can't install windows with no drives?

jasondavis · 10-10-2005, 09:52 PM

I am trying to load windows onto a pc but I have a problem,
No floppy drive or cd drives
I have a blank hard drive and a USB external drive which has my windows installtion files on it, I have the BIOS set to boot from the USB hard drive but it just says something like file error insert disk or something similar instead of booting, I know there has to be a solution?

neon_eddy · 10-10-2005, 10:32 PM

I would say it's not attempting to boot from the USB drive..

I know you might not like this, but try and install from a cd to the USB drive..

tj!2k4 · 10-10-2005, 10:36 PM

you need to make the usb drive bootable. you could use something like flashboot

blk02si · 10-11-2005, 09:43 AM

I think i know what you did, copied a XP install disk to the USB drive. XP is very picky about booting like that. It was made to be installed off a CD. Get yourself a dvd drive then download this OS

http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html

fixerofallthing · 10-11-2005, 04:13 PM

Also be sure the USB drive is hooked directly to the PC USB port and not through a hub. Mine will not boot through a hub.

Tidder · 10-12-2005, 04:03 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by blk02si

I think i know what you did, copied a XP install disk to the USB drive. XP is very picky about booting like that. It was made to be installed off a CD. Get yourself a dvd drive then download this OS

http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html

Why boot to knoppix if he gets a DVD drive? Why not straight from the XP cd?

Tidder · 10-12-2005, 04:06 PM

Best thing I can tell you to do is to pull the drive out of that one, and put it in another machine. Make it dos bootable, copy all the contents of an xp cd into a folder like instxp or something, drop it back into your original pc then run the setup from there. I think it's in the i386 folder, you run winnt. That's the easiest I can think of without actually attaching a cd or dvd drive.

wizardPC · 10-12-2005, 06:57 PM

no no no no no......You guys are going about this all wrong.

Look--the carPC doesn't need an optical drive to run, but you need one to install XP, right? So take an optical drive out of your desktop, or go buy one for $10, and plug it in to the motherboard and power supply.

Problem solved.

I do this all the time when building carPCs with no optical drives.

Tidder · 10-12-2005, 09:48 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by wizardPC

no no no no no......You guys are going about this all wrong.

Look--the carPC doesn't need an optical drive to run, but you need one to install XP, right? So take an optical drive out of your desktop, or go buy one for $10, and plug it in to the motherboard and power supply.

Problem solved.

I do this all the time when building carPCs with no optical drives.

Not good, as XP has this wonderful feature called Windows File Protection. If a system file becomes corrupt or replaced accidentally, it's going to ask for the cd, oh ****, now what do I do? Well, fortunately for me, I have the XP "CD" on my hard drive in my folder called instXP! Whohoo, no fumbling around for a cd-rom for me! (I do this all the time with PVR PC's)

Eh, just one example. The easiest way of course would be to use a freakin' optical drive! But if that is just not an option, I would think my suggestion would work perfectly...

Oooh, forgot to add, "My backpack's got jets... I'm Boba the Fett..."

semovodka · 10-13-2005, 07:01 AM

If your that concerned with having the xp cd can't you just make a separate partition with the xp cd on it, on a different section on the hard drive. Then, you can just load some type of restore. I know a lot of computers bought at stores have alotted a 1-2gig section of the hard drive to this. In these cases, they usually do this and don't even give you a real xp cd. If something fails you have to boot into there restore program, but I'm sure it's possible to create something similar on a computer not preinstalled, but it would require partitioning and some type of controlling program. However, if your partitions fails you are dead in the water. Maybe I am wrong, just throwing the idea out there.

ElKeeed · 10-13-2005, 07:20 AM

Yep, if you really want a store of XP on the drive so it never asks for the XP CD do it properly and get the OEM version.

DarquePervert · 10-13-2005, 08:39 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by ElKeeed

Yep, if you really want a store of XP on the drive so it never asks for the XP CD do it properly and get the OEM version.

The OEM version or retail version of Windows has nothing to do with whether Windows is going to ask you for the CD at any point. All versions of XP copy the install files over to the HDD so that if you make an OS change, it's not going to ask for the CD. Been that way since Win2000.

Frankly, wizardPC has the simplest solution to jasondavis' original problem.

Here's my take:
jasondavis has a PC with a brand-new hard drive. It's not partitioned or formatted. He has a USB key with the WinXP install files on it, I believe.
That's a great start, except you'd beed some way to boot to the HDD and load drivers to read the USB key. That needs a boot floppy or boot CD, but he's got no drive.
Easy solution: temporarily hook up a CDROM drive, then remove it once Windoze is fully loaded.

Tidder · 10-13-2005, 07:46 PM

I dunno about that Darque. Get a bad shutdown or something, and a system file becomes corrupt, you may see a prompt asking for an XP cd. I know I've seen it before a few times, this is why I now copy it to the hdd.

Home-brew PVRs, people don't understand you can't just shut them off dammit.