Re-installing Windows on an old laptop

Posted by Khaled on Super User See other posts from Super User or by Khaled
Published on 2011-12-09T17:09:34Z Indexed on 2012/06/04 16:47 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 282

Filed under:

windows-xp

|

laptop

|

reinstall

|

old

I have an old laptop and I want to re-install Windows XP on it. The problem is that this laptop does not have an optical drive. I checked the boot sequence in the BIOS. It does not show an option to boot from USB. It have only two options:

Boot from HD.
Boot using Realtek agent (network boot).

I tried to copy the Windows CD to second drive D:\ and run the installed from there. However, I could not format the C:\ drive. Windows complaints about setup files will be removed or something like that.

I tried to boot the laptop using PXE, but I could not. It seems that the DHCP request did not get answered.

I thought I could use a USB CD-ROM drive (I don't have one to try), but it might not work as there is no option to boot from USB. Do you think it will work? Do I have other options to try? Any recommendations?

© Super User or respective owner

Related posts about windows-xp

Windows XP - Security Update for Windows XP (KB923561) (KB946648) (KB956572) (KB958644)

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
My father's computer has Windows XP, but when I try to install the service packs it always fails. What gives? Here are the errors that I get in the event log: Date: 2/6/2010 Time: 12:02:18 AM Type: Error User: N/A Computer: EVO Source: Windows Update Agent Category: Installation Event ID: 20 Installation… >>> More
Restore Bak File created on Windows XP pro in Windows XP Pro 64

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have a situation that I need help with. I backed up my Files on Windows XP using the System BackUp utility/wizard, and then Installed a new operating system on the machine. Now I want to restore my old files via the .bak file but it is not being recognized at all. Did I do this wrong or is there… >>> More
Installed Ubuntu 12.04.01 with Windows XP but lost access to Windows XP

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
The First time I tried to install Ubuntu the installer installed it on my D drive. This resulted in only booting to Windows XP with no access to Ubuntu. I had to download a disk partitioning program to undo all of this. A tip from the Internet said to create a partition on the C drive for Ubuntu,… >>> More
Replace dual-XP installs with single-XP install and repartition drive?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
Hello, The Current Situation I have a hard drive that currently is split up like so: Primary Partition C: 9.77 GB NTFS Healthy (System) with XP Pro (in Polish) installed Extended Partition D: 39.82 GB NTFS Healthy (Boot) with XP Pro (in English) installed … >>> More
How do I connect two computers with a LAN cabel?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have two machines - Windows XP and a laptop using Windows 7. I connected them with a WLAN cable. On the Windows XP machine, I set the IP address to 192.168.0.10. On the Windows 7 laptop, I set the IP address to 192.168.0.20. The laptop can see the Windows XP machine, but Windows XP machine cannot… >>> More

Related posts about laptop

Why does my laptop resume immediately after suspend?

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
I seem to be having some problem with suspend mode. Every time I try to suspend my laptop, it just locks the screen. Or maybe it successfully suspends just to resume only an instant after. What could cause such a behaviour? I'm running 32-bit Ubuntu 12.04 with the 3.2.0-25 kernel on a HP dv5-1178er… >>> More
Use laptop A's LCD as secondary monitor for laptop B

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have a working laptop (laptop A), but am interested in using the laptop's LCD as a secondary monitor for my main laptop (laptop B)...is there a way to do this via software or cabling without modifying laptop A? OS's are Windows XP SP3 and Windows 7. >>> More
Charging a laptop battery, without a laptop.

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have an old-ish laptop that only works on AC power because the battery is old and no longer holds a charge. I live in Christchurch New Zealand where there has recently been a number of very large earthquakes. During one of these earthquakes my laptop was thrown from my desk to the floor and now… >>> More
Aluminum Laptop Cases vs Leather Laptop Cases

as seen on Article City - Search for 'Article City'
Both aluminum and leather have been known for their excellent qualities in the world of business, travel and even fashion; but when it comes to choosing one, there are certain qualities that put alum... [Author: Shannon Hilson - Computers and Internet - March 23, 2010] >>> More
How to compare old laptop to new laptop?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I hope this question doesn't get closed at once :) I have an old laptop, a Compaq NC4200, which is going its final laps around the track these days. Battery is dead, and everything kinda runs slow. It also has only 1GB of memory, and even though I don't know if it can take more, I probably wouldn't… >>> More