Trouble installing Windows on new HD

[Aquilegia]

Here's the skinny:

I'm running XP on a HP Pavilion Media Center box. I just replaced a failing HDD and am trying to install XP back on it. I initially got it to work and was having trouble activating XP. I used a disk that originally came with the system. It would not connect to the activation server, even though it could load web pages.

First...is the activation thing a new thing? I've reformatted and reinstalled windows more times than I can remember and I've never had to activate it this way (always have entered the code during setup).

Second...I've tried to rerun setup with another disk (one I just used within the past month to setup another computer), and I keep getting a BSOD during setup, right after it loads the drivers and says "Windows is starting". Now I'd like to reformat the *$&%# thing and rerun setup with a different CD, but I can't get setup to work, even though I'm using a different CD...it keeps puking at that same spot.

Any ideas would be most appreciated!

 

[Mark56]

What type of drive are you reinstalling on, IDE or SATA.

Activation is not new but is usually necessary when you have changed a major component in the system as it sees this to be a different PC.

Is the XP disc you have a full retail version.

 

[Aquilegia]

It's a 2TB Seagate SATA and the original CD is the reinstallation CD that came with the PC, and the one I'm trying now is a burned copy I got from work. Now, when I try to run setup I keep getting a BSOD. Right now I'm just trying to reformat the $&#^@ thing I should be able to get the setup to run.

 

[Mark56]

Windows XP does not contain SATA drivers, only a few basic ones. If your original hard drive was a SATA the reinstallation discs that came with the PC would have these drivers integrated into the disc. When you used this disc was the activation the only problem and did it give any suggestion that you could activate by telephone?

If you use a retail version of XP it will not have these SATA drivers included so you will need to download them from the manufacturers site of the motherboard and either integrate them into the XP disc, making a new copy, or put the drivers on a floppy disc (if you have a floppy drive) and installing them during the XP installation. This would explain the BSOD's you are getting if this is the case.

If your original drive was IDE then you will have the same problem with the OEM reinstallation CD.

This guide shows you how to integrate the SATA drivers into XP.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Install-Windows-XP-On-SATA-Without-a-Floppy-F6-47807.shtml

If you need to make the new disc I would also suggest that you integrate SP3 to save time updating after the installation.

http://www.helpwithwindows.com/WindowsXP/Slipstreaming_Windows_XP_Service_Pack_3.html