Want to upgrade from ME to XP?

Hi, i wanted to wipe the mother board on my computer because of a virus... trojan horse virus.

the computer has me windows on it. so i tried to install windows xp. i didi not uninstall me before i began to install xp. xp froze half way through the install. i cannot pull up a desk top screen. every time the computer is powered off then on it resumes trying to install xp and freezes all over agian. i tried taking the xp disk out of the computer, and hitting f8 to pull the computer up in safe mode neither will stop the installation. i have a universal boot disk but i'm unsure how to use it...... i don't know the dos prompts to bring up a windows screen. what can i do to whipe the computer and successfully install xp

This question was answered on February 9, 2005. Much of the information contained herein may have changed since posting.

INTRODUCTION

Use the procedures that are described in this article to troubleshoot problems when you upgrade to Microsoft Windows XP from any one of the following versions of Microsoft Windows:• Microsoft Windows 98

• Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition

• Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

Troubleshooting methods are provided for general issues and for any one of the following specific issues:• You receive a file copy error while the Setup program is running

• The Setup program stops responding

• Your computer stops responding, and a black screen appears

• You receive a stop message when you run the Setup program

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General troubleshooting

If you have problems while you are running the Setup program, clean boot your computer Clean-boot troubleshooting refers to methods that you can use to reduce behaviors that occur because of your computer's environment Many behaviors that occur when you run Windows or Windows programs occur because there are conflicting drivers, terminate-and-stay-resident programs (TSRs), and other settings that start when your computer starts

For additional information about how to clean boot your Windows Me-based computer, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

267288 How to perform a clean boot in Windows Millennium Edition

For additional information about how to clean boot your Windows 98 or Windows 98 Second Edition-based computer, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

192926 How to perform clean-boot troubleshooting for Windows 98

Additionally, if you have antivirus software installed on your computer, the clean boot steps that are referenced in these articles may temporarily disable the antivirus software; however, you may want to remove the software to avoid potential conflicts while the Setup program is running You may also want to contact the software vendor before you remove the antivirus software so that you do not leave your computer vulnerable to viruses After the Windows XP Setup procedure is complete, you can reinstall the antivirus software if it is compatible with Windows XP.

Note You may have to contact the software manufacturer to determine if the software is compatible with Windows XP or to obtain a version of the software that is compatible with Windows XP

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You receive a file copy error while the Setup program is running

When you try to install Windows XP, you may receive one of the following error messages:

Setup cannot copy the file file_name Press X to retry, Y to abort

where file_name is the file that Setup cannot copy, or:

INF File Textsetup.sif is corrupt or missing Status 14 SETUP CANNOT CONTINUE

This behavior may occur if any one of the following conditions is true: • Your Windows XP CD-ROM is scratched, smudged, or dirty Clean the Windows XP CD-ROM with a soft cloth, insert it in the CD-ROM drive, and then click OK

• Your CD-ROM drive is not working correctly or the CD-ROM might be vibrating too much for the laser to accurately read the data For more information about this problem, see your hardware documentation or contact the CD-ROM manufacturer

• If you are using multiple CD-ROM drives, your computer may be trying to locate files on the wrong drive If your hardware has a feature to disable CD-ROM drives that are not being used, disable the CD-ROM drives that you are not using

• Your computer is over-clocked Because over-clocking is very memory-intensive, decoding errors may occur when you extract files from your Windows XP CD-ROM

• Try to use the default clock timings for your motherboard and processor For more information about how to do this, see your hardware documentation or contact the motherboard manufacturer

• Your computer has damaged or mismatched random access memory (RAM) or cache memory For example, you might be using a combination of extended data out (EDO) and non-EDO RAM, or different RAM speeds.

Decoding errors may occur even if Windows appears to be running correctly These errors occur because of the additional stress that is put on your computer when Windows tries to extract files and to access the hard disk.

To determine how to make your computer cache memory unavailable while you are running the Setup program, see your hardware documentation or contact your hardware manufacturer

• Ultra direct memory access (DMA) is turned on in your computer's CMOS settings, and the data is moving too quickly

• Change from DMA mode to Processor Input/Output (PIO) mode to lower your data transfer rate If this does not resolve the problem, lower your PIO mode settings The higher your PIO mode settings are, the faster your data transfer is

• You are using a third-party memory manager

• There is a virus on your computer

If you continue to receive this error message, copy the i386 folder from the CD-ROM drive to your local hard disk, and then try to run the Setup program from your hard disk

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The Windows XP Setup program stops responding

For additional information about troubleshooting this issue, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

315323 Windows XP Setup stops responding (hangs) during the "Preparing installation" phase

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Your computer stops responding and a black screen appears during the upgrade

When you try to upgrade to Windows XP, your computer may stop responding, or "hang," and a black screen may be appear

This behavior may be caused by either hardware or software that is incompatible with Windows XP.

To work around this behavior: 1 Wait 10 to 15 minutes on the current screen to make sure that the computer does not continue with the Setup procedure

2 Restart the computer to see if it stops responding again at the same place while the Setup program is running Occasionally, the Setup program may go farther than it did the last time that it stopped responding If the Setup program does go farther, try restarting your computer several times and the Setup program may finish

3 Restart the computer and select the option to Cancel Windows XP Setup to revert to Windows 98 or Windows Millennium Edition If the option to Cancel Windows XP Setup is not an option when you restart your computer, go to step 5

4 After you revert to Windows 98 or Windows Millennium Edition, remove any antivirus programs and any boot manager programs (such as GoBack), and then perform a clean boot of your computer To perform a clean boot, view the article for your operating system that is referenced earlier in this article

5 If the upgrade stops responding again, there may be a hardware incompatibility issue You can try to disable ACPI functionality When your computer restarts, you receive an option to press F6 to add third-party small computer system interface (SCSI) drivers On this screen, press F7 No visual notification appears

6 If the Setup program continues to stop responding, disable unnecessary hardware Remove any USB devices, remove or disable network cards, sound cards, and serial cards, and then restart the Setup program

7 If you continue to receive this error message, you may want to flash the BIOS on the motherboard Refer to your computer's manufacturer or visit the motherboard Web site for information about how to do this

8 If a BIOS update does not resolve the issue, or if you are not able to obtain an updated BIOS version for the computer, you may want to install Windows XP with a Standard PC Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) To do this, press F7 when you are prompted to press F6 while the Windows XP Setup program is running Specifically, you are prompted to press F6 after the Setup program restarts the computer for the first time For additional information about how to force the Standard PC HAL, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

299340 How to force a Hardware Abstraction Layer during an upgrade or an installation of Windows XP

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You receive an error message or a stop message while the Setup program is running

If you receive one of the following error messages, see the corresponding Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

311562 "An unexpected error (768) occurred at line 5118@ind:Xp\Client\Boot\Setup\Setup.c" error message during Windows XP setup

311564 "Stop 0x0000000A irql_not_less_or_equal" error message during Windows XP upgrade

311442 Error message: Setup cannot continue Please contact Microsoft Technical Support (Error: 3E6h)

The third-party products that are discussed in this article are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.

About the author

Posted by Eramilde of Katharine Gibbs School - New York on February 9, 2005

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