Trying to install windows....

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 03:20 AM

So i'm repairing this computer for one of my clients. His requests seem pretty simple and straight foward.

1. Add a smaller HDD for his OS
2. Swap out CD-ROM for DVD-RW
3. Install windows.

#3 is where the problem arises. Well, a little before that actually. First, the machine takes FOREVER to finish the post sequence. It'll hang for about a good 2min. or so at "detecting IDE". Then, once it's done that, it will hang where it attempts to find a place to boot from, currently the optical drive, and after that, it'll will hang for like another 2min. just trying to find the correct files to boot from.

Once that's all said and done, it will start to install windows no problem. the blue screen w/all the windows required files start to load up, etc. but after a little while after that, there are more problems! I've gone through this process a few times already, and nothing has really been solved.

A couple of times, the machine has given an error stating that a file cannot be copied (p3.sys) and i hit enter for "retry", after a while of doing so, the machine gives me a BSOD w/a stop error code (i didn't check which one). I have tried another windows disk, and that seems to have solved that issue, but now, the other issue is that after the setup program finishes, and the machine restarts, the machine will go back into setup and not the windows setup (you know, the GUI looking one).

I have cleared out the CMOS a couple of times, i have pulled out one stick of RAM (machine has 2x512Mb) thinking it was a memory error, and the machine is basically running bare bones. Right now i'm trying another disk in the machine, and while the machine still boots up slowly, i'm hoping this other disk will solve the windows issue.

Vampyromaniac · Apr 1, 2007, 03:25 AM

Check the master/slave jumpers on all the IDE drives. If they look normal, then trying changing them all to Cable Select mode. (Or vice versa, change to Master/Slave if in Cable Select currently.)

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 09:15 AM

hmm....will try that.

[hobo]eclipse · Apr 1, 2007, 09:21 AM

your second troubles sound like its wanting to boot from the CD again instead of the HDD just loaded to, must you hit a button to boot from a CD or no? if not try and pop it out during the reboot.

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 09:24 AM

^^ that is correct. and no, it does not give me the option to press a key to log boot from CD or boot normally. it just automatically boots to CD w/o my intervention. and if i take out the CD during the boot process, it will give me a "disk boot error. insert system disk and press enter".

[hobo]eclipse · Apr 1, 2007, 09:34 AM

so wats the bios settings look like for booting devices and how are/how many these drives being hooked up internally? if the bios is seeing the drive and windows sees it and borked on 2 installs might be a bad HDD, are the problems exactly the same betwwen the 2 install disks?

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 09:38 AM

the machine has 2 HDDs and one optical. however, i only have the one HDD i'm trying to install windows on plugged in w/both IDE and power, while the 2nd drive i have plugged in w/only the IDE but no power. having done that in the past has never caused me any issues. i'll try unplugging that drive to see if that could be the issue though. although i doubt it. The BIOS properly detects the drive no problems. windows setup properly detects the HDD as well. but the reboot part is the main issue i'm trying to get past by.

[hobo]eclipse · Apr 1, 2007, 09:44 AM

im betting the 2nd HDD being unplugged from the IDE will atleast make it post faster, what type of machine is this? a dell or HP or sumthin? Also about the drive arangment, how is it, 2 HDD on one IDE and the optical on the other? is the HDD installed to on the Primary Master IDE plug?

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 10:02 AM

system specs:
MSI? kt133 MoBo
xp2200+
1Gb RAM (mixed 2x512Mb, currently have one stick pulled out)
onboard gfx
DVD-RW
80Gb WD (OS, if i can ever install it)
120Gb WD (back up/storage).

optical is on it's own IDE controller, HDDs are on their own IDE controller. 80Gb set up as master w/slave present on the jumper config....that might be the problem right there! there is no slave present because the slave drive is not hooked up as of right now!

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

80Gb set up as master w/slave present on the jumper config....that might be the problem right there! there is no slave present because the slave drive is not hooked up as of right now!

yup, that was the problem right there! i removed the jumper, and just to be safe, i unplugged the 120Gb from the IDE cable, and the machine posted up right up in like 5 seconds like it should have! right now it's loading up the GUI process of the windows install

.

OMG, i'm so dumb for having overlooked something so simple

**temeteus82** · Apr 1, 2007, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

OMG, i'm so dumb for having overlooked something so simple

And I thought that you were pulling Aprils fools joke on us here...

[hobo]eclipse · Apr 1, 2007, 10:19 AM

i feel ya dude, it sux wrestling with picky drive stuff on installs, i always unplug all but one optical and the HDD installing to. had incidents where sata installs relyed on the IDE HDD for something and i couldnt format or partion or remove the drive. so i just started pulling all the uneeded data cables before install.

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by temeteus82

And I thought that you were pulling Aprils fools joke on us here...

lol, no. i started this thread yesterday!

**temeteus82** · Apr 1, 2007, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

lol, no. i started this thread yesterday!

In my timezone @ 5 am. April 1st 2007

CDsDontBurn · Apr 1, 2007, 10:25 AM

lol. i was going by my timezone. so that still implies that no, i ddin't mean this an april fools joke.

Vampyromaniac · Apr 2, 2007, 03:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDsDontBurn

yup, that was the problem right there! i removed the jumper, and just to be safe, i unplugged the 120Gb from the IDE cable, and the machine posted up right up in like 5 seconds like it should have! right now it's loading up the GUI process of the windows install

.

Thought it would be the jumpers

Don't feel bad, I once was confused for a couple days with slow POST/detection times. Ended up being the jumpers of course. Your post reminded me of that problem right away.

CDsDontBurn · Apr 2, 2007, 05:37 AM

well, i turned the machine in today. made me quite a bit of profit off of it

.

only worked on it maybe a total of like 4hrs.....one of those hours was trying to figure out why it was taking so long to boot up,

.

Apr 1, 2007, 03:20 AM	#1
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	Trying to install windows.... So i'm repairing this computer for one of my clients. His requests seem pretty simple and straight foward. 1. Add a smaller HDD for his OS 2. Swap out CD-ROM for DVD-RW 3. Install windows. #3 is where the problem arises. Well, a little before that actually. First, the machine takes FOREVER to finish the post sequence. It'll hang for about a good 2min. or so at "detecting IDE". Then, once it's done that, it will hang where it attempts to find a place to boot from, currently the optical drive, and after that, it'll will hang for like another 2min. just trying to find the correct files to boot from. Once that's all said and done, it will start to install windows no problem. the blue screen w/all the windows required files start to load up, etc. but after a little while after that, there are more problems! I've gone through this process a few times already, and nothing has really been solved. A couple of times, the machine has given an error stating that a file cannot be copied (p3.sys) and i hit enter for "retry", after a while of doing so, the machine gives me a BSOD w/a stop error code (i didn't check which one). I have tried another windows disk, and that seems to have solved that issue, but now, the other issue is that after the setup program finishes, and the machine restarts, the machine will go back into setup and not the windows setup (you know, the GUI looking one). I have cleared out the CMOS a couple of times, i have pulled out one stick of RAM (machine has 2x512Mb) thinking it was a memory error, and the machine is basically running bare bones. Right now i'm trying another disk in the machine, and while the machine still boots up slowly, i'm hoping this other disk will solve the windows issue. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 1, 2007, 03:25 AM	#2
Vampyromaniac confutatis maledictis Join Date: May 2002 Location: somewhere dark Posts: 5,974 Rep Power: 77 System Specs	Check the master/slave jumpers on all the IDE drives. If they look normal, then trying changing them all to Cable Select mode. (Or vice versa, change to Master/Slave if in Cable Select currently.) __________________ *Digitalis 3.3* Athlon 64 3000 // ASUS K8V SE Deluxe // 1024MB PC3200 (2-2-2-10 1T) ATI All-In-Wonder 9700 Pro // 20" Dell 2005FPW (DVI) M-Audio Revo 7.1 + Philips Acoustic Edge // Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 320/16 Western Digital WD3200KS + 120/8 Seagate 7200.7 NEC ND-3550A 16x DVD±RW + Lite-On 52x24x CD-RW Antec Sonata case // 480W Antec TruePower personal bests \|\| Aq'3: 46796 \| 3D'01: 20461 \| 3D'03: 6336 \| 3D'05: 2677 \| PC'04: 4605 \| PC'02: 7691,9092,1250

Apr 1, 2007, 09:15 AM	Thread Starter #3
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	hmm....will try that. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 1, 2007, 09:24 AM	Thread Starter #5
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	^^ that is correct. and no, it does not give me the option to press a key to log boot from CD or boot normally. it just automatically boots to CD w/o my intervention. and if i take out the CD during the boot process, it will give me a "disk boot error. insert system disk and press enter". __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 1, 2007, 09:38 AM	Thread Starter #7
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	the machine has 2 HDDs and one optical. however, i only have the one HDD i'm trying to install windows on plugged in w/both IDE and power, while the 2nd drive i have plugged in w/only the IDE but no power. having done that in the past has never caused me any issues. i'll try unplugging that drive to see if that could be the issue though. although i doubt it. The BIOS properly detects the drive no problems. windows setup properly detects the HDD as well. but the reboot part is the main issue i'm trying to get past by. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 1, 2007, 09:21 AM	#4
[hobo]eclipse ...just bummin 'round Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 2,907 Rep Power: 112 System Specs	your second troubles sound like its wanting to boot from the CD again instead of the HDD just loaded to, must you hit a button to boot from a CD or no? if not try and pop it out during the reboot.

Apr 1, 2007, 09:34 AM	#6
[hobo]eclipse ...just bummin 'round Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 2,907 Rep Power: 112 System Specs	so wats the bios settings look like for booting devices and how are/how many these drives being hooked up internally? if the bios is seeing the drive and windows sees it and borked on 2 installs might be a bad HDD, are the problems exactly the same betwwen the 2 install disks?

Apr 1, 2007, 09:44 AM	#8
[hobo]eclipse ...just bummin 'round Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 2,907 Rep Power: 112 System Specs	im betting the 2nd HDD being unplugged from the IDE will atleast make it post faster, what type of machine is this? a dell or HP or sumthin? Also about the drive arangment, how is it, 2 HDD on one IDE and the optical on the other? is the HDD installed to on the Primary Master IDE plug?

Apr 1, 2007, 10:02 AM	Thread Starter #9
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	system specs: MSI? kt133 MoBo xp2200+ 1Gb RAM (mixed 2x512Mb, currently have one stick pulled out) onboard gfx DVD-RW 80Gb WD (OS, if i can ever install it) 120Gb WD (back up/storage). optical is on it's own IDE controller, HDDs are on their own IDE controller. 80Gb set up as master w/slave present on the jumper config....that might be the problem right there! there is no slave present because the slave drive is not hooked up as of right now! __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 1, 2007, 10:19 AM	#12
[hobo]eclipse ...just bummin 'round Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 2,907 Rep Power: 112 System Specs	i feel ya dude, it sux wrestling with picky drive stuff on installs, i always unplug all but one optical and the HDD installing to. had incidents where sata installs relyed on the IDE HDD for something and i couldnt format or partion or remove the drive. so i just started pulling all the uneeded data cables before install.

Apr 1, 2007, 10:25 AM	Thread Starter #15
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	lol. i was going by my timezone. so that still implies that no, i ddin't mean this an april fools joke. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later

Apr 2, 2007, 05:37 AM	Thread Starter #17
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,779 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	well, i turned the machine in today. made me quite a bit of profit off of it . only worked on it maybe a total of like 4hrs.....one of those hours was trying to figure out why it was taking so long to boot up, . __________________ Her First Day \| A year later