| Author |
Message |
Dom1966
Guest
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 Posted:
Sun Dec 19, 2004 4:17 pm Post subject:
Can't upgrade to XP Pro |
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I bought a new Dell P4 2.8G notebook six weeks ago. I was mazed to discover
it's slower than my old P3 1G Dell Dimension 4100. Then it developed a fault
during boot up that looked like a hard drive problem. This resulted in
ocassional boot up problems which required a hard restatrt.
I decided to upgrade from XP Home SP2 to XP Pro SP2 to see if it would
resolve the speed issue. I wasn't concerned about the faulty hard disk
because I figured I would have to get it replaced and I could have the old
disk's contents mirrored. Just in case, I saved the HD's files.
I began installing XP pro and all looked fne until it got midway through
"Installing Devices", at which pont the screen suddenly turned off. XP pro
continued to install for another minute or so, then stopped.
I'm not sure, but I think maybe it had finished installing devices and was
waiting for me to hit okay or something. But I couldn't because the screen
was off. Or maybe it had just 'died'.
I have retried installing it several times (the notebook gives me no choice
because each time I restart it, it continues to reinstall the devices) but it
does the exact same thing each time.
I have tried F8/Safe Mode With Command Prompts, but after a few minutes of
appearing to start up in Safe Mode it finally tells me XP Pro can't. I have
also tried just plain Safe Mode. Same result.
The upshot is that I can neither restore XP Home, halt the installation of
XP Pro, or use Safe Mode.
If necessary, I can try to reformat the disk and do a clean install, but I
had hoped to avoid this.
Any ideas?
If not, how do I go about doing a clean install? I haven't done this on XP
and don't know if it's the same as 98SE.
Thanks. |
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Jerry
Guest
|
| Posted:
Mon Dec 20, 2004 2:50 am Post subject:
Re: Can't upgrade to XP Pro |
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|
To do a clean install you boot from the XP CD and follow the prompts.
"Dom1966" <Dom1966@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:58890A7A-BD92-457C-9F6E-AB34719DFC4D@microsoft.com...
| Quote: | I bought a new Dell P4 2.8G notebook six weeks ago. I was mazed to
discover
it's slower than my old P3 1G Dell Dimension 4100. Then it developed a
fault
during boot up that looked like a hard drive problem. This resulted in
ocassional boot up problems which required a hard restatrt.
I decided to upgrade from XP Home SP2 to XP Pro SP2 to see if it would
resolve the speed issue. I wasn't concerned about the faulty hard disk
because I figured I would have to get it replaced and I could have the old
disk's contents mirrored. Just in case, I saved the HD's files.
I began installing XP pro and all looked fne until it got midway through
"Installing Devices", at which pont the screen suddenly turned off. XP
pro
continued to install for another minute or so, then stopped.
I'm not sure, but I think maybe it had finished installing devices and was
waiting for me to hit okay or something. But I couldn't because the
screen
was off. Or maybe it had just 'died'.
I have retried installing it several times (the notebook gives me no
choice
because each time I restart it, it continues to reinstall the devices) but
it
does the exact same thing each time.
I have tried F8/Safe Mode With Command Prompts, but after a few minutes of
appearing to start up in Safe Mode it finally tells me XP Pro can't. I
have
also tried just plain Safe Mode. Same result.
The upshot is that I can neither restore XP Home, halt the installation of
XP Pro, or use Safe Mode.
If necessary, I can try to reformat the disk and do a clean install, but I
had hoped to avoid this.
Any ideas?
If not, how do I go about doing a clean install? I haven't done this on
XP
and don't know if it's the same as 98SE.
Thanks. |
|
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| Back to top |
|
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Jupiter Jones [MVP]
Guest
|
| Posted:
Mon Dec 20, 2004 5:13 am Post subject:
Re: Can't upgrade to XP Pro |
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|
Check your manual and/or contact Dell for restoration procedures using the
CDs provided.
Since Windows XP Home and pro have identical stability and performance,
upgrading from Home to Pro to fix problems is normally not a good idea.
All problems should be resolved first.
--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/
"Dom1966" <Dom1966@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:58890A7A-BD92-457C-9F6E-AB34719DFC4D@microsoft.com...
| Quote: | I bought a new Dell P4 2.8G notebook six weeks ago. I was mazed to
discover
it's slower than my old P3 1G Dell Dimension 4100. Then it developed a
fault
during boot up that looked like a hard drive problem. This resulted in
ocassional boot up problems which required a hard restatrt.
I decided to upgrade from XP Home SP2 to XP Pro SP2 to see if it would
resolve the speed issue. I wasn't concerned about the faulty hard disk
because I figured I would have to get it replaced and I could have the old
disk's contents mirrored. Just in case, I saved the HD's files.
I began installing XP pro and all looked fne until it got midway through
"Installing Devices", at which pont the screen suddenly turned off. XP
pro
continued to install for another minute or so, then stopped.
I'm not sure, but I think maybe it had finished installing devices and was
waiting for me to hit okay or something. But I couldn't because the
screen
was off. Or maybe it had just 'died'.
I have retried installing it several times (the notebook gives me no
choice
because each time I restart it, it continues to reinstall the devices) but
it
does the exact same thing each time.
I have tried F8/Safe Mode With Command Prompts, but after a few minutes of
appearing to start up in Safe Mode it finally tells me XP Pro can't. I
have
also tried just plain Safe Mode. Same result.
The upshot is that I can neither restore XP Home, halt the installation of
XP Pro, or use Safe Mode.
If necessary, I can try to reformat the disk and do a clean install, but I
had hoped to avoid this.
Any ideas?
If not, how do I go about doing a clean install? I haven't done this on
XP
and don't know if it's the same as 98SE.
Thanks. |
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| Back to top |
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Michael Solomon (MS-MVP)
Guest
|
| Posted:
Tue Dec 21, 2004 1:22 am Post subject:
Re: Can't upgrade to XP Pro |
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|
First, if you are receiving error messages on your system including errors
during bootup it is always advisable to find the source of the problem
before moving to a new OS, upgrading or just moving from XP Home to Pro as
any such error might prevent halt setup and cause precisely the problem you
are having.
Second, most modern notebooks and laptops will appear seem slower than a
desktop, even desktops that have a slower processor. This is due to the
power management features. In order to conserve battery life, most
notebooks will run in a low or lower power mode than when they are connected
to AC and that is likely what you were experiencing. Such power options can
usually be turned off. If you wish to do so, open Control Panel and open
Power Options or open Display, go to the Screen Saver tab and click Power
under Monitor power. Then look for the notebook's power options and set
appropriately.
Unfortunately, we can't really solve the setup problem as it may well have
been caused by whatever was the source of the original error you mentioned
which might be a hardware issue.
As mentioned above, always try to find the source of such issues first.
NEVER, upgrade your system's OS to fix a problem, never update to do so
unless the update contains a specific fix for such a problem. Most such
problems if not directly caused by faulty hardware are caused by outdated or
corrupt hardware drivers or corrupt or outdated applications. They also
might be caused by spyware, malware or even a virus. None of those root
causes can be solved by upgrading the OS and as mentioned by Jupiter Jones
in this thread, XP Home and XP Pro are identical with the exception of some
features. The core OS for either is identical, XP Home is a subset of XP
Pro.
--
Michael Solomon MS-MVP
Windows Shell/User
Backup is a PC User's Best Friend
DTS-L.Org: http://www.dts-l.org/
"Dom1966" <Dom1966@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:58890A7A-BD92-457C-9F6E-AB34719DFC4D@microsoft.com...
| Quote: | I bought a new Dell P4 2.8G notebook six weeks ago. I was mazed to
discover
it's slower than my old P3 1G Dell Dimension 4100. Then it developed a
fault
during boot up that looked like a hard drive problem. This resulted in
ocassional boot up problems which required a hard restatrt.
I decided to upgrade from XP Home SP2 to XP Pro SP2 to see if it would
resolve the speed issue. I wasn't concerned about the faulty hard disk
because I figured I would have to get it replaced and I could have the old
disk's contents mirrored. Just in case, I saved the HD's files.
I began installing XP pro and all looked fne until it got midway through
"Installing Devices", at which pont the screen suddenly turned off. XP
pro
continued to install for another minute or so, then stopped.
I'm not sure, but I think maybe it had finished installing devices and was
waiting for me to hit okay or something. But I couldn't because the
screen
was off. Or maybe it had just 'died'.
I have retried installing it several times (the notebook gives me no
choice
because each time I restart it, it continues to reinstall the devices) but
it
does the exact same thing each time.
I have tried F8/Safe Mode With Command Prompts, but after a few minutes of
appearing to start up in Safe Mode it finally tells me XP Pro can't. I
have
also tried just plain Safe Mode. Same result.
The upshot is that I can neither restore XP Home, halt the installation of
XP Pro, or use Safe Mode.
If necessary, I can try to reformat the disk and do a clean install, but I
had hoped to avoid this.
Any ideas?
If not, how do I go about doing a clean install? I haven't done this on
XP
and don't know if it's the same as 98SE.
Thanks. |
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|
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Andrew E.
Guest
|
| Posted:
Tue Dec 21, 2004 8:01 am Post subject:
RE: Can't upgrade to XP Pro |
|
|
Although you have an xp pro upgrade disk to install,microsoft specifically
states upgrading home to pro isnt advisable thru explorer.You should do
a clean install of pro (booting to xp cd),then let it format the disk first,
then installs pro auto.
"Dom1966" wrote:
| Quote: | I bought a new Dell P4 2.8G notebook six weeks ago. I was mazed to discover
it's slower than my old P3 1G Dell Dimension 4100. Then it developed a fault
during boot up that looked like a hard drive problem. This resulted in
ocassional boot up problems which required a hard restatrt.
I decided to upgrade from XP Home SP2 to XP Pro SP2 to see if it would
resolve the speed issue. I wasn't concerned about the faulty hard disk
because I figured I would have to get it replaced and I could have the old
disk's contents mirrored. Just in case, I saved the HD's files.
I began installing XP pro and all looked fne until it got midway through
"Installing Devices", at which pont the screen suddenly turned off. XP pro
continued to install for another minute or so, then stopped.
I'm not sure, but I think maybe it had finished installing devices and was
waiting for me to hit okay or something. But I couldn't because the screen
was off. Or maybe it had just 'died'.
I have retried installing it several times (the notebook gives me no choice
because each time I restart it, it continues to reinstall the devices) but it
does the exact same thing each time.
I have tried F8/Safe Mode With Command Prompts, but after a few minutes of
appearing to start up in Safe Mode it finally tells me XP Pro can't. I have
also tried just plain Safe Mode. Same result.
The upshot is that I can neither restore XP Home, halt the installation of
XP Pro, or use Safe Mode.
If necessary, I can try to reformat the disk and do a clean install, but I
had hoped to avoid this.
Any ideas?
If not, how do I go about doing a clean install? I haven't done this on XP
and don't know if it's the same as 98SE.
Thanks. |
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