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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 318
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Have you tried disabling all other boot sources in BIOS, if that's possible? Not sure if this will help, but it may be worth a try. You may also want to update the BIOS. You should try surfing to www.compaq.com to check for support/drivers for your Presario. There are a number of models in the 2500 series, but perhaps you can find a BIOS update that may help. The long link below might help you search for updates: https://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc...oduct=425566&dest_page=solveCategory
Sometimes you carpe diem, sometimes your diem gets carped.
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Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 1,390
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If you bought a retail upgrade, this will definitely be more than adequate to as boot source. Its still a full version, just looking for a previous version to run.
Something else is going on with the drive.
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Joined: Dec 2002
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Compaq (and some others) frequently use a proprietary version of installation, reflected on the disk they give you with the computer; thus if you have to reload from the original disk, it reloads the way the factory wants it to. These versions aren't always like the retail or regular MS OEM versions. I remember that Compaq always had their recovery/install disk create a secondary partition for temporary and recovery files. Best bet is to borrow a CD from a friend (NOT Compaq, HP, Gateway) and try using their XP Home disk as the underlying license for your upgrade. Their disk SHOULD allow you to remove existing partitions.
Any questions, e-mail me and I'll try to help.
Bill
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Joined: Jul 2003
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Thanks for all of the input. I did have one idea. I think I'll partition the unparditioned space (this is the revovery space Rover88 is talking about), install a copy of pro on that. The from there I should be able to format the partitioned c: drive. I then should be able to install the home xp and upgrade to pro from there.
It sure is a long walk for such a short distance.
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 3,630
Moderator-Avaya, Nortel
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Moderator-Avaya, Nortel
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 3,630 |
Perhaps a good time to do a hard drive upgrade as well. You can start with a fresh hard drive and get more space.
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Joined: May 2001
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Do you have a floppy drive?
You might find something on bootdisk.com to help you.
Devin
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Joined: Jul 2003
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It would not allow me to format the unformatted partition. I don't have a floppy for the laptop. I did consider a hard drive but if this won't boot from a CD now I don't want to have the same trouble with a blank HD. So, I opted for a whole new machine and I gave the laptop to the my kids. Some battles cost more in time than are worth it.
If I happen to run across a new HD or a floppy drive, I may consider going another round. But for now I'm back in buisness with a new HP with an Intel core 2 T5200 1.60 GHz and 2 gig if ram. Wide screen, bla, bla, bla..... It absolutley kills the compaq and for about the same amount I paid for the Compaq 3 years ago.
Thanks again for all the help!
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Joined: Jun 2006
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Not a bad way to go. I still have my old Micron PC Pentium Pro 200. I keep it in the basement and let the kids bang around on it. They like the old Atari emulator I installed on it some time back.
Happy computing :-)
Sometimes you carpe diem, sometimes your diem gets carped.
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,436
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Are you sure the CD drive is good? If it won't boot to any CD, it sounds like the drive is bad. That would also cause errors trying to upgrade from within windows.
The 8 Meg unformatted space is normal, for some reason every computer I've formatted with w2k or XP has that, and it won't let you format it.
Get a win95 or win98 boot disk, run fdisk, delete the non-dos partition, then try from the CD again.
Joe
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No trees were harmed as a result of this posting; however, many electrons were severely inconvenienced.
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 345
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If your hard drive is an IDE hard drive do the following.
1) Take your desktop machine. Get an IDE standard to Ide micro converter. (Most PC Supply stores have them).
2) Put it in as a secondary hard drive on your desktop
3) Format it.
4) Copy the I386 folder from the CD to the hard drive.
5) Power down the desktop and remove your master hard drive. Put your laptop hard drive in as a primary.
6) Boot up and load XP pro until it comes to the point of restarting system in 15 seconds.
7) At this point power off the PC and remove the laptop hard drive. Put it back into the laptop.
8) Boot the laptop off the hard drive. When it ask for the XP disk direct it to the C:\I386 folder and it will complete the installation.
It takes a little longer this way but keeps you from having to find a good CD ROM if that is the problem.
All In One Communications
Mustang, OK
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