I want to wipe my hard drive and reload WinXP and set up my computer the way it was when I bought it.
If I insert the XP CD, it won’t reload XP because I have a newer version on my computer than is on the CD (I realize after installation I will have to get all the updates done).
I try to format the HD, it refuses to to so.
How do I get my computer (Dell 2400 P4) to wipe the drive and reinstall my OS disc information?
I think you first need to back up a step and ask yourself why you are doing this. What do you want to get out of it? Reinstalling an OS is a lot of work and will take hours upon hours of your time. You will learn the meaning of taking the basic things for granted. Things that you previously did with ease will not work and you may not have all the passwords and registration codes to get your software to work again.
That isn’t to say it is never a good idea. It can be but you really need to be informed.
There are probably better ways to accomplish what you want.
Use the WinXP CD to start the XP Recovery Console:
You can run format from there:
I can blow away and reinstall my OS in an hour, including getting the drivers installed and at least SP2 installed. (After several times of having to redownload the entire service pack, I sent away for a physical disc from Microsoft.) Getting the updates past SP2 will take maybe another half-hour, but I can get other needed software reinstalled while both SP2 and those other updates install. From there I generally just reinstall other software (like games or MS Office or different utilities I use but not all the time) when I need it. Of course, it probably helps that I have a homebrew (including a normal upgrade version of XP Pro) and a seperate drive just for the OS so that I don’t have to worry about data loss. (I had to reinstall my OS twice in this last week, including once last night.)
However, all that said, Shagnasty is right. It’s easy for me because I have the tools I need and lots of experience to do so quickly. It’d be even easier if I did a clean install, imaged it to a CD, and used that whenever I needed to reinstall the OS by simply ghosting the drive. (I really should do that.) Anyway, if you know what you are doing and are sure you want to do it, here goes.
First, a few questions to answer.
Now, once you are sure you have everything important backed up and are ready to do this, you have two options. One is to make a boot disk on a floppy that has FDisk on it. This website can explain it better and has files available that can do this. Then you just use the boot disk to format the hard drive and also partition it, if you so desire. After that, put in your CD and start installing the OS.
The other option, at least with actual Microsoft non-OEM CDs, is to boot from the CD and choose to reinstall the OS. You will be prompted to pick a drive or partition in which to install the OS. Delete a partition and create a new one in the space created (you can make several partitions this way, much as you can with FDisk.) Next, pick whether you want to format the drive as FAT32 or NTFS (I suggest NTFS) and do either a quick or complete format (I suggest complete) and then the program will start installing the OS.
On preview, a third option is indeed what Fear Itself has said. However, I never use the Recovery Console, opting instead to use one of the two methods above. (I use FDisk when I’m going to go back to doing dual or triple-boot on my computer.)
After the program is installed, you face the task of installing any needed drivers, as well as any desired software, and getting all the updates. If your computer is new enough to have shipped with WinXP with SP2, then you’ll have it easier than I do when it comes to getting all the Windows updates. You will have to reactivate Windows (not a problem, especially without any hardware changes) and any other MS programs such as Office XP or 2003 that require activation.
It’s not hard, but if this is your first time expect to spend the rest of your day on it.
Well, using the helpful advice above, I have managed to wipe my HD and reinstall WinXP. I have also downloaded all the updates.
Before I did all this, I used the Files & Settings Transfer Wizard to create a Settings file to keep all my old settings, passwords, emails, preferences, etc.
When prompted, I saved the file to a CD and it went into a folder marked “Settings”.
Now, when I use the wizard to restore my settings on the updated computer, I tell it that I have a file to use and it lets me browse for it. When browsing the CD with the file on it, I find the folder marked “Settings” and click on that to enter the address into the wizard. It pops up a window saying that there is no info in the folder and refuses to work, even though there is a file in the folder with 40mb of info in it. Using the browser, it allows me to open up to the point of showing the “Settings” folder, but won’t let me open any further, so I can’t pick the actual .dat file inside.
I copied the .dat file into the My Documents folder. Again, when I use the browse feature of the wizard to find the .dat file, it will show me the other folders in the My Documents file, but doesn’t show the .dat file I know is there.
How do I get the wizard to “see” my settings info so I can restore my old information?
Does the wizard actually show the file, or does the file not appear in the wizard browse window at all?
Didn’t it create a folder called “USMT2.UNC” when it created the file? If it did and you just copied the data file to another folder called “Settings”, try creating another folder under your “Settings” folder called “USMT2.UNC” and navigate to the “Settings” folder in the wizard. Strangely, I think you need to navigate to the folder just above USMT2.UNC for it to work properly.
Oops, forgot to tell you to move the data file into the USMT2 folder. :smack:
When I created the settings file, it named it USMT2.UNC, just like it is supposed to. Inside this folder is the IMGD00001 data file and the Status file, just like there is supposed to be.
From everything I can find on the net, you use the wizard to the point where you brouse for the settings file to use, and you find the USMT2.UNC folder, which is entered. From there it is supposed to re-install your settings. Instead, every time I get an error box saying that there is no information in the file, though I know there is.
I have seen several references in Google from people who have had the exact same problem, but there is never any answer on if or how they solved their problem. It seems to be a fairly common glitch that the wizard does not recognise the file like it should I really need to get this to work because all my settings and email are stored here. I believe the file is sound but the wizard is not taking it for some reason.
Any ideas?
When you downloaded all the updates, did it include Service Pak 2? I found this known problem that is corrected by SP2. There is also a stand alone download to correct the problem.
Did you try this?
I just did this, this morning, with an OEM disk with no problem. This is really the best way to go.
I guess by “OEM” you’re referring to the type of CD shipped with a fully loaded system, often called restore or recovery CD. I build my own systems and buy “OEM” CDs that are the same as retail CDs, but have a unique CD key that tells MS that this OS should not be transferred to other computers once it’s been activated to a particular computer.
I have tried everything I can think of.
What I am getting now is an error box stating that I created my file using a different version of the Files & Settings Wizard that the one I am trying to restore it with. This doesn’t make sense to me because, before I decided to wipe my drive, I downloaded all the latest Windows and Microsoft updates. After wiping the drive and reloading XP from my boot disk, I also downloaded all the available updates. Both times I should have had the same versions. I saw the news about the problems and patch they have for it and downloaded that too, without any resut. Yes, I have also tried browsing to different roots for the file as suggested, also without results.
Why on earth would they create a files transfer untility that was not compatible throughout XP? Am I going to have to wipe my drive again, install my old XP version 1 and then load each update one-at-a-time and try the transfer wizard until I hit a version of it that works? Since this is all being done on the same computer, and I expected the transfer wizard to work properly, I have already wiped the old drive, so I can’t create a “new” transfer file. I just need the wizard to recognise the one I have.
Is there a website or phone number where I can get an expert to help me through this? I appreciate all the advice I am getting here on the Dope, but I need to get my settings and email files back so I can get fully operational again.