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Doing an install on a newer computer isn't as easy as it sounds...
Yes, I did load it on a laptop with an i5 Series Quad 2.4 GHz processor, this is my tale about the process. :)
First let me tell you that it was a long process because I had to do some experimenting to get things to work such as:
- Figure out that it was the SATA interface and the BIOS settings that would cause the computer to hang when starting the install process.
- Figure out how to get the correct SATA drivers on an older Operating
System install disk (the drivers are not native to the Operating System, it is too old).
- Figure out what SATA driver would work with the SATA interface and drives (Hard drive and Blue Ray DVD) and
Windows XP.
- Find the drivers.
Before I get in to the process let me point out that it is not the fault of the processor, the SATA interface, or drives.
It is the lack of Legacy options in the BIOS
or SATA drivers in the boot section of the
Windows XP install CD!
I used the Windows Seven that was installed to figure out what SATA drives, Video, Sound, Camera, and utilities that the Laptop came with.
It is a ASUS laptop, and ASUS didn't have very many Windows XP drivers available
for this model.
I had to do a lot of searching and reading to find the drivers I needed, I also came across a 'pay for download' web site:
www.driverupdate.net. You will notice I did not link to that web site. $$$$ for a driver? Not a chance, too many free web sites will have them. Just have to search a little longer is all.
I had done the 'slip stream' of the SATA drives in to the XP install CD and burned it before we went on vacation so now I all I had to do was the install.
Not as easy as I though...
Once I had all the drivers that I could find I proceeded with the install.
Troubleshoot, repair, maintain, upgrade & secure...
With this! |
The Windows XP install cd does not have the SATA drivers as part of the boot.bin so I had to use an external USB CD/DVD drive to boot the computer, where as the Windows 7 install DVD has those drivers as part of the boot.bin. I tried to fake out XP and make a bootable cd with the boot.bin from the Win7 install DVD but it didn't work.
On the first install the install process didn't format the drive, it found the Windows 7 installation then proceed to do another directory for XP called Win-XP. Not cool, I have all the Windows 7 folders/directories and it is a mess to figure out what is XP and what is Windows 7. I like nice, clean, and orderly.
But it installed and started! That part I like.
I decided to use the Windows 7 ERD I made a while back and then format the OS partition, nope wouldn't do it, not even from the command prompt. What's a guy to do?
Pull the drive out, put it in an external drive enclosure and format it from another computer is what I did.
Put the drive back in the laptop, start the install again, opps it can't see the drive. [This is getting to be annoying].
I pull the drive out, look at the connectors, they are ok, put it back in secure it and power it up, go in to BIOS, it is there, restart with the XP install CD.
It is there, ah good, do the install. After answering the questions the install is complete and it starts! Cool.
Using the Win7 ERD disk I boot it up and make an image of the OS partition, just in case, ya know?
Install the network drivers for the wireless and wired NICs, go to Microsoft and run the Autoupdater. Fifty updates for XP, not bad, the Windows 7 that was on the computer had eighty-four or so. (I made an image of the Windows 7 OS partition just in case).
Restart, looks good. Install the Video drivers, nice, install the sound drivers, restart.
No sound. Go to ASUS and check the FAQ for this computer's sound card. Bummer the sound card BIOS and the motherboard BIOS have serial numbers, the sound driver installation checks the serial numbers and then dumps if they are the wrong ones...
Work around for the idiocy of the ASUS designers: Install the RealTek drivers first, then the Sound Blaster Audicy drivers, then the NVidia HD Sound drivers. A pain in the backside but that works, I have sound.
The last steps are the normal installation stuff, anti-virus, trojan, spyware killers, move the PF to the data partition, optimize the OS.
And it is faster than my Core 2 Quad that is overclocked to 3.15 GHz! Sheesh, makes me kinda jealous in a way...
Then after a week the OS was stable and no problems, however the laptop will shut down while playing COD - Modern Warfare 3, I think it is overheating so I put the Windows 7 image back on, after all
it is it was my Wife's computer. 
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