Lost Windows XP disc

[Binoculars]

Binoette 2 has a Dell laptop which she bought new a couple of years ago. Her description of its problems now sounds as though a reinstall of Windows is the obvious solution, which is not a major drama since she has all her important files backed up, but she cannot find the Windows XP installation disc that came with the computer.

She is sending the lappy to me but is there anything I can do without the original disc or do I have to buy a whole new one? I have my own XP disc but I assume Mr Gates had made sure I can't put it on another computer.

Any suggestions? Is it worth ringing Dell?

[MoateAir]

The software required will more than likely be on a seperate partition of the hard drive. During the boot sequence, there will be some options at the bottom of the screen (usually) that will say something like 'press F10 to enter restore'. probably in Dells's own lingo. press the appropriate key at the appropriate time, and follow the system prompts as they appear. This will format the 'C' drive partition of the disk, but as you mention, data loss is not an issue.

[VH-MTT]

She will probably have the windows installation code on a sticker on the laptop. If it does you can use any disk as long as it is the same version, i.e. home or professional.

sometimes there is a restore disk with all the other disks she will have received when she got the lappy. this usually creates the partition and installs the software from there. just make sure everything is backed up, as the restore software will destroy everything on the drive, and getting it back could be a pain.

M.

[Binoculars]

I'm relying n memory here, but I'm pretty sure the disk is not partitioned and all the Windows software is on C: The other problem which I've just remembered (thhis has been going on for a while) is that it doesn't get to the boot sequence at all, it just dies. I was going to try to boot from the XP CD, not really knowing whether what they provide is a bootable disc, but since she doesn't have it anyway, that seems pointless. :uhoh:

[planecrazy.eu]

My Dell had a recovery partition. You could get to it from Windows, it was in Dell Tools, and you could get to it by inserting the restore cd that you had to create when you first put the laptop on...

Now i did a stupid thing, i deleted the WHOLE harddrive, i some how decided to delete the partition tables, not a good idea as all was lost. Windows didnt want to help, dell was going to charge me to fix it, and i am sure it was hefty.

So i got onto the windows website, ordered the trial of xp, loaded it on, and then just changed the registration details once i had installed it, and it all went well.

[frostbite]

I recently made a new install (note W98 not XP) on a computer and after a lot of faffing about, discovered it required the old install code for the new system with the non-original CD!

This was after an fdisk too!

[planecrazy.eu]

Hey

The install code is relative to the CD and not the machine. If you have lost the install key, you can search the web and get a master key that was released some years back.

You'll never get a lost key for W98 now from MS as i am sure they are only supporting XP and Win2K, soon it will just be XP and Vista i have read.

As far as i am aware you can install any version of Windows on any system as long as you have the code that is unique to the cd. I wonder how long it will be unstill the code will be relative to the hardware (system) and the cd... Dont think this is emplyed in vista

[frostbite]

That certainly was NOT the case with the machine I described! After several unsuccessful attempts entering the code that came with the disk, it happily accepted the code stuck to the case.

[vapilot2004]

As already offered above, you should be able to use another XP CD to install Windows again. However, the key on the lappy sticker will (usually) only be accepted by another OEM disk (HP, Sony another Dell) and not a retail version of the OS.

If your key is not accepted, there are ways to create an OEM disk from a retail version. All OEM and retail XP disks are bootable.

As far as I recall, Dell stopped using recovery partitions around 03 or 04 for units shipped to the states and shipped PCs with an OEM XP disk.

Good Luck!

You may want to download the drivers for network, sound and video bits from Dell.com/support before installation.

[Atlas Shrugged]

Had the same problem a month or so ago. One of my little Shruggers discovered fdisk, deleted all of the partitions and reformatted the hard drive. We then tried to reinstall XP from the Dell installation disc but kept getting the message "setup.txt file invalid or missing". Tried using other bootable installation discs but no go.

I now have a brand new $3,000 paperweight :ugh: :ugh:

[Keef]

My IBM ThinkPad came with the common "cost saver" of a recovery partition instead of them spending the extra 20p to provide a full CD. So when the HD died, there was no recovery route.

I fitted a new HD, installed XP from the CD that came with my desktop machine (proper one, see!) then when the laptop asked me to contact MS to "activate", I explained to the nice lady, and read the code off the C of A stuck to the laptop. She gave me the code to activate, and all was well.

Atlas - you don't have a $3000 paperweight. You might need to buy a new hard drive (maybe $100 if you splash out), fit that, then install from a "clean" copy of XP. If the worst comes to the worst, you buy a whole new copy of XP. You're still $2,500 better off.

[vapilot2004]

XPS Customers can now request a duplicate CD containing the Microsoft® Windows® XP Operating System as well as a CD with drivers and utilities relevant for your XPS system.Requests are limited to one set of duplicate CDs per XPS system purchased.

Dell will provide you the most up to date Resource CD available, containing the latest drivers and diagnostic tools currently being
shipped on new systems. Due to the frequent updates of this resource, it is possible that the latest Resource CD may not provide
all the drivers for XPS systems over one year old. If the resource CD you receive does not contain all of the drivers needed for the
peripherals and other hardware installed on your system at the time of purchase, you can locate and download those drivers at
http://support.dell.com/xps


If the machine in question is not an xps - latitude,inspiron perhaps, a call to Dell may result in needed CD being only a shipping charge (or less) away.

As always, Good Luck!

[Mac the Knife]

"If the worst comes to the worst, you buy a whole new copy of XP. You're still $2,500 better off." :yuk:

Or you could install Linux for free, have a real OS on your lappy and not be anyone's installation code slave.

:ok:

To see what distro will work on your lappy and find out the relevant tweaks visit Linux on Laptops - http://www.linux-laptop.net/

[Binoculars]

Because I don't like to ask questions and not acknowledge the replies, I take this opportunity to thank all those with sensible replies. As it turned out, B2's knowledge of computers is so limited that she didn't realise the "operating system reinstall disk" was what I was after. I asked if she had a Windows XP disc and she quite honestly answered that she couldn't find one.

All systems are now go, but perhaps those who advocate changing operating systems should stop and remember that there are still those to whom a computer is a box which works when they follow steps 1, 2 and 3. If it doesn't work they take it to an overpriced technician to fix. That's life. Linux won't change anything for them.