Installing Windows XP - Can't copy certain files

[mattitude]

Hi guys,

After getting the blue screen of death all of the time and not being able to boot up in any mode. I decided to totally reformat that hard disk and reinstall Windows. There is a problem though!

Before I tell you the problem, I just thought that I'd mention that my system is a Dell Dimension and I use the Windows XP OEM Disk to install Windows. My hard drive is a SATA.

I turn the computer on, and press F2 to enter the BIOS Settings. I change the boot order so that the CD-DRIVE boots first (The Disk doesn't actually boot from the CD DRIVE, it boots from the DVD DRIVE. I think this is because the DVD DRIVE is the 'Master' or something). When I have changed the boot order, I reboot. I then get the 'Press any key to boot from CD' message. I press a key and then the Windows setup begins.

The setup starts off by loading files (drivers etc).
I then press 'ENTER' to set up Windows XP (there is no previous version of XP installed).
I then accept the agreement by pressing F8.

It now comes to a page with the available partitions.
I highlight the C: Partition (NTFS) and press the 'D' to delete it. And then recreate the C: Partition (NTFS) by pressing 'C'. I then press 'Enter' to install Windows on this New, Raw partition.

I format the partition. This is fine. Gets to 100% nicely. The problem is the next bit:

The Windows XP setup copies files to the Windows Installation folders. It copies so many files but then randomly stops stating that it can't copy a specific file, and asks me to try again or skip. The thing is, I've retried installing it and sometimes, files that can't be copied will actually copy other times I try.

One of the files I see quite often is 'pro_seg5.swf'. A lot of the time this file can't be copied, but other times i've tried, it has copied! But a different file pops up instead.

I actually nearly got to the end of copying all files until one popped up when it was nearly finished. I skipped it and Windows began installing!... but after a few minutes, a blue screen appeared.

I've just got a blue screen now. Here is the information:

IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

Technical information:

*** STOP: 0x0000000A (0x83351E48, 0x00000002, 0x00000000, 0x80828D6B)


What do you guys think the problem could be? I think it's got to be something to do with inside the system itself. Maybe the DVD DRIVE the disk boots from? I wanna try booting the CD from the CD ROM DRIVE but I don't know how, it doesn't work when I insert it in there.

Thanks guys,
Matt.

 

[gbhall]

Seems the Cd is damaged or dirty. A frequent problem. The drive itself can be internally dirty on the reading lens. There are plenty of things you can do, such as gently cleaning the CD surface with appropriate materials, and using a special DVD drive cleaning CD. Examine the CD surface for scratches. Dont touch it !

Next option is finding out how to boot from the CD rather than the DVD. This can be just a case of finding the right place in the bios, or swapping the drives over in the cable connections.

Next option is to borrow a perfect OEM install CD and use your own sticker tag to register the install.

Next option is copy the entire installation disk onto either the hard drive (a separate partition) or a plug-in USB drive and boot from something else, switch to the copied image and start the installation setup.exe

As to what else you can boot from, how about a copy of UBCD4WIN or many other possibilities, right down to a good old DOS floppy disc. If you dont know anybody that can help, only the first few options are open to you, and if you have no working OS on the PC now, that complicates matters too.

Since you are posting, you obviously have access to another PC, so you could look into the UBCD4WIN option, which is tremendously useful for all sorts of things you probably can't even imagine right now. Why not read it up ? http://www.ubcd4win.com/

By the way, you really ought to look into how you install XP on a SATA drive. XP did not come with SATA drivers, and there are hoops to jump through before it will install properly. This can involve setting a bios option to pretend SATA is IDE, or pressing F6 to install SATA drivers from another source early in the setup.

Another factor is what service pack level is the OEM install at ? Hopefully it is SP3 otherwise you are already looking at lots of more problems, like a 1.5Gb download of SP3

Please let us know how you get on.

 

[DelJo63]

google pro_seg5.swf; seems you are not alone - -

 

[mike1959]

Problems with CD/DVD's

This seems to ring a bell ! I had this problem about five years ago. I suspected the XP disc, but it was kept in its sleeve, like new. After several failed installs,(different faults each time), I changed my old 'Creative' CD drive for a new 'Philips' 5232 CD drive.
It installed XP on first attempt, no problems at all. I think it was the laser failing in the old drive. Hope that helps.

 

[techsuitor]

first, try what gbhall recommended. If it works, then good for you.
But if it won't, you can follow also what mike1959 has said..
you can borrow another CD drive to your friends, (just for a test)
if it works,, then, your CD drive is the main cause.

have another one for replacement.

 

[SNGX1275]

I agree with the above.

But if it fails on different files that can also mean you have some bad RAM. This might also be the source of your original problems. Probably worth taking an hour or 2 and running memtest (from bootable cd). But really, if you are getting BSODs and failing to have files install on XP installation and those are because of bad RAM, then memtest is going to throw errors pretty quickly (within seconds to maybe a minute).

Also, its probably never 'good' if XP fails on a few files, but if you can skip them without a BSOD on install it likely isn't the end of the world. You probably need a Service Pack update after the install anyway and all or at least a lot of the real important files will get updated/replaced.

 

[Guest]

Hello Everyone. I am having the same issue. My computer is a Dell XPS M1730 with Windows XP SP3. When I'm trying to install the XP CD every minutes or so it tellm me that "Setup cannot copy the file: kodak_dc.icn." Each time it mentions a different file. The disc is really clean with no signs of damage or scratches. Is there any thing more technical as to why this is happening other than a bad lens or disc. I play games on my CD Rom, so I don't think it's that. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thank you

 

[lamentonegro]

I had this problem never before. but recently I installed windows 10 but I found out that slimdrivers could not find sound and usb devices drivers, so I decided to reinstall windows xp but its 64bit version and at 64% setup wrote a message "setup cannot copy the file...". I think setup detects an older windows install so I will install ubuntu first and later reinstall windows xp64 see http://www.bilder-hochladen.net/I/lx0l-1-eeb1.jpg

 

[mike1959]

Lamentonegro; You didn't say what your PC is, but one reason a Windows 10 install would fail, is that the motherboard is too old, and the program 'Slimdrivers' could not find the drivers for it.
With the Windows XP 64bit, have you installed and run it ok before? Can your PC run 64 bit XP?
Installing Ubuntu will overwrite Windows on your 'C' drive, so it's worth trying as it's free, and only takes 20 minutes to do.

 

[lamentonegro]

The screenshot is

 

[lamentonegro]

Lamentonegro; You didn't say what your PC is, but one reason a Windows 10 install would fail, is that the motherboard is too old, and the program 'Slimdrivers' could not find the drivers for it.
With the Windows XP 64bit, have you installed and run it ok before? Can your PC run 64 bit XP?
Installing Ubuntu will overwrite Windows on your 'C' drive, so it's worth trying as it's free, and only takes 20 minutes to do.

my pc has an am3+ board with pciexpress slots and 4gb ram. the windows10 install worked fine but 1st I do not have a license and 2nd the devices for sound, usb wintv und usb wireless were not recognised and slimdrivers did not find drivers so the problem appeared as I put in the windows xp 64 cd. but right now the install process with windows xp32 works fine but I got recently 8gb additional ram memory installed so I will try later to change the installation to xp64

 

[mike1959]

Hi, You need to find out if your motherboard and CPU can run 64 bit operating systems, some can, but many can't.
If not then you can run 32 bit versions of Windows or Linux distros.
Windows 10 will need certain drivers for USB etc, but the motherboard will have to be fairly modern for it to work fully.
Several years ago I had this same problem as you are reporting, which was caused by the CD drive being faulty, I had to buy a new one, then Windows XP did install proprerly.
Also I seem to remember that 32 bit systems can use up to 3GB of RAM, no more, but 64 bit systems will use all the RAM you fit to your PC.
Windows XP will run on around 2GB of RAM, I did the same for many years with no trouble.
Of course XP is not supported now, nor Vista, so it's better to move on to 7 or 8 if you don't get 10 to work with your PC.

 

[captaincranky]

my pc has an am3+ board with pciexpress slots and 4gb ram. the windows10 install worked fine but 1st I do not have a license and 2nd the devices for sound, usb wintv und usb wireless were not recognised and slimdrivers did not find drivers so the problem appeared as I put in the windows xp 64 cd. but right now the install process with windows xp32 works fine but I got recently 8gb additional ram memory installed so I will try later to change the installation to xp64

I have a question. Was the 32 bit XP install done with the same DVD drive as the the 64 bit version?

Well, 2 questions. Did the PC have XP 64 bit installed on it in the first place? (Before you embarked on your, "grand experiment" with Windows 10)?

I'm assuming you already know with XP you have to set your BIOS to "run HDDs as IDE" or install SATA pre-drivers . (The Intel floppy disc thingy).

I'm having a hard time imagining Windows 10 will even allow you to run HDD or SSDs as IDE. The reverse being true for XP.

 

[Ekene]

The best way to fix all problems is to buy two different Windows xp ....probably different year .....when one show up any error... don't skip ..just eject the present Cd ..put the next Windows xp Cd .... then click enter ..to try again ...that might take you through ...or lead you to Another error ..you continue changing CDs until its done .... easy and simple ..

 

[bazz2004]

Settle for it running XP 32 bit rather than reinstalling a 64 bit OS which in any case may not work. I have 32 bit XP Home on my desktop (P4 3.4Ghz) with 4Gb ram of which it recognises 3.5Gb. It runs really well. Remember that XP goes to SP3 and there are loads of updates after that. It's easy to believe you have installed XP whereas you have only just started.

 

[szemmel]

I have the same problem, I tried to install XP with various CD-s and versions, but it didn't work. Before, I installed Xp from my CD many times without problems. Now, I had to do this becouse of a virus (?). It's possible that the installation fails because the harddisk is infected? My first tentative to reinstall windows worked, then I tried to run a virus test (with eset online). After a while it said that it's not enough memory, so I changed the values for the Virtual Memory. Perhaps it was wrong. And after this I couldn't restart my computer, I would solve the problem with reinstalling XP again, but from this time it says it could not copy his files. The wrong Virtual memory setting can affect the installation after formatting the partition???

 

[bazz2004]

It's also important to take stock of your hardware. My Medion desktop running XP is maybe fourteen years old. Hardware wears out. I cloned the hard disk to a much larger one a few years ago before it showed any problems. The CD drive became unreliable at reading disks and was replaced. Its had several graphics card replacements. Consider getting a new computer with Windows 10. You can use a virtual XP on a W10 computer to run any incompatible software. I suspect that the hard drive on your machine is overdue for replacement if it is the original one and the CD rom drive too. You've had your money's worth out of the machine.

 

[captaincranky]

I have the same problem, I tried to install XP with various CD-s and versions, but it didn't work. Before, I installed Xp from my CD many times without problems. Now, I had to do this becouse of a virus (?). It's possible that the installation fails because the harddisk is infected? My first tentative to reinstall windows worked, then I tried to run a virus test (with eset online). After a while it said that it's not enough memory, so I changed the values for the Virtual Memory. Perhaps it was wrong. And after this I couldn't restart my computer, I would solve the problem with reinstalling XP again, but from this time it says it could not copy his files. The wrong Virtual memory setting can affect the installation after formatting the partition???

I didn't read the whole thread again, so if this is a silly question, so what?

You say you had a virus. How did you prepare the HDD for the Windows reinstall? Because you need to clear the HDD via a complete reformat, then try to install Windows.

I usually take the suspect drive, put it in another machine, and reformat it there. (This of course after making sure the machine can't boot from the suspect HDD.

You could also lay waste to anything potentially harmful on the drive with, "Darik's Boot and Nuke" :http://www.dban.org/download

Here's a couple of prior threads about it: https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/wipe-hard-drive-dariks-boot-and-nuke.132670/

https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/dariks-boot-and-nuke-or-another-software.213559/

@baaz2004 also has a point. DVD drives are about 15 bucks on sale at Newegg, usually with free shipping. I never screw around with a balky drive, I just throw it away, and stuff in a new one. If the tray slide isn't working correctly, or it trashes more than one disc in a row, it's outta there.

And if the Windows DVD is dirty, you have to clean it correctly. I've brought enough movies home from Redbox that wouldn't run, didn't look all that dirty, yet played perfectly after cleaning.