Installation of Windows XP Pro

[Mainman407]

Yes, just about a week or so ago I installed a new 500G hard drive in my system. When I first booted up, I got the error message: "NTLDR is Missing Press CNTL + ALT + DEL to restart." After attempting to resolve this problem via the Microsoft Solution website source--without success-- I elected to just format the new drive and do a "clean" Windows XP Pro install. I also downloaded a "fixntldr.iso" file in an attempt to repair this problem but wasn't able to get my CD-ROM drive to read the CD.
Anyway, after placing my Windows XP Pro CD into the CD drive, everything appeared as though I was going to be able to have a successful install. However, after pressing the <ENTER> key to start the Windows Setup process, the Microsoft Licensing Agreement pops appears. Yet, when I pressed the F8 key to "accept" the agreement, nothing happened. I even waited 10 to 15 minutes pressing the F8 key over and over. Still nothing. What could be the problem? I know the F8 key works in other environments, but just will not permit me to "accept" the Licensing Agreement.
Any suggestions?

 

[kimsland]

It's the USB keyboard, it needs to be enabled in Bios settings (usually press DEL on system startup) or use an older PS2 keyboard

Microsoft's Windows XP Professional Repair Install step by step
http://www.windowsxpprofessional.windowsreinstall.com/sp2sp3installxpcdrepair/indexfullpage.htm


Microsoft's Windows XP Professional Repair Install step by step (* Including Delete Partition)
http://www.windowsxpprofessional.windowsreinstall.com/sp2sp3installxpcdoldhdd/indexfullpage.htm
* Warning deleting the Partition will remove all User data and Windows system files

 

[Mainman407]

Windows XP Pro Installation

Kimland: TS Special Forces:

Thank you for your information. Oddly enough, the keyboard was the problem. However, now I have another problem hopefully you can assist me with.
As stated, when I installed a PS/2 keyboard, I was able to utilize the F8 key to "accept" the Windows XP Setup Licensing Agreement. However, I now have a separate problem.
I installed Windows XP Professional on a 1-GB partition of my 500GB hard drive.
When Windows booted up, any software I attempted to install automatically directed the files to this drive [C]. Even when I attempted to direct these files to the second partition, it was not recognized.
Anyway, I shut down my system and installed my Spotmau PowerSuite2009 CD in order to delete this partition and migrate it back into the total drive space.
I was successful in deleting the C: partition and now had access to the entire 500GB drive. However, when I reinserted my Windows XP Pro CD into the C-drive and started it up, the setup went exactly as before. When the option of where I wished to make my Windows installation, I "deleted" the initial 1-GB partition install location and installed Windows Setup onto the now entire 500 GB drive expecting to partition the drive at a later date. After formatting the entire drive to make sure there was no framented files, Windows XP Pro started to install the necessary files.
After these files were installed, Window stated that it would CONTINUE setup after restarting. Well, after my system shut-down and restarted, NOTHING happened. All I am getting is a Black screen. So, after 20 minutes of so waiting for Windows to CONTINUE, I restarted my system with the Windows XP Pro CD still in the CD tray.
When the start-up POST had completed, the message, Press any key to continue Windows setup appeared, and I pressed a key. Soon after I pressed this key, the note telling me that Windows is checking my system. After this note, NOTHING happened once again...a total black screen.
Is there any way I can format this drive outside a Windows format? No matter how many times I re-boot, the same startup notation appears but NOTHING after that.
Spotmau PowerSuite2009 tells me that i can re-partition this drive, and I can. But I can't re-format it. I have tried the Windows Recovery option in PowerSuite, but it tells me there is no Windows OS to recover.
All I want to do is re-format this drive so I can do a fresh WIndows install. Or do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks again for your earlier advice.

Thanks
Mainman407

 

[raybay]

After a partition change, you will at a minimum run the Windows Repair disk in R for Repair mode... I would do perform a complete reformat and reinstall. Windows does not like changes in configuration... and is designed to quit if there is an unexplained change.

 

[kimsland]

Microsoft's Windows XP Professional Repair Install step by step (* Including Delete Partition)
http://www.windowsxpprofessional.windowsreinstall.com/sp2sp3installxpcdoldhdd/indexfullpage.htm
* Warning deleting the Partition will remove all User data and Windows system files

Also remove any addon cards, especially Video card (if you have onboard)
Even remove extra Ram cards or USB devices ie take the hardware back to basics (or stock standard)

Once Windows is "clean installed", as per the link above, then refit any previously removed hardware

 

[Mainman407]

Windows Disk Format

Thanks,
The problem I am experiencing is most likely as you described. However, I can't even start up my Windows Setup. When I install the Windows XP Pro CD, and press any key to start the setup, the screen goes blank, and stays that way until I re-boot. The only problem is: everytime I re-boot I get the same screen.
PowerSuite will not allow me to re-format the drive (the first partition). As a matter of fact, I would really like to format the entire drive once again and do a fresh install but since I can't format it, how am I going to perform a Windows Repair?

Mainman407

 

[kimsland]

Well the key word here is Partition not format.
You are trying to remove the partition(s), and that's all

Here's an excellent free tool to do that: GParted Live CD

Free ImgBurn ISO burning application Download:
http://www.imgburn.com/index.php?act=download
Or use your own burning software (Nero?)

Once the Live CD is created, start your computer up with the Live Gparted CD in the drive, and "Boot" from it

Then remove the Partition(s)

Note do not format ever. Even when installing Windows. ie This is automatically done on a non partitioned harddrive, during Windows Setup.

 

[Mainman407]

Windows XP Pro Installation problems

Kimland;

I don't want to sound, or appear ignorant, but I visited the GParted link you provided. The notation on the top of the page stated that I should choose my particular download per my OS or some other purpose I don't readily recall.
Nonetheless, I downloaded the GPart-live-0.3.6-7 version.iso file but there was nothing in the file which stated that this file was for WinXPP. However, I booted up my system using the above file and was able to access the drive itself and migrated all formally designated partition into one single 500GiB drive once again.
I then rebooted with the Windows XP Pro CD in the CD tray. I then pressed a key when the prompt: Press any key to boot from CD appeared. Shortly after, the Windows "blue" setup screen appeared. I was now able (I thought) to perform a "fresh" Windows install. Each stage of the install executed as it did before.
I then pressed ENTER, then F8 to accept the Licensing Agreement. Then I was asked those three proverbial questions. 1) Do you want to install Windows on the designated partition; 2) Do you want to Delete this partition, Press D; and 3) Do you want to abort setup, press Esc. I pressed C, directing Windows Setup to install Windows on the specified or highlighted drive. Then I was asked if I would like to format the drive. I chose to do so. After the format was complete, Setup began loading necessary MBR files. After this was completed, I was told that Windows would reboot in a specified time limit.
I was instructed, per the Microsoft's Windows XP Professional Repair Install Step by Step information that when the system rebooted, I WAS NOT TO PRESS ANY KEY TO BOOT FROM THE CD. Instructions stated that I was to allow the boot process to follow through and read the MBR information, and Windows Setup would continue to install afterwards.

Well, when Windows Setup began, I did exactly as I was instructed and let the boot take its course of action. However, this message appeared: A DISK READ ERROR OCCURRED, Press Cntl + Alt + Del to continue.
What in the world is going on? What have I done that the Window Setup will not continue?

I appreciate the web link information in regard to GParted. But as I alluded to earlier, the download options did not specify whether that particular download would be appropriate for Windows XP Professional. I even clicked on all the download options hoping to find one that started Windows XP Pro, but nothing was found. However, I did download and burn to a CD the GPart-Live -0.3.6-7.iso file. But I swear this download stated it was for Unix.

Nonetheless, how in the world can I freshly repair this 500GiB drive so I can install my Windows XP Pro CD on it? I am so frustrated I don't know what else to do.
I have been able to enter Setup three times now, after clearing the drive, and thought the Setup install was installing as it should. Yet, as I described earlier, each and every time I permitted the system to re-boot on its own, that same message: A disk read error occurred.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Mainman407

 

[gbhall]

Possibly the motherboard needs drivers to access your new 500Gb drive under XP. Check your motherboard site. Download any drivers required, and arrange for them to be on some readable drive. Then do yet another (sorry!) install of XP, but when very early on, you are prompted to press F6 to install any special drivers. After a considerable pause, you then get a succession of prompts which enable the motherboard drivers to be applied.

Actually, it may or may not be that. Your post seems to suggest that after a successful install up to the point where the PC reboots, with the CD still in the drive, and it says not to press any press any key. What should happen next is after a certain time the hard drive assumes the job and continues to load a great deal more from the CD. You seem to have reached the point where the hard drive should take over, but you get a disk read error at that point. My guess is that basic bios i/o happens during the first part, but when the hard drive takes over, then appropriate motherboard-XP drivers come into use (see above).

Now it is not easy to say whether the hard drive or the CD is the culprit. All we know is the hard drive accepted a certain amount of data. Can you first use GpartEd to just check that the hard drive has a partition of at least 10Gb created in NTFS and the partition type is 07(hex). Then check that in the bios, the hard drive is 2nd in the boot order. Any other bootable CD you have which will enable you to view the hard disk, it's partitions, and even better, the data on it, would be good. Your objective is to find out if the hard drive is faulty or set up wrongly, or needs motherboard drivers, or else a more unlikely scenario of the install CD being faulty.

Gparted versions are x86 specific or not, I believe. In other words, if it ran at all on your hardware it is correct. It will enable partitions to be built for a great many more OS's than just Windows, however, which is where the confusion can come in. What you want for XP is NTFS (or FAT32 but nobody would). You said early about a 1Gb partition, which is at least 10 times too small, and surely XP would refuse to go any further in that case.

 

[kimsland]

migrated all formally designated partition into one single 500GiB drive once again.

The latest stable release of Gparted is: gparted-live-0.4.1-2

But as I previously stated, you must remove all Partition(s) not merge into 1 or create 1 or anything. Just remove them. (full stop)

Well the key word here is Partition not format.
You are trying to remove the partition(s), and that's all

Then install Windows

That's it.