F11 doesn't do anything with boot CD

I keep getting the "no hard disks found" error when I use the boot CD. I'm trying to restore a Linux image. I've searched on here and it's been stated time and time again that you should press "F11" as it starts to load and then type "acpi=off noapic" when propmted. I never get the prompt. What am I doing wrong?

 

What type of controller do you have your drive connected to?
Is your keyboard USB? If so, is the "Legacy USB Keyboard" option enabled in your BIOS?

 

I have a 120GB drive hooked up as the primary master on my system (PATA?). It's not SATA. And I just have a PS/2 keyboard. It's a older Abit motherboard. Any ideas?

 

Sounds like you're pressing F11 at the wrong time, then.
You need to press it before the splash screen comes up. Hit it repeatedly if you like.

 

I've tried hitting F11 in every conceivable point of the boot process. It just doesn't work. If I hit delete, my system will take me to my BIOS setup, so the keyboard is being recognized. This is really getting frustrating.

 

Well, if you can't get F11 to work, there's something else you can try.
In your BIOS, do you have "Plug and Play OS" set to Yes or No?
It should be "No" or "Disabled"

 

Do you have one of those fancy keyboards that redefines the F-Keys, such as a LOGITECH iTouch? In that case, the F-Keys got redefined as other functions. You need to find the button on the keyboard that RESETS the F-Keys back to their normal state (on the iTouch it's the F-Lock button).

This sounds like your problem.

 

No, I don't have a iTouch keyboard on this computer. (I have one at work and have been bitten by that bug already!) I do believe that I have PLug and Play OS set to YES. I will check that out tonight and see if it resolves the issue.

Thanks for all your help!

 

I tried turning off the Plug and Play OS option in the BIOS tonight and I'm still having the same problem. ANy other suggestions?

 

No. Not without being able to use the F11 functionality.

 

Do I have to use the boot CD to restore a Linux image? I know that I have to use it to create the image, but if I run TI in Windows, will it allow me to restore the .tib file even though it's Linux?

 

You should be able to restore a linux partition from within Windows, yes. This is because nothing in the linux partition will be in-use.