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XP Will Not Install!!!

M

ModelTech

Member
Problem: I purchased Windows XP Home Edition and cannot get it to work on my system. It will not format my hard drive properly. I go through the process of creating and picking the partition then formatting it to NTFS, then it tells me the partition is unuseable. So I figure I must of a Hard Drive problem so I go pick up a new WD 80GB HDD. I boot off of the XP CD do the format and the same error happens. So then I decide to try to install 98 on this HDD to see if it works or not. 98 installs and works fine. So I return XP Home for XP Professional, same problem.

System:
ECS K7S5A (with latest bios)
Athlon 1.4c
WD 80GB HDD or Maxtor 45GB HDD
512MB PC2100
ATI Radeon 8500 (64MB)
Xtasy CD-RW (made by Lite-on i believe)
100MB ZIP
Sound Blaster Audigy
10/100 Ethernet Card

Regards,


 
Heres the full post! First off, I would like to say that you have an interesting way of solving a problem...you throw money at it! But I digress....

Did you do a quick format or a full format? If you did quick, I would try a full. Also, where exactly do you get the unusable error? I usually see it during the text portion of setup, which just means you have to blow away the partition, recreate it, then format it. If you've done all that, and you get the unusable message when it tries to go into GUI setup, well...I've never seen that.
 
I've done both quick and full formats. I get the partition unuseable error just after it gets done formatting the drive in the text mode. I have deleted the partition, re-created it, and formatted it to just get the same error.

As far as throwing money at it, that is not something I can do easily. But out of desperation, foolish desperation, but desperation none the less.

Thanks STaSh
 
Try using Partition Magic 7 to format it with NTFS. Then install XP. You can also use Partition Magic 7 to create new partitions if desired.

I have XP Pro using FAT32 and it works great. Haven't had any problems in 5 months.

 
Write down the exact error message you're getting. Search on that error message at http://support.microsoft.com.

That usually finds the answer. If not, tell us what the exact error message is.

If the mobo has more than 1 IDE controller, ensure your drive is on a "vanilla" controller, or press F6 when prompted to supply an OEM driver disk for the newfangled controller.
 
It's not a good thing when your'e income depends on it.

The exact error I get:
Setup was unable to format the partition. The disk may be damaged.
Make sure the drive is switched on and properly connected to your computer. If the disk is a SCSI disk, make sure your SCSI devices are properly terminated. Consult your computer manual or SCSI adapter documentation for more information.
You must select a differn't partition for Windows XP.

I also partitioned and formatted the disk to FAT32 using a 98 boot disk. Then I ran the XP install and told it to install to the FAT32 partition as is. Then for the first time it copied files to the HDD. But when it went to reboot the system I got a:

A problem has been detected and Windows has been shtdown to prevent damage to your computer.

Driver_IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

***STOP: 0x000000D1 (0x004801800, 0x00000002, 0x00000001, 0xf80CCBB1) error.

XP install is worthless.

And how the heck am I suppose to get support from MS when I can't get a product ID because it won't install. I am rapidly becoming an MS hater.
 
>>>A problem has been detected and Windows has been shtdown to prevent damage to your computer. <<<

All that means is you have a hard drive error and have to fix it with a program like Norton Uitilities or other similar programs.

I got a similar error warning with XP Pro last week and it turned out to be a hard drive error on F: partition. DiskDoctor fixed it.

 
I had a simular problem,XP wouldnt install but windows ME would.It wound up being the video card I had(I don`t remember for sure,GF2 or an ASUS card)I put a old TNT2 card in,installed XP,then put the better card in and everything went fine.
 
ModelTech I don't know how you are attempting to install Window XP Pro just in case go to this site:
http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm
I had to type it in because when I reinstalled WIN XP PRO I forgot to update my latest favorites folder and this was the only link I lost.

I followed these instructions and performed a perfect load of XP PRO. The site also pointed me to a location where I downloaded an XP INSTALL DISK which is what I used to install the program directly off the CD. I was having problems with my hard drive at the time and thought my HDD was bad or corrupted. I can't remember if I used PM7 to reformat it or if I did it with DOS but after reading the information at the above site my task was a lot easier. Hope this helps. Good Luck.

Cal

 
reset your BIOS to defaults.... also try flashing it to the newest one

seen this happen twice where defaulting the BIOS has fixed it.
 
I had some similar problems with an Abit mobo with 512 of Rambus. First tried the video card route as that is supposed to be a big hangup on some installations. No Luck! Win98 loaded just fine but not WinXP Pro. Put in different memory and it installed flawlessly.
Was told that WinXP is much more "sensitive" to memory and video card issues than WIn98. Just my 2 cents.
 
had more or less the same problem when i assembled my pc.. partioned my 40 gig hd.... then installed winse..no problem..then upgraded to xp .. then error appears..check hd. etc..... reformatted hd several times and ways..partioned again.. hd cannot be detected.. formatted hd again....no patition.. installed xp... partioned drive upon xp installation..problem gone.. try it..
 
Originally posted by: cookj
I had a simular problem,XP wouldnt install but windows ME would.It wound up being the video card I had(I don`t remember for sure,GF2 or an ASUS card)I put a old TNT2 card in,installed XP,then put the better card in and everything went fine.
Click to expand...

First of all, I would like to thank everyone for your help.

I pulled the Radeon 8500 out and puff!! it installs now. I'm not holding my breath though. All that pain, frustration, and just out right disgust for a graphics card. What is up with that! Some Microsoft employee propably went, "Hey! Let's make it do this, that will drive them crazy!".

Any suggestions of the best way to re-install the Graphics card and drivers once I have XP working?

Thanks fellow AnandTech forum users!
 
Modeltech,

A friend of mine had similar problem with the same video card the Radeon 8500. With his problem installing the Radeon card the CPU temperature climbed about 30 degrees rather quickly. Taking it out and replacing with another video card he had no over heating problems. He called the company and got an RMA to return the card for a new replacement. Apparantly those particular Radeon cards have a problem where some work OK and others do not.
 
After you install XP,just turn it off and change the cards,install your drivers or use XPs drivers.(It worked for me 🙂 )
 
Hey, just for your info. I used a program called "Zero Assumption Recovery" by ZAR and it recovered about 90% of my ravaged HDD. It lets you try it for free and will recover 4 folders. If you want more files you have to purchase ($50). It worked well for me, thought I'd let you know. Found it on CNET.
 
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