Computer Hope
Microsoft => Microsoft Windows => Windows XP => Topic started by: shashgo on October 06, 2009, 11:32:42 AM
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i am in the process of reinstalling the win xp os on a dell computer. The s etup is to the point of reformatting the disk, but it is going very slowly. Im wondering what the deal is, its been like half an hour and its just to 5%
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Either the Hard drive isa bad or the CD -drive is bad.
I think it is the Hard Drive.
Just to be sure, check the BIOS settings.
It maybe the BIOS lost lettings. Perhaps the battery is down.
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hmm could be . before I started the reinstall the computer would stay in a loop going from the splash screen to a blue screen that just flashed on and off (no text).
But I was able to succesfully do a USB data transfer from that hard drive to another computer. So that leads me to believe its not the hard drive.
What should the BIOS settings be?
And even if the format is so slow doesit mean that I wont be able to reinstall completely?
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The BIOS should have some way of showing the time and date.
If that is right, or almost right, leave it alone.
The BIOS should ID the Hard drive.
If it is right, change nothing.
If the BIOS can not correctly ID the drive, this may be the end of the trail.
If the BIOS has a choice between high performance or more safe operation, choose the more safe option.
This is a very old trick I learned from others.
Here is what I do when I suspect a Hard drive is flaky.
Save the data somehow. (You already did that.)
Mount the drive as a slave or second drive in another computer. running XP
Using Windows XP, go into the Disk Management. This is in control panel, Administrative tools, computer management, Disk Management. . Identify the second drive, destroy the partition, create a very small new partition, primary. Maybe 300mb. Don't format it.
Create another primary, using most, but not all of remaining space. Leave snout 200 MB on the end.
Now format the big partition only. And Wait and Wait, and Wait. Windows will find some bad sectors and map them out. I hope it is only a few.
If it was a 20 GB drive I will now have a 19.5GB that is usable.
Without special equipment, I do no know where the bad parts of the drive are located. But statistically for prior experience I guess that it is the beginning and end areas that cause trouble.
If all goes well, I will delete the two small maybe ad partitions.
I put the drive back into the Dell computer.
Later, when the Install CD goes to install, it will ask which partition or space to use. Of course, I select the big one.
The whole point of this is to not use the suspect paras of the drive to install Windows.
I think you might be able to do this with the installer, but the installer is not as easy to use for me. I need a nice graphic display.
Pardon me for such a long post on something that may not work!
Hop this works for you.
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any help is appreciated. thanks
but if there are some sectors that are bad, will the install disk stil be able to install xp onto the disk, on the good sectors
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Yes.