Trying to install XP Pro the traditional way, but...

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Safarji

Gawd
Joined
Dec 15, 2000
Messages
857
To give you some bearing.

I got my mobo about 1 year ago, but I have always had trouble installing XP and have neglected my system for to long.

I can't do a traditional install (ie, boot with the CD and go from there with a blank HDD) I have to already have an working install of any windows OS to install pro, by going through the cd menu and choosing my partition to install to. I don't end up with any problems as it's as good as a traditional install. However it does become painful when you forget about that stupid message that goes nowhere and why you have to do it from the cd menu

problem.jpg


This message comes after it has done the first scan, and it obviously can't find the CD rom, or load drivers for it, so it scans mechanism 2, and just sits there indefinately, The computer doesn't freeze, but all you can do is reboot.

I am running an MSI K7N2 Delta-ILSR, WD 400JB, on CD rom (LG RW) on primary EIDE set as primary.

Now I have never been able to get past this point. I use my WIN98SE startup disk as i have extra tools that I like to use for dos, but that shouldn't make a difference.
The problem as you can see is that of loading DOS CD Rom drivers so it can read the CD.
Making a WINXP startup disk and booting doesn't work either.

I am stumped, it's a really obscure parsed message, any help with this will be appreciated.
 
Safarji said:
Making a WINXP startup disk and booting doesn't work either.
Click to expand...
What message did you get with a WinXP startup disk? A "traditional" XP install (with a bootable XP setup CD) doesn't have all these DOS stuff...
 
I can't do a traditional install (ie, boot with the CD and go from there with a blank HDD)
Click to expand...
Why? Whats happening when you try to boot from CD?

Why troubleshoot the secondary problem and not the 'traditional' way?
 
WD 400JB, on CD rom (LG RW) on primary EIDE set as primary
Click to expand...

Is the cr-rom set as master?

If it is set the HDD as master on that channell. A lot of boards have problems booting when a HDD is not master on the channell.

If your other IDE channell is open install the cr-rom there for install.
 
Set the HDD as Primary master, and the cd-rom as secondary master. Some boards are dumb in that regard. But Boot of the CD, do not use winnt.exe from dos floppy.

Or use the boot floppies on the web, I believe we're up to 8 now.
 
Ranma_Sao said:
Or use the boot floppies on the web, I believe we're up to 8 now.
Click to expand...
Ouch!

Win9x - 1 boot floppy
WinNT - 3 floppies
Win2K - 4 floppies
WinXP - 6 floppies :eek:

Quite a huge jump... :)

Edit: found it. It says is 6, not 8.
 
Well the XP CD just doesn't boot, it just goes straight to the HDD, even when CD rom is the only boot device enabled.

I dont get it.

The way I have done it on my other computers is
- put in the WIN98SE startup disk. Let it load CD ROM Drivers
- put in the XP startup Disk. Run smartdrive.
- then access the CD via winnt, install begins

The only reason I am having a problem now is because the CD Rom device drivers for DOS don't seem to want to load, and I get that message #scanning mechanism 2
 
OK i have downloaded the files for XP boot disks.

I will give it a go when I can muster up 6 floppies!

Thanks
 
Safarji said:
Well the XP CD just doesn't boot, it just goes straight to the HDD, even when CD rom is the only boot device enabled.
Click to expand...
May be you have this problem?

Safarji said:
The way I have done it on my other computers is
- put in the WIN98SE startup disk. Let it load CD ROM Drivers
- put in the XP startup Disk. Run smartdrive.
- then access the CD via winnt, install begins
Click to expand...
That's the "traditional" way of installing 9x/ME OSes. Since NT4 (or 3.51?) the "standard way" has always been to use the bootable CD. I don't think you need to run smartdrive though.
 
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