Internal Error occured could not find swap f

[Derek1]

I performed an upgrade of my computer including a new motherboard, and attempted to reinstall windows xp pro sp2 and recieved this error message.

    An Internal Setup Error Occured Could not find a place for a swap file.


i have fdisked the hard drive and formatted witha win98 boot disk, with no success.
also tried win xp 6 disk set with no success.
have hard drive set to master with DVDRW as slave

MSI motherboard
AMD K7
80G hard drive
1G memory
DVDRW
Floppy drive
pny 400mx video

                               Any help will be appreciated
                                                       Derek

[ale52]

Set the boot order in the BIOS to boot to the cdrom first.  See if that works.  If not...do you have another hard drive you can try in the originals place to test?  If so, swap it out.  If XP installs OK, then it would seem that your original hdd is kaput  :-/

Alan <><  

[Derek1]

I set the boot priority to
1.CDROM
2.Floppy
3.HDD
                and....

                       it's different error code, an io error with cdshell.ini in pretty pink letters showed up, so i switched out the CDROM and the HDD and it's the same, no success yet...

               Help Uber users pleeease..

[GX1_Man]

And is this a bright, shiney Windows CD that says MICROSOFT all over it?

[Derek1]

i am using a slipstreamed sp2

[pcdoc4christ]

i am using a slipstreamed sp2

That might be the cause.  I did a google of Micro$oft.com and did not find the error you mentioned, and got only 6 hits elsewhere:


http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=GGLG%2CGGLG%3A2005-29%2CGGLG%3Aen&q=%22Could+not+find+a+place+for+the+swap+file%22+%22windows+xp%22&btnG=Search

It's curious that the error mentions a swap file.  Windows 98 SE and Windows Me use swap files, but Windows XP uses a page file, instead.  Were you trying to upgrade from an earlier Windows OS?

[Derek1]

As a matter of fact, the start of this whole fiasco was an upgrade from windows xp sp1 to sp2. the computer just started to reboot itself over and over. I ran scandisk and after 9 long hours nothing is wrong with the hdd. i swapped out cables, tried different jumper settings, and different periferals. the only thing i havent tried is the power source. I received a General Protection Fault attempting different types of installations last night. Somehow i believe there may be cached files preventing the install.

[pcdoc4christ]

Instead of using a slipstream CD, try using a bonafide Microsoft Windows XP CD.  After the OS is installed, use the Windows Update feature to install SP2 and install your programs after installing the service pack.

[Derek1]

Attempted original install cd and io error occurred indicating cdshell.ini problem

[pcdoc4christ]

Cdshell.ini is not a file on the Microsoft Windows CD.  It is a file that can be found on CDs you make yourself, such as the Ultimate Boot CD:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=cdshell.ini+&btnG=Google+Search

Use an actual Microsoft CD.

[Derek1]

So......
        Here's the solution. Probem solved. thanks to google, and every last stinking forum i ever want to read.


1.boot to windows 98 boot disk
2.load smartdrv.exe
3.fdisk delete all partitions and create new DOS partition and make active
4.restart computer
5.boot to windows 98 boot disk
6.format c:

and now for my little trick.......

7.enter bios, enable S.M.A.R.T., set boot priority to USB CD then hdd.
8.insert windows cd in drive or in my case a usb cd worked best.
9.restart computer
10.voila

something to think about, if your windows cd is dirty or scratched, you can forget it, create a backup.

there is another option.
and that is to install windows through DOS, this seems to work well too.
1-6 are the same, then
7.at the a: prompt type. c: then cd i386 then type winnt.
you can find this process by doing a google search for installing windows through DOS.
8.remove all disks in drives and restart
9.at the setup blue screen, simply set windows up on the existing partition



have a great day, thanks for the help computerhope.com NOT.

[patio]

Instead of using a slipstream CD, try using a bonafide Microsoft Windows XP CD.  After the OS is installed, use the Windows Update feature to install SP2 and install your programs after installing the service pack.

Cdshell.ini is not a file on the Microsoft Windows CD.  It is a file that can be found on CDs you make yourself, such as the Ultimate Boot CD:
 
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=cdshell.ini+&btnG=Google+Search
 
Use an actual Microsoft CD.

Your solutions were already posted...i'm glad you're fixed up but don't blame us for your woes.

patio.  8-)