...I have a couple of questions. First of all, my "old" computer got a message a while ago that said "Smart failure predicted on primary master" to which I did a search on and found that basically my hard drive was going to crash. Eventually this did happen and I basically forgot about this computer as I had another one. Well, I would like to put in a new hard drive, and I'm wondering if this is fairly easy to do? I think I found a guide http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=1059 that will help me, but I'm wondering if it's still pretty "easy" to do??? I think I saw some Maxtor (brand?) at Staples that I was thinking about purchasing....
yes a hd instalation is really simple if you know how. you will need to make sure you have room, that all your ide cables are not used up by the current HD and CD/DVD drives. Then you simply plug in the power connector & the IDE lead and ensure the jumper is set to the correct position depending on wheather it is going to be master or slave - if there is already another device on the IDE lead such as a cd drive or dvd drive then you will need to set it to slave. otherwise set to master. The worst that could go wrong is the hard drive will not be recognised by the pc and you just need to change the jumper back over if you get it wrong. Once you have done all this you just need to boot up windows and format/partition the drive. This is easily done with tools that are available from the manufacturers website.
Oh and don't bother with all that FDISK stuff that guide tells you if you dont know what your doing fully. Its much easier using Maxtors own tools for partitioning and formatting
Pro'noob, that was very helpful, thank you! I figured it would be fairly easy to at least get it into my computer, but the hard part would be formatting and getting the hard drive set up. However, with manuals and the Maxtor guides, that should be fairly easy as well. This is going to be my main hard drive, so I'll just take out the other one. Now, another question? My new computer is having problems with the burner, that nothing can burn no matter what software I use (ITunes, etc). So I figure (hoping) that re-doing my hard drive would help this problem as I'm hoping I just messed up some setting (and the burner's not broken). However, I, being the dumb computer person, don't have recovery disks for my Windows XP, and therefore cannot redo this. Is this true? Is there a way to reformat the information on my hard drive without all the disks they ask for??? This is the reason for the old computer up and running, so I can put all my files, etc that I don't want lost onto that computer.
Yes you do need the discs if you are planning on a fresh install... If you have the License Key stuck either on the side of your PC or on the back then you could use a friends disc to install, as long as you use your licence key then it is ok.... As for drivers you could download them off the internet... You wont have to use FDISK or Maxtors tools to set partitions ect at all, if you are installing XP... When you boot off the XP disc, then XP setup will prep your new drive, format it, then install windows on it.... You can even set partitions with the XP setup disc : )
Does my burner problem sound like something that I can fix through reformatting my hard drive? Or does it sound like something more.... That's too bad about needing a disk though. Yes, it's my fault that I didn't make some when I got my computer, however HP should really make it easier to get these disks!!!
Software can contribute to alot of problems and i would recomend anyone to try a reinstall od their operating system from fresh... If it works then it was a software problem, if it dont work then it points towards the drive... You could try it in a friends or another machine, see if the problem still happens? You could try contacting Microsoft direct and see about a replacement CD, as long as you have your licence key they may help?? Worth a shot? *Edit I found this link for you, so you can have a look at, if its any help... http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;326246
Thank you for the help! I'm going to check out the page in a minute. I came across this on a Microsoft website: Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2 Utility: Setup Disks for Floppy Boot Install Overview The Windows XP startup disk allows computers without a bootable CD-ROM to perform a new installation of the operating system. The Windows XP startup disk will automatically load the correct drivers to gain access to the CD-ROM drive and start a new installation of Setup. You cannot upgrade from a Windows XP startup disk. Will this help, or is this something completely different??
Well you will still need the XP CD. They are just Boot Floppys.. If you have a CD drive that cant or wont boot bootable CD's for some reason, they will Start the boot sequance if you like, then continue from the CD.... I also found this for you... Its a PDF form for replacment discs etc... (mind you its $30 for replacment discs) http://download.microsoft.com/downl...37827ddca/End-User_Media_Replacement_Form.pdf
That page was taking a while to load for me - maybe I have too much going on. I do have a WinXp Pro, even though the one that came with the computer is WinXp, so I really could do that, as I have the boot disks as well. I just really wanted to keep it as it was right now. However, at least I could figure out if the problem is my burner or not. I did get a new hard drive for my other computer, but it won't fit?? The cables aren't right.......???
You are right, duh, it was the wrong one! Went back and got the right one, hopefully I can get it to work now....
I just realized that putting in the WinXP Pro that I have would be okay, but how would I get the WinXP Home burnt if I no longer have it on my computer, right? What about System Recovery? What is this?
are you talking about system restore or system recovery?? if don't have a copy of home on your hd & a friend has it than use it with your home serial #.
I haven't found a friend with this copy yet, that's why I'm searching around for different answers. I mean System Recovery. System Restore didn't help me out, it only further messed me up as I can't get rid of some of the old files, etc...
Soberfree - that is really nice of you!! Thank you so much! Unfortanutely I live in BC, so that wouldn't work, but I really appreciate the offer. Thank you!
