Hey all...just downloaded 2 different versions of windows vista oem (1 is about 3 gb and the other 4gb). I'm trying to istall on a new hard drive, currently running xp pro, and i get an error message "NTLDR missing press ctrl+alt+del to restart". I have changed my BIOS boot order so that my cd/dvd drive is first then my IDE hard drive. The thing is, when I try to install my version of xp pro, that i know works, it gives me the same error message. Is something wrong with the hardrive i'm using to test vist oem on or am i doing something completly else wrong? When the message "Press any key to boot from CD" comes up, i press keys and nothing happens. May be because i'm using a wireless key board and mouse...? Shouldnt be because i can access my BIOS settings with it before boot up so i'm not really sure. I know its not a cable issue because if i plug my original hard rive in with my working xp pro oem, it boots up and loads windows fine Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated, and yes the 2 versions of vista oem are cracked and downloaded from p2p, with comments stating that these versions do work. Thanks in advance Joe
Make sure you don't have a floppy disc in your computer. I've seen this happen too many times to count.
You can also try using the disc in a virtual machine. I use VMWare, but Microsoft offers Virtual PC 2007 for free (link here). If the disc won't work in the virtual machine, then it's probably no good. As for Windows XP, I have multiple versions of it and some are bootable and some aren't. Here's a quick link that discusses it. I don't think this is your problem, since you're getting the prompt to press any key to boot from CD. It could be your keyboard. I've had to use an old PS/2 keyboard when setting up computers before. I think it was because it didn't recognize my KVM, but it could be similar for you as well. As for Vista, I only have legitimate copies, so I can't make any recommendations. Obviously, P2P sites aren't the most reliable, so it may be a case of trial and error for you.
