I installed a ATAPI CD-RW because the one that my Compaq MV720 came
with jammed.

The NTI CD Maker Pro software wouldn't recognize the ADAPTI drive. I
went to the Compaq board and posted this question:

"When I go into NTI CD Maker Pro, I get the following error: Unknown
SCSI Request Block Status: E8 (hex) Please help! I'm very
frustrated!!!!"

Here's the answer I received:
"E8 is an error code meaning that the Aspi manager has no adapter
(board) to manage. The Aspi layer is used with SCSI and SCSI-like
drives, amongst them IDE CD-ROM burners. In your case, I bet that the
Aspi installer barred the access to ATAPI CD-ROM drives.Look at faq:
http://www.macdisk.com/faqaspien. php3#BM16" 

I tried that and here's what happened next:
"That problem seems to be fixed, but now I get another error message
when I try to use NTI CD Copy:
CD Drive: ATAPI CD-R/RW 24x10 (han:0,id 1, lun:0)
Illegal request: Illegal field command description
The media is either blank or unknown format
(Sense key: 05H ASC: 24H)" 

Someone else on their board suggested this:
"Format the media used in the CD-RW to solve the problem. If it is
already formatted, try an unformatted disk."

That didn't work either, so since neither of these suggestions solved
the problem, I downloaded a trial copy of the latest version of NTI
CD-Maker.

It recognized both drives and everything seems fine when I'm copying a
CD until it finishes, then I get an illegal request error.

Here's what's on the illegal request log:

========== BEGIN OF LOG ==========

NTI CD-Maker 2000 Professional Version 5.1.17  (SKU-22510358888)
Start Time: Monday, June 24, 2002, 11:54:28AM

DIEN DEBUG: sysInfo.wProcessorArchitecture: 0
DIEN DEBUG: sysInfo.dwProcessorType: 586
Processor Architecture: INTEL
Processor Type: INTEL PENTIUM
Processor Level: 5
Microsoft Windows 98 version 4.10  A  (Build 2222)
Memory in use: 93%
Total physical memory: 187 MB
Total free physical memory: 2 MB
Total paging file: 1909 MB
Total free paging file: 1736 MB
Total virtual memory: 2093 MB
Total free virtual memory: 2037 MB

Source CD Information:
Total Blocks (Disc Size) = 319829
Session 1: CD-DA
Track 1: Audio; LBA = 0; PreGap = 150; Length = 18543; Block Size =
2352
Track 2: Audio; LBA = 18545; PreGap = 0; Length = 21310; Block Size =
2352
Track 3: Audio; LBA = 39857; PreGap = 0; Length = 18041; Block Size =
2352
Track 4: Audio; LBA = 57900; PreGap = 0; Length = 18343; Block Size =
2352
Track 5: Audio; LBA = 76245; PreGap = 0; Length = 17003; Block Size =
2352
Track 6: Audio; LBA = 93250; PreGap = 0; Length = 21580; Block Size =
2352
Track 7: Audio; LBA = 114832; PreGap = 0; Length = 20278; Block Size =
2352
Track 8: Audio; LBA = 135112; PreGap = 0; Length = 22683; Block Size =
2352
Track 9: Audio; LBA = 157797; PreGap = 0; Length = 16581; Block Size =
2352
Track 10: Audio; LBA = 174380; PreGap = 0; Length = 11416; Block Size
= 2352
Session 2: CD-ROM XA
Track 11: Mode 2; LBA = 197198; PreGap = 150; Length = 122631; Block
Size = 2352

CD-Reader: COMPAQ DVD-ROM SD-608 (E:)
Firmware Version: BC02
Read Speed: Maximum = 32x, Current = 4x

Source Speed Measurement: 25%, 3153 KB/sec. (21.0x)

CD-Recorder: ATAPI CD-R/RW 24X10 (F:)
Firmware Version: P.MJ
Write Method: Track-At-Once
Close Disc: Yes
Leave Session Open: No

Copy CD: on-the-fly
Disc Media: CD-R
Free Disc Blocks: 336375
Test: No
Write Speed: 20x

Finish Time: Monday, June 24, 2002, 11:58:52AM

========== END OF LOG ==========

Perhaps I installed the ATAPI wrong? If so, how do I fix it? 

Is this a hardware problem or a software problem? 

The program that comes with the ATAPI is worthless. I like NTI
CD-Maker. Are there other programs that would be better if I can't get
NTI to work?

My number one priority is getting an answer that will solve the
problem and allow me to burn CDs.

A five-star answer will include some additional websites and search
strategies for finding the answer to these types of problems.

Hi again,

I'm glad you got you writer to work. If you provide me with the model
details of your cd-writer (brand+model), I can check if there's a work
around for that particular writer (such as a firmware update).

Some additional ways to avoid buffer underruns are:

- When copying a cd, make sure it gets copied to the hard drive first
- Don't run any cpu-intensive applications in the back-ground when
copying a cd
- Defragment your hard drive from time to time
- Don't write cd's at the maximum speed of your cd writer

Additional information and hints on buffer underruns can be found on
these pages:

http://www.liutilities.com/products/wintasksstd/tutorials/tutorial1
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/B/buffer_underrun.html
http://www.techtv.com/screensavers/answerstips/story/0,24330,2383906,00.html

The only way to really avoid buffer underruns completely, while being
able to write at full speed, is getting a cd-rw drive that supports
burn-proof technology (sometimes called seamless link or alike,
depending on the brand).

Certain older models do provide firmware upgrades that allow you to
enable this technology on drives that don't have it aboard by default,
so there might still be a small chance that this is the case for your
model.

BTW, not only your cdrw needs to support buffer underrun, but the
cd-writer software as well. SO it's always a good idea to use the most
recent version of the cd-writing software (for instance Nero Burning
Rom 5.5, demo available at http://www.nero.com)

Good luck,

rhansenne-ga

search terms used:

"illegal request error" "buffer underrun" 

PS: Here's someone other people who suffer from the same "illegal
request error" problem:
http://www.upgradingandrepairingpcs.com/faqs/Optical/opt_A_24.asp
http://www.cdrinfo.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2162

---

Request for Answer Clarification by katwoman-ga on 24 Jun 2002 13:59 PDT

Well, I'm not sure about the one that came with the computer, but the
one that I bought is a CenDyne CD-RW 24x10x40 (record/rewrite/read).
The info. that came with it says that it has three writing methods:
disc at once, trace at once and packet writing. The data buffer memory
is listed at 2MB. Let me nkow if any of this helps. I'm going to rate
the question now.

---

Clarification of Answer by rhansenne-ga on 24 Jun 2002 14:14 PDT

I checked the CenDyne site and there are indeed firmware updates
available. It's probably a good idea to run the latest update
(2002/06/04), especially since the site mentions that it reduces
failure rates. Make sure however that you get the correct file
(there's only one CenDyne 24x10x40 cdrw and that's the LTR-24102B) to
avoid problems.

The link:
http://www.cendyne.com
Click on the "support" menu, then "download files" and firmware

Their troubleshooting FAQ also has a section on buffer underruns and
how to avoid them:
http://www.cendyne.com/support/troubleshooting-faq.doc

Kind regards,

rhansenne-ga.

Great answer. Quick turnaround. And you solved my problem! Kudos.

Hi katwoman,

Does your cdrw drive support burnproof technology? If not, the error
might be the result of the fact that a buffer underrun occurs when the
system is not able to provide data to the cdrw drive fast enough (for
instance when having a fast cdrw and a slow hard drive, or when
working with other programs while writing a disc). If you do not have
brunproof technology, try writing a disc at a lower speed and see what
happens...

Hey rhansenne-ga!

That works! I recored a CD at 4x and I'm playing it now. Pretty cool!
Thanks so much for your help.

I'll leave the question open, though in case anyone else has some more
information on how to fix the buffer problem or some links to info. in
case I have a similar problem in the future.

Thanks again for your expert knowledge!

katwoman-ga

Hey rhansenne-ga,

I forgot to add -- if you are a researcher, please go ahead and put
something in the answer section of this question so that you can get
paid for it.

Thanks again,
katwoman-ga