Installing XP onto new HDD

[mart2005x]

Hi Guys,

Hope you can offer me some advice. My old laptop HDD is practically full so I have bought a new one which is faster and has more capacity.

My problem is this - My laptop has XP preloaded (all the install files are in 386i folder) so I don't have an installation CD as such. I want to install XP onto the new HDD without ghosting the full drive as there is a lot of crap, obselete installs, and loads old stuff that i never use anymore.

At the moment I have the new HDD in a USB portable case so its no problem to copy over files.

Is it possible to install by copying the 386i folder starting the installation? I've tried but get error messages as soon as it trys to boot up, so I obviously need additional files.

Can I ghost only the OS system using Norton Ghost or would this be a bad idea?

Any advice will be much appreciated.

Rgds, Mart.

 

[Nodsu]

Yes, you can start the install from the i386 folder, but you need to boot into DOS for that (use a floppy or a CD). And you have to format at least a part of your hard drive as FAT32 (DOS won't be able to run the installer otherwise).

No, Ghost will copy the entire contents of a filesystem.

First, ask your laptop maker for a Windows or a recovery CD. They have to supply one.

If the lappy maker is stubborn.. You are entitled to a copy of WIndows XP, so feel free to download a matching copy off the internet or "borrow" from a friend. Make sure the XP version is the same as mentioned on your license sticker (Home/Pro/Media) and it has to be OEM (shipped with a computer), not Retail (bought in a box).