asus k8v se deluxe adding a Sata hard drive?

[Dasien]

I am totally lost, I am a new to ubuntu but I have chosen to turn one of my old desktops into a media center running ubuntu. I have tried to add a 500gb sata hard drive to my asus k8v se deluxe MoBo and it is not recognized by the bios or by ubuntu. I have searched the Internet and most of what I have found explains how to install drivers while installing windows or from a windows environment.I would like to install and run Ubuntu from this drive but as of right now I have a 40gb that I got up and running so that I could sort out Natty and see if I want to give it a try or if I should pick a older version.

Is there a easy way to get ubuntu to recognize the Sata drive currently or with a fresh install?

Thank you