Hard Drive Not Found

I have a Dell Dimension 4600. I recently reformatted/reloaded the hard drive with XP Pro Svc Pack 3. I am now getting a message at start up hard drive not found .. when I take the option to continue .. my mouse is non functional. This is an old machine, and I don't want to put more time into it, if the controlled (on the motherboard) is shot. Can anyone, please, give me some advice as to what is causing this. Thank you.

Well when one tells me old machine, the first thing I would suggest is checking if a connection has become the victim of corrosion.

I never suggest right off that a device is dead until that theory can be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Here is what I suggest for you to try before any thing is assumed being defective beyond a reasonable repair.

First disconnect the AC power cord from the PSU.

Open your computer case.

Ground yourself to the computer case, The metal part of it, by keeping one hand on it and at all times, before putting your other hand inside the case. Why? Because the static electricity your body holds is strong enough to zap and destroy the sensitive electronics found inside a computer!

Next look for the hard drive, it is a silver metal looking box with wires attached to it, that go to the motherboard and the PSU.

The data cable also called an E-IDE ribbon wire, that grey wide wire about two inches wide, is the E-IDE data wire.

Sometimes over time, the metal connectors build up a bit of corrosion which makes the connection sort of not work too well over time, the solution is to safely and carefully remove the data wire from the socket on the hard drive, being careful not to damage the plug, pull on the plug, not the wire, blow on both the plug and the socket on the drive and return the plug back to its socket.

On the other end, which is attached to the computer's main board, do the same procedure, please be careful, not to stress the main board (flexing it) while doing this.

Make sure both data cables are firmly and fully seated back into their sockets as far as they will go.

Recheck your work, make sure everything looks secure, make sure the wires do not block or stop any rotating fans.

Before closing the case, plug the AC power wire back in and restart the computer.

Hold the delete key or proper key displayed on screen for enter setup. Known as the BIOS.

Make sure you auto detect the hard drive in the BIOS, save those settings using the F10 keys and reboot.

Hopefully your hard drive is now detected.

Thank you very much ... I reseated the cables and for the moment system is working normally. I appreciate the assistance.

Thank you very much ... I reseated the cables and for the moment system is working normally. I appreciate the assistance.

You are most welcome!