Thread: Just a thought...

There are ways to install from a HD or USB drive. If you have a spare HD, you can do it that way. You might need to use a floppy to get into a command prompt rather than the "BOOT FAILURE, RESTART" message.

So do you have a spare HD or atleast another computer you can temprarily rip one from? What about a floppy drive?

Just google "Install xp from usb" and heaps of records come up. I was looking into doing it as well, and it look pretty involved. You'll need to format your usb thumb drive to be a bootable drive and have your OS image on there.

First of all you'll need to take a look in the Bios or on google and see if you mobo supports booting from usb.

From what I've read, the biggest problem is that during a boot-up, the OS restarts the usb devices. Obvisouly this is no good if you're computer is reading from the usb drive to tell it what to do and how to install windows!

Originally Posted by 2k1Toaster

There are ways to install from a HD or USB drive. If you have a spare HD, you can do it that way. You might need to use a floppy to get into a command prompt rather than the "BOOT FAILURE, RESTART" message.

So do you have a spare HD or atleast another computer you can temprarily rip one from? What about a floppy drive?

no i dont. I know my home pc has two 300gb drives but they show up as one in My Computer, i think they are linked somehow and im not sure which one i can remove safely. Im real close to having all the components, just need the PSU and screen. I have everything else except those. Now im running into all these problems as i run through the install in my head. Get ready for a bunch new threads guys

Originally Posted by dyne

Why don't you just use the optical drive from your current computer to install the OS, and just put the drive back when you're done?

Thats what I did. If possible just pull one of the cd drives out of your desktop and connect that to your carpc and you can power the carpc mobo from the psu in your desktop. Plus that is a good way to make sure most of your components work before you actually put them in the car. Will probably save you from frustration if you have a bad piece of hardware.

! this is what happens when you think too hard! ill try it out!!!!

i cant find the psu i think its down by the red wire, theres a seperate compartment but i think i have to pull both graphics cards to get to it

the group of multi-colored wires at the top appear to be the psu atx connectors(provided that you have an atx psu in your desktop).

The best way to tell for sure:

See the plugs in the right side of the CD drives that have 1 red, 2 black, 1 yellow wire? Follow these and this will lead you to the psu. Also coming from the psu should be a larger group of wires connecting to the mobo. pull these and reattached to the carpc mobo

ok i pulled that connector out but its only a 10 pin, my MB is a 20 pin. But the 10 pins from my tower fit into the first 10 pins from my MB, should i try to power it up? or will i kill the MB?