System (Widows XP) Reboots at Startup

[ModelTech]

I have Window XP (home) and it reboots the system just as it gets to the Loading windows screen. I've tried safe mode also with same results, except for a flash of a blue screen then a reboot.

I upgraded my complete computer except for the HDD and CDROM. The HDD had 98 on it originally so I upgraded it to XP Home on the old system before putting it into the new computer. XP ran on the old system fine, a little slow, but fine.

I have a

ECS K8T800-A
Sempron 2600+
512MB Ram
IDE Samsung 40GB HDD
HP CD-RW
Nvidia FX-5700 Graphics card

I also don't hear it post. But it does recognize the Processor, Ram, HDD, and CDROM in the boot up screen and BIOS.

Any additional Info needed, just ask.

 

[sivart]

More than likely your old chipset wasn't a VIA chipset (which I believe is what most ECS motherboards have).

Easiest fix would be to format and re-install the OS. Upgrades are tough enough on a single machine, changing motherboards afterwords probably did you in. I went from a VIA to an nForce3 chipset and tried to do what you did and receive the same results.

Hopefully you have your data backed up. If not you will need to either slave the hard drive in another computer to pull the data or reassemble your old PC to get the data off.

As for the POST beep, make sure you have the connection for your speaker hooked up to the motherboard. If you can get to the BIOS, the POST happened.

Good luck

 

[stevty2889]

Try booting with the windows xp disk and doing a repair install. Windows XP will not usualy work if you move the hard drive to a totaly different system with a different chipset..

 

[dclive]

Originally posted by: ModelTech
I have Window XP (home) and it reboots the system just as it gets to the Loading windows screen. I've tried safe mode also with same results, except for a flash of a blue screen then a reboot.

I upgraded my complete computer except for the HDD and CDROM. The HDD had 98 on it originally so I upgraded it to XP Home on the old system before putting it into the new computer. XP ran on the old system fine, a little slow, but fine.

I have a

ECS K8T800-A
Sempron 2600+
512MB Ram
IDE Samsung 40GB HDD
HP CD-RW
Nvidia FX-5700 Graphics card

I also don't hear it post. But it does recognize the Processor, Ram, HDD, and CDROM in the boot up screen and BIOS.

Any additional Info needed, just ask.

Put the HDD back in the old computer. Change the IDE controller to "Standard PCI IDE Controller" in Device Manager. Then immediately shut down, do not reboot, and put the HDD into the new machine and try to boot it up.

 

[sivart]

Originally posted by: stevty2889
Try booting with the windows xp disk and doing a repair install. Windows XP will not usualy work if you move the hard drive to a totaly different system with a different chipset..

I tried that, too. No such luck. I even removed the VIA chipset drivers before shutting down the old computer.

 

[theMan]

you will have to format the HD before running windows on it. windows will get confused.

 

[dclive]

Originally posted by: siliconhills

Originally posted by: stevty2889
Try booting with the windows xp disk and doing a repair install. Windows XP will not usualy work if you move the hard drive to a totaly different system with a different chipset..

I tried that, too. No such luck. I even removed the VIA chipset drivers before shutting down the old computer.

Removing the VIA chipset drivers won't help - the issue is either A) the HAL is different, in which case there's nothing you can do save a repair install, or B) the hard drive controller won't boot with the "PCI Standard IDE Controller". If you've already gone to Device Manager and selected PCI Standard IDE Controller for both IDE controllers, then shut down, that's about all you can do short of a repair install, which wouldn't be a bad idea at this point.

I don't suggest formatting yet - it's easy enough to do a repair install, and that will get your machine booting up while not losing any data or programs.

 

[speed01]

Could always do an overlay of the OS. When you boot up with the XP disc, don't pick the first repair option. Go through the procedures as if you were doing a fresh install and when you tell it to install, have it go where the existing OS is. At this point XP will look for previous installations and find your existing one. It should then ask if you want to repair this instance or proceed with a complete install. Pick repair and let it fix the existing one. I've had very good luck doing it this way. I've moved drives from a Dell with an Intel processor and Intel chipset to another pc with an MSI board, VIA chipset and AMD processor and back again this way with no problems whatsoever. HTH

Speed

 

[dclive]

Originally posted by: speed01
Could always do an overlay of the OS. When you boot up with the XP disc, don't pick the first repair option. Go through the procedures as if you were doing a fresh install and when you tell it to install, have it go where the existing OS is. At this point XP will look for previous installations and find your existing one. It should then ask if you want to repair this instance or proceed with a complete install. Pick repair and let it fix the existing one. I've had very good luck doing it this way. I've moved drives from a Dell with an Intel processor and Intel chipset to another pc with an MSI board, VIA chipset and AMD processor and back again this way with no problems whatsoever. HTH

Speed

*Bingo*. That's the best way to do a repair install of the OS when it won't boot. Try it out if the other steps don't work.

 

[ModelTech]

I tried the overlay of the OS. When I choose where the current OS is at. My only choices are "delete the existing Windows installation" or "us a differn't folder". No repair option here. Any suggestions.

Thanks everyone for your help. I moved the HDD from a Celeron 500 system to this new Via chipset motherboard with a Sempron 2600+.

 

[ShadowBlade]

windows is too stupid to use a new chipset, you have to reinstall and format your hard drive

 

[dclive]

Originally posted by: ShadowBlade
windows is too stupid to use a new chipset, you have to reinstall and format your hard drive

That's completely incorrect.

Windows won't boot after a motherboard swap for two reasons: a different HAL or a different hard disk controller. Going from a very old board to a very new board makes the former most likely and the latter almost definite. The former is difficult to solve - best to do a repair in place install. The latter can be solved, if you've got access to the old motherboard and the new motherboard will boot with XP's normal PCI IDE Standard controller. Most will.

 

[CPMax]

Hey I have the exact problem. I went from an P4 3.2Ghz w/ ECS Motherboard to AMD 3.0 w/ A-bit Mobo. I tried the repair but at the bootup screen it just restarts. I made the mistake of installing a fresh winXP. At boot up it says which WinXP do I want to start one is the "good" one and the other is my old install I guess. I tried the fresh install/overlay option but like ModelTech said, it says it will delete it, and by mistake I chose this option. Is there something I can still do to get the old install back and delete the new one? If not is there a way I can get all of my settings from the old one to the new install. The installs show its on C:Windows and C:Windows.000. Thanks.

Old setup: P4 3.2 w/ ECS PT800CE-A
New setup: AMD 64 3.0+ w/ ABit NF8-V