Originally Posted by
SRQ Guy
Ok well thanks for the help. I instructed the BIOS to "Load Failsafe Defaults". Now Windows copies the installation files to my HD, but the system won't boot from the HD to complete the install. It boots from CD even when I deselect teh option to boot from CD, and when I remove the CD it claims there is a bad boot device. Any ideas what's going on or what I can do here?
This is a "feature" of the Windows Upgrade CD installation process to ensure that you don't use the Upgrade CD to install Win on a computer that does not have an older version on it. MS wants you to buy the non-upgrade for more money in that situation. Here is the Upgrade install process, per MS:
Install Windows XP to a new hard disk
To install Windows XP to a new hard disk, you must start your computer by using one of the following media:
• Microsoft Windows 98/Windows Millennium startup disk
• Windows XP boot disks
• Windows XP CD-ROM
For additional information about how to obtain the Windows XP Setup boot disks, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
310994 (
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310994/ ) How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks
Note If you want to start your computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM, your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive must be configured to do this. For information about how to configure your computer to start from the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, see the documentation that is included with your computer or contact the computer manufacturer.
To install Windows XP to a new hard disk:
1. Read the End-User License Agreement, and then press F8.
Note If your Windows XP CD-ROM is an upgrade, you are prompted to insert a CD-ROM of a previous operating system to verify upgrade compliance. Remove the Windows XP CD-ROM, and then insert the CD-ROM from your previous operating system into the CD-ROM drive. You can use the CD-ROM to upgrade from the following versions of Windows:
Windows 98
Windows 98 Second Edition
Windows Millennium Edition
Windows NT 4.0
Windows 2000 Professional
2. When you are prompted for the Windows XP CD-ROM, remove your previous operating system CD-ROM, and then insert your Windows XP CD-ROM.
3. To install Windows XP by starting the computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM, insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.
4. When you see the "Press any key to boot from CD" message, press any key to start the computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM.
5. At the Welcome to Setup screen, press ENTER to start Windows XP Setup.
6. Follow the instructions on the screen to select and format a partition where you want to install Windows XP.
7. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete Windows XP Setup.