Windows XP is the classic and most popular operating system, which is still installed on computers by antique lovers. Unfortunately, due to its obsolescence, problems may arise during the installation process. serious problems. In particular, installation may not occur at all due to errors. But almost all of them can be solved.
What could be the reasons
There are two options in which it may suddenly become impossible to install Windows XP on a computer:
- The problems are directly in the software.
- Problems with computer components.
In both situations, significant conflicts with the installation process may arise operating system. However, any of them can be easily and simply solved if you understand a little what the problem is.
Damage to the installation disk
One of the most common reasons why Windows XP does not install is a malfunction of the installation disk itself. In most cases, no one pays attention to scratches and wear on the disk, although massive damage is quite capable of preventing the reading of some files. The same applies to recording - incorrectly “burning” the media will not allow the operating system to be installed correctly. So if the reason is scratched, it is recommended to look for another installation disk.
Incorrect input and output device
The most common and far from sad mistake is an incorrectly positioned I/O device. The operating system is trying to install from some media, but the BIOS does not see it, so the installation fails.
So to fix the problem you will have to look into the BIOS. To do this, immediately after pressing the computer's power button, you must begin very actively pressing one of the keys on the keyboard. As a rule, this is F2, Esc or Del, more precisely you need to look at the manufacturer motherboard.
After this, we directly set the download priority. Using AMI BIOS as an example:
- Let's go to Boot.
- We find Boot Device Priority there.
- Let's see which device is displayed first. It is necessary that the First Boot Device line contains the device that is needed for installation (floppy drive or flash drive).
After this, you can exit the Bios and save the settings.
If this does not help, be sure to replace the small battery that powers the CMOS on the motherboard.
Boot viruses
The next problem, which is also related to Bios, is the function of boot viruses. Or rather, its on state. In the original, this item should fight off viruses during boot, but for some reason it only interferes with the installation of the system. Therefore, you need to disable it by changing the position to Disabled.
Drive failure
In some cases, a damaged drive may prevent Windows XP from installing. The likelihood is especially high if there were problems with it before - it did not read or read information incorrectly. If in Everyday life This is not so noticeable, but during the installation process every file is important, which is why it freezes.
There are two ways out of this situation - either install a new drive if you plan to install from a CD/DVD, or try installing the operating system from a flash drive.
Hardware problems
The next reason is any malfunction in the computer hardware. This could be a warped hard drive. It occurs if the computer for some reason falls or hits something. In this case, the hard drive is damaged and recording can no longer be performed on it.
The next “internal” problem is disconnected contacts on the motherboard. Or, for example, there was a failure in the data input/output device, which is located on the motherboard itself.
And there is only one way out - try installing a copy of the operating system on another PC. If it starts, it means that the problem is in the computer’s hardware. If not, the problem lies in the copy itself.
Conflict with modernity
This problem is relevant for the latest motherboards. They work slightly differently, so the installer simply does not recognize the device's hard drive. The essence of the problem is this: in the BIOS the value for the IDI/SATA controller of the chipset, specifically AHCI, is set incorrectly for the installer. The outdated Windows XP operating system is simply not able to recognize such a value, since it appeared much later than the last patch for it.
The solution is the following - enter Bios, then SATA Mode. Find there the value called IDE and set it as used. XP is familiar with it and will not be capricious.
Other problems
In addition to the problems described above, other unpleasant malfunctions may occur:
- Overheating of any component. During operation, one of the components of the processor heats up excessively and cannot perform functions correctly. So you should first eliminate the cause of overheating.
- Conflict with more new system. If the disk already has Windows version 7 or higher, installation may not occur. First you need to format the disk with the old system and only then start installing the new one.
- Service pack conflict. If this error occurs, you should format your local drives. A clean system is then installed on a free hard drive.
These were the most common and easily resolved problems, but many others may also occur. Most often, they can be determined either by a specialist or by a program designed for diagnostics.
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Reinstalling the operating system is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. It is not at all necessary to contact a specialist for this, especially if you have a disk with the required distribution. Despite the fact that Windows XP is considered an obsolete system, and its support will end in 2014, its popularity is still very high. This means it's time to talk about how to install Windows XP. My guide is suitable for those who have basic computer skills.
To begin with, I advise you to think carefully before reinstalling the system.
People who are poorly versed in computers often have one answer to all their problems. universal solution- install the OS again. Yes, this almost always helps, but most errors and problems can be fixed more easily. in simple ways. If you know for sure that you need a reinstallation, this guide may be useful to you. So, in order.
Preparing for installation
Naturally, you will need a disk with the Windows XP distribution. If you are working with a laptop that does not have an optical drive, you will need to first have the same distribution. Don't forget that the motherboard must support booting from Flash USB or Flash HDD. For example, you will find instructions for installing Windows 8. Make sure that the disk or flash drive is fully functional, after which you can proceed to the next step.
Before you install Windows XP from a disk to your computer, you need to make backup copies of all the files you need located on the system partition.
For most, this is drive C. The fact is that a “clean” installation with the removal of the previous system requires formatting. This will lead to the loss of files, so you need to copy them somewhere first. I recommend making backup copies from other partitions too, if you have time and suitable media, although this is not necessary.
Let's start the installation
So, let's move on to the most important thing. Make sure everything is ready. Insert the disk with the system or connect a USB flash drive if there is no disk. Now you can go one of two ways. The first is to use the autorun program, in which you can select the installation type and other parameters, after which it will restart the computer itself to begin the process.
The second way, more preferable and universal, is to reboot yourself and choose to start from a disk/flash drive. I'll tell you how to install Windows XP from a disk via BIOS. You will probably have to change your settings to do this. You can also update the BIOS before installation, you will learn about this here. There should be a tab in the BIOS that is called “Boot” or contains this word in its name. You need to go there and change the download queue so that downloading from CD or Flash comes first. After this, exit the BIOS and save the settings. The computer will reboot itself and start the installation.
Key moment
Oddly enough, the installation itself is quite simple. At the bottom of the screen there will be hints which keys need to be pressed to perform this or that action.
First you will see a loading screen, which takes some time. The installer will then prompt you to read the license agreement and then ask you which logical drive to install the system on. You should select drive C if it has always been your system drive. Let me remind you again that all data on this disk will be deleted. Confirm your choice.
The installer will format the disk and begin copying files. In general, from this moment on, practically nothing is required from you. At the right moment, the computer will reboot itself and the Windows screen XP, after which it will start step by step installation.At some point you will be asked to select options for language, keyboard layout, time zone, etc. These settings can be changed later. You will also need to enter serial number disk.
Installation Windows XP, yes and Windows In general, the process is simple, but long.
I will tell you how to do this without the help of specialists/computer friends. So, the whole process is divided into 3 logical stages:
- Stage I: Preparation
- Stage II: Installation
- Stage III: Setting
Stage I: Preparing to install Windows
Before you begin installation Windows, You need to copy all important information and settings so as not to lose them.
There are many different ways do this, and I will not consider all the options, but will focus on the most basic ones.
At this point, our preparations are completed, and we can proceed directly to the installation.
Stage II: Installing Windows
So, now we are prepared and we can proceed directly to the installation.
We insert the disk with our treasured Windows XP into the drive and... no, we don’t install it. Don't even think about installing the Operating System from within the Operating System itself! We need to reboot and enter bios suspended animation (from the word B asic I nput/ O utput S system). To enter it, you need to press the button when you boot your computer. Del or F2, if you have a laptop. Although in some cases you need to press other keys, so look at what is written at the bottom of the monitor screen. there will be an inscription like " press del to enter setup".
Finally Windows installed, you rebooted, now you can remove the installation disk and proceed to the third stage.
Stage III: Setup after installing Windows
We take out our installation disk and start setting up.
- Drivers and what to do with them.
First of all, you need to install drivers so that the computer knows what to do with what, and in general can feel comfortable.- Insert the disk from the motherboard. It is important for us to install 3 drivers: chipset (chipset), audio (audio) and Internet (ethernet). But if the program offers you more, then we agree to this courtesy and install it. Reboot so that the drivers are fully installed.
- If there are no disks, then we remember where we downloaded our drivers from the official sites and install them from there.
- We insert the disk from our video card. As you may (or may not) notice, if you drag windows, you can see that they move in jerks. This indicates that your video driver is not installed. So install the video driver from the disk and reboot.
- Next, we follow the same scheme and install the rest of the equipment. For example, a scanner, printer, tablet, mouse, keyboard, etc.
- Successfully Installed or how to determine if everything is in place
We need to make sure that we haven't forgotten anything and that all the drivers are installed correctly. This is not difficult to do. Let's go to Control Panel --> System --> Hardware --> Device Manager. As you can see, we have all of our installed equipment listed here. If there is a question mark next to something, this means that the driver for this device is not installed and the system does not know what to do with this equipment. If you find such an icon, then read what it says next to it and install the driver for this device. Ideally, there should be no question marks at all, as, for example, here:
3. Optimization or freeing up memory.
For more comfortable work, in the section where you have installed Windows, nothing unnecessary should be installed, it is also advisable not to have a swap file on it and a folder temp. This is what we will do now.
- Doesn't let me access the internet?
Remember when we wrote down strange numbers on a piece of paper? Now you need to write them back in. To do this, follow step 3 of the first stage
This completes the whole process. You now have a new one Windows, which is also already configured. Can be used
Afterword
It seems as if all this is very complicated and incomprehensible, but after 10-20 identical actions and installations Windows You will do this instantly. And there’s really nothing complicated about installing an OS, it just takes a little more time and attention
Now I would like to mention some points that are somehow not included in the scope of this article.
- When writing this article I considered only disk with official copy Windows XP. I Not I am considering various assemblies, like Zver, Philka, etc. And, although installing assemblies is practically no different from installing a licensed copy Windows XP, You install the assembly at your own risk.
- I have not considered the point about registering your Windows XP for the reason that this process is very clear regardless of whether your key is printed on the disc box or it was sent to you by mail.
- I did not consider the possibility of installing drivers from special programs, since I do not consider this option secure enough.
PS: The article was written by a person hiding under the nickname “ barn4k“ (friend and project assistant). For which I thank him very much.
Windows XP remains one of the most popular operating systems today. Users value it for its reliability and ability to work on weak old hardware. Step by step installation Windows systems XP is a fairly quick and easy process. Below is a detailed description of it.
Preparing the computer for installing a new OS
The simplest way to install Windows XP is from an installation disk. If, instead of reading data from it, the system starts loading the old OS or a black screen appears that does not respond to button presses, then you just need to go into the BIOS and make the appropriate settings:
- Open the Advansed BIOS Features or BIOS/Boot Device Priority section;
- Select First Boot Devise;
- In the list that opens, select CDROM or the name of your drive;
- Save the result by pressing the F10 key and restart your PC.
Note that there are a lot of BIOS versions for laptops today, so the described steps when installing the OS on a laptop may be slightly different.
Let's proceed directly to the installation
The first window is a blue screen. It is at this stage that a step-by-step installation of software is carried out to install Windows XP on a SCSI (high-speed disk) or on a RAID array. To do this, press F6, after which the installation of the appropriate drivers will begin. But in most cases, users install the system on a regular hard drive, for which there is no interference with the installation process on at this stage not required, you just need to wait for the next welcome screen.
- Install Windows XP. The standard choice in most cases is to install the system from scratch or restore the old one. A convenient graphical interface is used.
- System recovery using the console. This is the choice of professional users and craftsmen - restoration is made from command line using DOS commands. In this case, a complete reinstallation of the system is not performed.
Next, the system proceeds to search for previously installed OS versions. If any were found, the list will be displayed on this screen below, and the menu will offer options for subsequent actions:
- restore old Windows XP;
- install a new copy of the OS.
In the first case, you will be able to use previously installed applications. Will only be replaced system files, and the installation will be completed completely. The second option involves a complete reshuffle of the system.
No list will appear not only if Windows XP is installed on an “empty” computer, but also if the previously installed system has a different edition or service pack.
The most crucial moment of installation
The next installation point is perhaps the most important, and should be performed thoughtfully and carefully. You will need to identify the system partition and allocate disk space so that the virtual disk allocated for the system has enough space for its functioning.
Of course, you can use the same partition equal to the entire hard drive space for both the system and your personal data, but such an organization is guaranteed to create many problems in the future.
We split the disk into partitions
If you install Windows XP on a completely new disk, then you will have to distribute the partitions yourself, since this step-by-step procedure has never been performed before. The window that appears will indicate the size of the unallocated area - it will coincide with the size of the entire hard drive. 
Here you need to create a so-called The system partition is the one where the OS will be installed. To do this, you need to indicate its size in megabytes (1 GB is equal to 1024 MB) and press “Enter” on the keyboard. After this, you will again return to the window in which the hard drive is partitioned. The created section will already be displayed on a separate line with a Latin letter assigned to it (usually C). 
You should not skimp on the size of the system partition - the stability of the system will depend on it. The minimum space for installing Windows XP is 20 GB, but it is better to allocate not 20, but 40, or even all 60 GB.
Similarly, from the remaining unallocated area, we create other sections for personal data, however, you should not get carried away with the quantity - in this case, files and folders big size will be distributed less efficiently, and navigation through sections will become more confusing.
Format the system partition
Next, you will need to select the partition to install the system (in our case, drive C) and press the “Enter” key. A window will open asking you to format the partition. 
Choose quick formatting using the NFTS system (FAT is obsolete). After formatting is completed, the process of installing system files will begin. 
The most difficult stage of installation has been completed.
By the way, if the disk that you partitioned is not formatted, then you can carry out this procedure with each of the created partitions for personal data even after completing the installation of Windows XP using standard means.
If you are rearranging the system and the disk is already partitioned, then you should simply select the partition with the system to be reinstalled, format it and start the installation process. If you decide to format the remaining partitions, then all information on them will be lost.
Finishing the installation
Once the system files have been copied, the computer will restart and the installation will continue.
We determine the initial parameters:
Probably every second computer-related website has an article about how to install Windows XP operating system. I thought that let my blog be no exception and remain on it Windows XP installation instructions.
You can install Windows on a clean HDD; on top of an already installed system; or as a second (third, etc.) operating system. Each of these options has its own characteristics. Today I want to tell you how to completely reinstall your existing operating system while formatting the system disk.
In general, you can start installing Windows XP in two ways: 1) by booting from the installation disk; 2) directly from the installed system. The first option is preferable, and we will consider it.
A small digression: I did not take the screenshots used in the article myself. I borrowed them from the site compbegin.ru. I hope the author won’t be offended by me for this :)
So, for installation we need boot disk with Windows XP operating system. Only such a disk contains a special hidden partition with important system files that will allow the computer to boot directly from this CD.
We turn on our computer and first of all go to the BIOS to configure booting from disk. To do this, immediately after turning on, press the key on the keyboard Delete or F2(other keys may also be used, so you need to carefully watch the prompts on the screen).
Once in Bios, you need to find the section with the word Boot, and then change the order of boot devices in it so that the CD-ROM is in first place. Depending on the BIOS version, the device from which the computer will boot is either selected from the list or moved to the top using the keys F5/F6, +/-
.
After the changes have been made, we exit the BIOS, saving the settings. Before leaving, you need to insert a disk with Windows XP into the drive so that the computer can boot from it.
If any Windows operating system was already installed on your computer, then after rebooting you will see “” on the screen (this means “Press any key to boot from CD”). Accordingly, you need to press any button on the keyboard. If you wait more than 10 seconds, the current operating system installed on the hard drive will begin loading (then you will have to restart the computer again). 
The Windows XP installer shell will appear on the screen. The OS will check the hardware installed on the computer and begin downloading installation files. 
At the end of this process, a window will appear asking you to begin installing Windows. Click Enter on keyboard. 
Next, accept the license agreement by clicking F8.
It will then search for previous copies of Windows installed on your computer. If any are found, you will see a screen with a list of these systems. 
Here you will also be offered:
1) Restore the found copy of Windows by pressing the R key .
Recovery can help in case of damage, deletion or replacement of infected system files Windows files.
If you select this item, you will have to go through full procedure installation of the system, during which all system files of the old copy will be replaced with new ones from the CD. All your data, settings and installed programs however, they will not disappear anywhere.
2) Install a new copy of Windows by pressing the Esc key .
Because we want to install a new Windows XP, then press now on the keyboard Esc.
You will not see a window with a list of installed systems if you are installing the system on a new hard drive, or if the previous copy of Windows has a different edition or service pack.
Because in my case, the operating system was already installed on the computer, and the hard drive was already distributed into logical drives. Therefore, a window appears listing all found partitions. 
If the current partition hard drive you are not satisfied, you can delete existing partitions by pressing D(you can select the desired section using the arrows on the keyboard). After deleting a partition, the area it occupied becomes unallocated, and all data located on this logical disk is deleted.
The existing structure of the hard drive suits me, so I use the arrow on the keyboard to select the partition in which the system will be installed. Let it be C: Section2 (SYSTEM). Then I click Enter.
If the following window appears, just click Enter.
Then select “Format partition using NTFS” and click Enter.
The formatting process will begin: 
When it’s finished, Windows XP files will begin copying to your hard drive: 
After the copying is completed, the computer will reboot. If after rebooting a screen appears that says “”, do not press anything (just wait 10 seconds). Otherwise, the installation will start again.
Next, Windows will offer to configure the language and region. Click “Next”. 
In the “Setting program affiliation” window, enter some name (for example: Ivan) and the name of the organization (for example: Nome). Click “Next”. 
The “Product Key” window will appear, in which you must enter the Windows XP serial number. 
Next, come up with and enter a computer name under which it will be visible on the network (use Latin letters). The administrator password can be left blank. 
In the “Setting time and date” window, check all the settings and click “Next”. 
You will see the next two windows only if the Windows XP distribution contains a driver for your network card. In the first of them, we leave the marker in the “Normal settings” position, and in the second we agree with the name working group WORKGROUP and just click “Next”. 
Windows will then begin setting up the network and copying files. After the installation is complete, the computer will restart and offer to automatically adjust the screen resolution - click “OK”. 
A welcome screen will appear - click “Next”. 
The next window will ask you to enable automatic updates. You can select “Delay this action” and click “Next”. 
If a network card driver was installed during installation, two more windows will appear in front of you. In the first “Test Internet connection” click “Skip”. And in the second, put the marker in the “No, some other time” position and click “Next”. 
The account creation window will appear. In the “Name” field account” enter any name with Latin letters and no spaces. You can also create a second, third, etc. now. users, but for now one is enough. Click “Next”. 
This completes the installation of Windows XP. After clicking the “Finish” button, the Desktop will appear. 
Do not forget to return the computer to boot from the hard drive in BIOS.
