joe-Laptop:/mnt/c/Users/Joe/repos/
$ parted
WARNING: You are not superuser.  Watch out for permissions.
Error: No device found
Retry/Cancel? cancel
joe@Joe-Laptop:/mnt/c/Users/Joe/repos/
$
 
Christopher72 said:
Thank you - I drank two glasses of bourbon reading through that blind-leading-the-blind thread. Once I figure out which combo works we can do a How to: for z4-forum thats current for a straight replacement.

Most of the QNX/Linux VM guidance is pretty dated on volume expansion. We should be able to find an efffective method that doesn't require a virtual environment setup. Perhaps I'm overconfident of figuring it out.. but that's what 2 glasses of bourbon bolster you for🍹
Click to expand...
Keep drinking the bourbon...most of the work done was in part to extend the media partition to exploit the much bigger disks.. but..the audio compression algorithm was pretty crap.. with time almost any other solution would be better for audio playback..so its either reliability or slight improvement in response to disk based searches..IMHO..

I'll have another look at it when I've had enough Scotch..
 
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So after the blizzard of Jan 2026 went through here I ventured back out into the garage and got it to work.

The MSATA + Ablecon MSata to IDE adapter, plus a sector copy using HDDRawCopy.
No jumpers on the Slave or Cable Select pairs. (Same as my Toshiba was setup that I removed).

USA links:
I haven't yet messed with the partitions to extend storage for MP3, but now that I have a working solution that can wait until the spring!

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Congrats!

Interesting the different brand names of the same red PATA2SATA converter:
  • Ableconn
  • Delock
  • Renkforce
  • ...

Welches Dateisystem hat die interne Festplatte?

Ok, Dein Adapter ist also auf Master gejumpert - genauso, wie es das CIC erwartet. Bei Platten/Adaptern mit anderen Kodierungen würde das dann evtl. Probleme geben. Ich hoffe, ich kann meine Kombination am Wochenende in Betrieb nehmen. Ich habe einen Delock-Adapter, der mit dem Renkforce...
www.zroadster.com www.zroadster.com

Christopher72 said:
I haven't yet messed with the partitions to extend storage for MP3, but now that I have a working solution that can wait until the spring!
Click to expand...
That's the point where AFAIK a QNX VM comes into the boat.
 
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Christopher72 said:
So after the blizzard of Jan 2026 went through here I ventured back out into the garage and got it to work.

The MSATA + Ablecon MSata to IDE adapter, plus a sector copy using HDDRawCopy.
No jumpers on the Slave or Cable Select pairs. (Same as my Toshiba was setup that I removed).

USA links:
I haven't yet messed with the partitions to extend storage for MP3, but now that I have a working solution that can wait until the spring!

View attachment 289900View attachment 289903View attachment 289904View attachment 289905
Click to expand...
Afaik the compression algorithm is a very lossy WMA …not mp3..but it’s very lossy so the quality is not good…

I kept mine unused..in theory some ssd can utilise unused allocations to replace faulty blocks in the ‘important’ sections…not sure whether the o/s is needed to do this or it’s in the ssd firmware..

Now that I’ve glued my broken gps aerial connector I’ll try the other unit…

Sadly looks like I didn’t hook up the hvac controls properly so need to get in there..
 
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