Trying to reinstall Windows XP Home?

[gashler]

I tried to format my C drive and reinstall windows XP home. Unfortunately, it let me format the drive, but when I tried to install windows it keeps coming up with an error..

 

Ill run you through what im doing.

 

Startup with XP disc in. Press any key.

Then it asks if I want to install XP or try to recover a previous version.

I go for a clean install. It scans my drives, and finds a partition already being used on C (as it keeps getting halfway and then messing up)

Ive tried both deleting the current partition and creating a new one, and recovering the current partition.

It then asks whether I want to install with FAT or the other one (NTPS I think?)

There are 4 options, Fat and NTPS with quick, or FAT and NTPS without.

 

Ive tried all 4 options.

With each attempt it will get about halfway, and then come up with a stop error message, saying it has stopped to prevent damage to my computer.

 

It will either have no technical error message, or come up with this..

 

DRIVER IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL

 

Or sometimes it will get about halfway through the install, and then it will come up with

the file USRPRBDA.EXE missing, and the options to quit the install, carry on without using the file, or retry finding the file.

If i retry more than 2/3 times, it will come up with a stop error screen. If I skip the file it will come up with a stop error screen.

 

Please help? can someone run me through what I need to do?

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Here's a question Gashler ok?

 

When you first boot from the cdrom and it says; "Press any key to boot from cd" and you press a key and later during the install and it asks again to "Press any key to boot from cd", what do you do?

[danzil]

is your hard drive IDE or a SATA drive.

if it is sata do you have access to the driver for the install.

usually there is a programme on the motherboard driver cd to make the drivers you need these usually have to be on a floppy disk.

 

during the install it will say press f6 to install a third party driver...

press f6 then use the floppy disk to find the sata drivers,

 

try that, if that does not work i think maybe your hard drive needs checking and/or your RAM.

regards

danzil

:)

[gashler]

thanks danzil - unfortunately I dont know what type of hard drive I have, and its a second hand computer given to me so I dont have anything it would have come with.

 

If I can find out what type of harddrive I have by opening the tower up, are there websites I can download the drivers from, put them onto a floppy and then boot using that?

[maynardvdm]

Hi

 

If it is an IDE HDD the the cable going to it will be a big flat grey cable, SATA uses a thin, slightly thicker, red cable.

[gashler]

thanks maynard - just out of pure laziness, is there any way of knowing which it is without opening the tower up? I presume your post was referring to the cabling inside the tower?

[Guest Wolfeymole]

just out of pure laziness, is there any way of knowing which it is without opening the tower up?

 

When I've got off the sunbed Gash I'll get back to you.

 

At most there will be 4 screws on the panel, unscrew them and slide it back, we are trying to help you here Gash.

[gashler]

ok no need to get *****y Wolfey - in case you hadnt noticed I am a beginner at this. I've never opened a tower up in my life. I was just seeing if there was a way of doing it without opening up the tower, because I didnt know how to and didnt want to mess anything up.

 

Youre meant to be a moderator man, dont be so damn sarcastic.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

I asked a question immediately after you posted that I have yet to have a reply to.

 

If you had replied to that question then I would have offered further advice as I have an idea as to what has happened here, instead you chose to ignore me.

 

If you thought my riposte was uncalled for then allow me to explain that we do not offer quick fixes or shabby advice whatsoever.

[gashler]

ok wolfey, in answer to your earlier question, it only asks me to boot from the cd once at the beginning.

[Guest Wolfeymole]

Shut the pc down and immediately on start up press F2, Del or whatever key takes you into the bios.

 

Make sure the first boot option is set to cdrom.

 

Put the XP disk in the drive.

 

Make sure the cdrom as first boot is saved by pressing F10.

 

Exit the bios

 

Now the pc will look for boot files on the cd and ask you to "Press any key to boot from cd"

 

Once you get to the part where it finds previous windows versions delete them and make a new one.

 

Then it will start to install windows and later it will reboot approximately twice more and again ask you to press any key to boot from cd.

 

PRESS NOTHING just let it install.

[RandyL]

DRIVER IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL

 

If your getting that error when reinstalling then I agree with danzil in post 3 that you have a hard drive or memory problem. I'd put money on the drive but who knows.

 

What is the reason you have chosen to reinstall? What problem did you have.

 

I think it likely that you have one of those two hardware problems.

[danzil]

hi.

Depending on your bios, when you first turn the PC on it will do its check called POST (Power On Self Test). this is where it counts up your memory etc.

after the memory has been checked it will check other drives etc.

you should see your cd/dvd drivers etc and any hard drives attached.

check to the left of the hard drive, does it say anything like IDE0 or SATA etc.

the is the only way i can think of at the mo to determine your drive interface with out opening the case.

 

do you have your motherboard driver cd.

 

How many sticks of RAM (memory) do you have installed, try re-installing XP after removing one stick of ram. if it fails replace that stick and remove the other, that is if you have more then one obviously.YOU WILL HAVE TO TAKE THE CASE SIDE OFF FOR THIS.!!

also go into your bios,,,,,F2 or DELETE key at POST (read above what POST is), when in there choose "load bios defaults" this will put everything back to normal, then change your first boot device back to cd and retry....

 

if that does nt work then post back.

 

regards

danzil

:)