Reformating PC

[piotrgurin]

Hey guys i i'm trying to reformat my pc because i got my new processor today , 3800 x2 and wana start fresh.

I went into Bios and changed boot priority to CD and restarted.

Then i press any key to boot from CD.

BUT, it sayss "setup is inspecting your computer's hardware config....."
foreverrrrrrr...................

15+mins and nothing happends!


i'm running on an ULTRA-D

 

[theMan]

do you have another drive you can plug your drive into? a lot of times, when the windows cd doesnt like something about the hard drive, it will hang there and even crash.

 

[Jakebrake]

Reset the CMOS.

 

[piotrgurin]

Originally posted by: theman
do you have another drive you can plug your drive into? a lot of times, when the windows cd doesnt like something about the hard drive, it will hang there and even crash.

i'm confused, what do u mnea?

 

[piotrgurin]

Originally posted by: Jakebrake
Reset the CMOS.

Manually?

 

[Jakebrake]

You can do it manually or you can change the bios settings to default. Then make sure to set it to boot from the CD.

 

[Jakebrake]

 

[theMan]

Originally posted by: piotrgurin

Originally posted by: theman
do you have another drive you can plug your drive into? a lot of times, when the windows cd doesnt like something about the hard drive, it will hang there and even crash.

i'm confused, what do u mnea?

what i was saying was, that on last resort, you could plug the drive into another computer and reformat it from there.

Originally posted by: piotrgurin

Originally posted by: Jakebrake
Reset the CMOS.

Manually?

yes. there is a jumper on the mobo, just set it for like, 15 seconds, then set it back. the directions should be in your motherboard manual.

 

[Valkerie]

flash bios with most recently updated patches and such.

you may have to erase the hard drive entirely before using a Windows XP install from the boot CD. certain viruses and bugs and unknown system hangs don't allow the Windows XP installation to install correctly when it inspects your HD.

 

[Fresh Daemon]

Also check the CD. Make sure there's no scratches, fingerprints or dirt. What does it do when it gets hung up - just stops, or does the CD sound like it's seeking and trying to access?

Try booting off a DOS floppy or USB flash drive, fdisking and formatting C: and then booting the CD again. Maybe there's some errors or it doesn't like the format.

 

[piotrgurin]

okay i reset the cmos manually and it works now, how long do i keep the cmos pin in the reset position?

Right now its still in this new position and windows is reformating....

 

[piotrgurin]

Also when i update the bios is it permanant? ie, the bios will never change even if i reset cmos? and will only change if i put a different version on right?

 

[Sforsyth]

when I updated my hard drive from 120 to 250 GB I had to hit F2 to the rocovery console I think it's called but everyother time after has been fine

 

[piotrgurin]

Originally posted by: piotrgurin
Also when i update the bios is it permanant? ie, the bios will never change even if i reset cmos? and will only change if i put a different version on right?

any1?

 

[Sforsyth]

I think you should have reset it and then put it back before even tunring on your PC

 

[Topweasel]

Please Pick up the latest version of Upgrading and repairing PC's. Great book with many tips even vets can learn alot from it.

Keeping the Pin in cuts power to the CMOS from the battery which means no changes will be saved. Updateing the bios is different, that is info written on a non-volatile memory (doesn't require power to keep info).

The difference is the Bios is settings and communication controller (can't think of a better way to say this) for you system, the Bios settings you can change are adjustable settings that the Bios has set as such and these settings are saved in the volatile memory and requires power from that battery to hold onto the setting when your system is off.