How Do I Downgrade To XP From Vista? (solved, at least for me)

Howdy folks, there's a problem going on the net about people downgradin' to xp.

I have this friend that bought an Acer laptop and it came with vista starter. The thing is that he wants to downgrade to XP because them manufacturer people put a 512mb ram memory.

When I ran the XP disc, the thing won't recognize the Hard Drive. I tried deleting the Vista Partition and retry the XP installation CD, and I ain't got nothin' but the same darn error message.

I've heard about installing an external usb floppy, loading some drivers, dual boot, etc. but I bet there's an easy way since I've seen people downgrading them OS's.

Does anyone know which is the easiest way to solve this problem?

Thank you


EDIT: Well, I got this here friend that told me the easiest way to solve this problem. Go on like this:

1) Turn on the computer and quickly press what you need to press to access BIOS.

2) All BIOS have slight differences between manufacturer, so look for an option that says something like SATA Mode. Switch to IDE mode, you can several options but this one should be there.

3) Save changes and exit BIOS, restart computer and let it boot 'til windows appears.

4) Wait for OS to install the drivers, it will tell you to restart computer once it's done. Restart.

5) load windows once more to see if it works ok, if so turn your computer off again.

6) turn on the computer and access BIOS once again and set the boot sequence to CD as first boot device. SAve changes and exit.

7) insert the Win XP disc and Proceed with its installation.

Hope this works to y'all

See ya!

 

Manufacturer's of newer hardware, may not release XP drivers. This is especially true for notebooks. I've had several people asking me where to locate drivers because of that same downgrade, just to find out that XP will not install.

You might need to find out if the notebook is using SATA, and load the drivers at the F6 prompt. (just as setup is beginning)

 

what does he sata have anything to do with it?

i'm thinking of going XP from Vista myself

i have a pavilion dv2615us and what would i need check out first to find out if the job can be done?

 

zer0ink:

win xp installation looks for IDE devices. Mostly new pc's (specially laptops) have their Bios setup as SATA devices (they actually are, since all the drives are different in their way to be connected to the computer) which makes impossible for xp setup to recognize the devices (it's because the xp setup don't have those SATA drivers), so just follow the instructions i left on the 1st post and you'll be doing it. If you've installed XP before, then you know what to do after setting up bios.

 

i cant find that in my bios

 

howdy zer0ink:

There are several differences on all computer bios, so I can't tell you where exactly to reach it.

If your computer is a PC, then you'll probably need more expert help. SATA devices are all them slim and small devices used on laptops, but you can configure the computer to run them as IDE (as the PCs).

Run the BIOS and look inside all them options (i.e. change the values, see if there's IDE mode, but leave the original one if IDE mode is not there)

Many people say that it is a big hassle doing this specially on dell and hp computers, so get ready.

 

well im downgrading from vista to xp to vista is slow and plagued with problems but at the sametime im upgrading to leopard smooth good features and most of all fast