760GM-HDV MB SATA support

kerberos_20 wrote: so your configuration would be: SATA operation mode = AHCI SATA IDE Combined Mode = Disabled

Yes, I concur. In testing the combinations I see that "mode=IDE" and "IDE combined=disabled" drops SATA ports 3 & 4 completely out of the BIOS menu. The other two combinations, i.e. AHCI+Enabled and IDE+Enabled, are a mixed bag. In any case, the settings you have shown are the best for my system and the SSD storage devices I have installed on ports 1 & 2 (and DVD on port 3). Linux and Windows 7 are happy.

Your concise description, especially regarding IDE combined mode, put all my tests into a logical picture. Something similar in the User Manual would be nice.

The OP question is resolved. Case closed.

P.S.: ...sorry for the delay in getting back here. The USPS (US Package Storage) took their sweet time in delivering the SSD devices.

Good news on the BIOS flash/update.
Re-formatted the USB drive as FAT32; and, more importantly, one must plug in the USB drive before booting into BIOS setup! Otherwise it is not recognized, even with a F3 (rescan) action in the Instant Flash utility.
That worked o.k., and BIOS is now updated to version 1.20
However, that apparently did not change anything in the SATA port configuration pages. There are 2 parameters for the SATA ports: SATA operation mode = either IDE or AHCI; and, SATA IDE Combined Mode = either Enabled or Disabled. So, there are only 4 possible combinations. Well, how long can it take to test all four combinations? I will do that, now that any uncertainty about the BIOS version 1.10 update to 1.20 has been removed.

Re: ports 3 and 4 set to ide/ahci. The BIOS page for Storage Configuration has just one place to choose IDE vs. AHCI - I don't see any way to apply that selectively to the 4 ports. This is the underlying symptom that is the subject of this thread - How are ports 1 & 2 different from ports 3 & 4?

I am expecting a new SSD drive to arrive today and that will give me another SATA device to experiment with. As said above, I'll try the 4 combinations of SATA port parameters and let you know what I learn from that. (Based on my experience with the BIOS upgrade it appears I should/must re-boot with any changes to either the BIOS settings or the attached SATA devices.)

datonyb wrote: and bios flash use another usb

What format(s) are valid? I let Windows 7 format a USB drive (small capacity) as FAT16. Downloaded the BIOS file "760GM-HDV(1.20)ROM.zip" and unzipped it to "760GHDV1.20" and copied to the base/root level directory. The USB device is identified but no files shown as valid BIOS files. Is "Instant Flash" expecting the raw zip file? Is it confused by the .20 "extension"? Does it have to be in a specific directory? (Windows opens the USB device and displays the file name o.k.)

Re: SATA, manual page 43...
The manual implies that all 4 ports are the same. They are not, as seen in the pictures in a previous post. I will try more combinations of the IDE/AHCI choices.

I realize this thread is split between BIOS and SATA issues - but my worry is that they could be related, i.e. if BIOS 1.1 and 1.2 handle the SATA setup differently.