jaclaz

@cluberti But is XP support definitely working or not? : http://www.cluberti.com/blog/2009/08/10/md...from-a-usb-key/ As is it seems a bit ambiguous... jaclaz

Any of the above should work allright, I would use killdisk as first approach as it has, if I remember correctly, both a Windows and a Dos version. If you think your experience is crazy, read attentively this (still largely UNresolved): http://www.boot-land.net/forums/index.php?...ic=9897&hl= I am not sure about the 3.00 and 3.01: one of the othere things that everyone "assumes" is about NTFS versions). Care to explain how you checked the version? I don't want to "talk bad" about an application I don't really know/used extensively, but I do remember that many, many years ago I did test System Commander and then discarded it forever as it had "queer" ways. At the time, it was however VERY powerful, nowadays, we have grub4dos and with all due respect System Commander is - to say the least - outdated. I would try to however besides CLONING (with a separate program or whatever as you did) the first 63 hidden sectors (or more) as, if I recall correctly, System Commander uses them (or part of them) AND "backup/restore" the actual partition Volume ID's AND Disk Signature. It is also possible that System Commander uses some kind of checksum of either MBR or Partition Tables or bootsectors... or whatever, you would need two fresh installations to compare... Just for your interest, since a couple of unfortunate "accidents", agian MANY years ago, I DO NOT trust either: Partition Magic (since version 3 that worked allright) Acronis apps (for a number of reasons, including their "habit" to install in windows Filter Drivers) I also never used (if not very, very old versions) of GHOST. Heck, we have an entire range of freeware, and among them quite a few OpenSource alternatives: http://www.msfn.org/board/disk-imaging-sof...99.html&hl= Why not using them? jaclaz

Hey peeps are you joking or WAHT? The good MS guys must have had a really GOOD crystal ball to make MSCDEX.EXE compatible with something that WAS NOT EVEN INVENTED at the time. SHSUCDX might be more appropriate : http://johnson.tmfc.net/dos/shsucdx.html Homesite at the moment down: http://adoxa.110mb.com/ Original site gone for good: http://www.geocities.com/jadoxa/shsucdx/ Still available : http://www.reocities.com/jadoxa/shsucdx/ jaclaz

It's back on. Just a reminder: http://www.msfn.org/board/boot-ini-entry-a...ve-t135142.html The "shiftdisks" idea wasn't finalized at the time: http://www.boot-land.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=8498 http://www.boot-land.net/forums/index.php?...=8498&st=16 http://www.boot-land.net/forums/index.php?...=8498&st=22 Maybe now that we have a "practical" use, we can have it. jaclaz

Yep, this way we can exclude the source as cause and analyze other possible aspects. No prob. jaclaz

Both sources are NOT "kosher". The XP Home is evidently a "WAREZ" release , "wrongly" burned, too : The XP Pro appears like a "mish-mash", nlited version of some kind: Original XP files are dated:08/23/2001 01:00 SP2 files are dated: 08/04/2004 02:07 SP3 files have various dates, between 2006 and 14-04-2008 The CD has been compiled on 01/01/1601 02:00 AM <DIR> No way to say if the above is part (or "root") of the problem, but you do understand how we cannot support non-standard sources, don't you? jaclaz

I am pretty sure to have read a thread here on MSFN about using a small video player during setup, but I simply cannot find it. jaclaz P.S.: Found it : http://www.msfn.org/board/s-possible-liste...-xp-t96254.html http://www.msfn.org/board/play-videos-audi...tml&t=67268

The link you found seems to hint that a problem with RAM may cause this behaviour. As a matter of fact XP setup is "picky" when it comes to RAM, but I really cannot remember a similar issue (saying one or more files are missing) . Bootvid.dll is just the first of a series of files that should fail to copy. What you can try as it would cost you nothing would be to try re-seating RAM and use "conservative" BIOS settings. As well, you may try copying the CD .iso to hard disk (should it be a timing problem of some kind) and use a virtual Cd driver. (this would also explain why two different sources both fail) On a normal XP CD bootvid.dll is in \I386\ in compressed form as BOOTVID.DL_. Do the following, open a command prompt, insert the two windows CD's (one at the time ) and issue, respectively: DIR D: /S >C:\XPhomeSP2.dir and DIR D: /S >C:\XPPROSP3.dir (assuming that D:\ is your CD) then re-do the same for the USb thingie, something like: DIR E: /S >C:\XPhomeSP2USB.dir DIR E: /S >C:\XPPROSP3USB.dir compress XPhomeSP2.dir, XPPROSP3.dir and XPhomeSP2USB.dir or XPPROSP3USB.dir (or, better, both) in a .zip file and post the .zip as attachment to your next post. Then, I will move your problem and (hopefully) answers to it to a new "dedicated" thread. jaclaz P.S.: Just in case: http://www.msfn.org/board/error-while-inst...pro-t83321.html

It does sound like a somehow "wrong" source. Maybe a hiccup in the slipstreaming of the Service Packs? (a "truly slipstreamed" SP3 should ask for SP3.cab and not for SP2.cab AFAICR) Usually a "file is missing" error means that a file is actually missing. (or it may be somehow a corrupted .SIF file) Can you post some info/details on both the sources you tried to use? jaclaz

We have an entire section dedicated to this: http://www.msfn.org/board/install-windows-usb-f157.html I actually missed the "tons" of tutorials, as the methods were developed right here and the possibility of a multi setup has been added since a lot of time. This is probably where you should start: http://www.msfn.org/board/install-usb-wins...ui-t120444.html but do check the other methods too. jaclaz

If I may, the whole problem is about "assumptions". Partition Magic "assumes" that certain limits/boundaries/settings are "wrong" Ghost "assumes" that a given filesystem "needs" to have a given cluster size System Commander probably "assumes" something yet different. XP formatting/partitioning utilities have different "assumptions" Vista/Win 7 formatting/partitioning utilities have different "assumptions" (and though inaccessible at this time, due to boot-land problems, there is a recent thread where we are trying to understand, at least partly, some of these assumptions) You won't be able to install Vista/Win 7 directly on FAT32, AFAIK: Wiping unused space is a possibility: http://www.cezeo.com/products/disk-redactor/ http://eraser.heidi.ie/announcements/20091215.html http://sourceforge.net/projects/wipefreespace/ http://www.somacon.com/p336.php http://www.killdisk.com/ jaclaz

If it doesn't work on Qemu, there must be some problems. I have always used Qemu for testing 98 "lite" builds. I have no time/occasion to try this new build, but if anyone is into experimenting, can they try with Qemu Manager 6.0 version? (the Qemu version coming with it has more virtual hardware to choose among) The site seems like down right now http://qemu-forum.ipi.fi/viewtopic.php?f=5...p;sk=t&sd=a A couple of Chinese mirrors: http://wznetcom.onlinedown.net/down/setupqemuk60.zip http://smx.onlinedown.net/down/files/setupqemuk60.zip @betaluva I can understand needing a mail app, but if I get it right the build already has Opera (which is also a mail client - and a d@mn good one), and Outlook Express , and version 6 , comeon! However, I guess that it can be installed, but it would be tricky business: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307295/en-us as the system is a half 95/half 98 one. http://email.about.com/od/outlookexpresstr...einstall_oe.htm and you'll end up with Internet Explorer as well (which is the main thing that is being removed) An app that may be useful (following the spirit of the "recovery/emergency" usefulness of this build) could be a OE viewer: http://www.mitec.cz/mailview.html jaclaz

@sixcentgeorge Guess WHY the project is called grub4dos and not GRUB? Not directly, but there are ways. My guess is that 7 will work like Vista does: http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?sho...mp;#entry119093 jaclaz

It seems like they are not used anymore. Post just above yours (coloured for your convenience) have you tried with /L1043? jaclaz

I don't get it. The OP in the thread you linked to said he found what the problem was: jaclaz

I seem to remember that in BOOTMGR you need to chainload grldr.mbr and not grldr with latest grub4dos versions. jaclaz

Sure , I see exactly 69.99 reasons to try using first the other ones. jaclaz

Happy to have contributed to yet another happy bunny. jaclaz

Yep. As graphically explained in the linked page: http://www.multibooters.co.uk/multiboot.html Normal NT 4.x/5.x booting: MBR->bootsector->NTLDR->BOOT.INI->NTDETECT.COM->Windows 5.x Normal NT 6.x/7 booting: MBR->bootsector->BOOTMGR->BCD->WINLOAD.EXE->Windows 6.x/7 Normal NT6.x/7 with NT 4.x/5.x dual booting: MBR->bootsector->BOOTMGR->BCD->WINLOAD.EXE->Windows 6.x/7 or: MBR->bootsector->BOOTMGR->BCD->NTLDR->BOOT.INI->NTDETECT.COM->Windows 5.x The bolded part should be the link you are missing, you need an entry in BCD for booting a previous NT system. Or if you prefer BOOT.INI is read by NTLDR and not by BOOTMGR. There might be an exception, possibly a LONGHORN version, if I remember correctly. jaclaz

And which kind of magic spell are you going to use to update the BCD? Just for the record, spells involving the use of parts of dead animals have been recently banned by the 2009 Witches and Wizard Association Annual Congress. jaclaz

If you just deleted the data, you can use an undelete utility. Is this NTFS or FAT32? Suitable apps: http://www.pcinspector.de/default.htm?language=1 http://www.piriform.com/recuva http://www.octanesoft.com/data_recovery_free_edition.html jaclaz

I have the impression that you need to read attentively this page: http://www.multibooters.co.uk/multiboot.html to have a clearer idea of a multiboot process with NTLDR and BOOTMGR. jaclaz

Just for the record, you may be unaware of the change in FORMAT command in Vista: http://www.msfn.org/board/vista-quick-form...on-t135781.html http://www.msfn.org/board/vista-quick-form...781-page-9.html HDerase is a DOS only utility, and is the lowest possible level one (please read as fastest) as it uses internal disk commands. You can add to your CD or USB stick a DOS floppy image containing HDerase or simply use the UBCD: http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ UBCD can also booted "as .iso" from grub4dos. There are tens of apps that will wipe a hard disk under a PE 1.x, though generally they are GUI, here is one: http://www.roadkil.net/program.php?ProgramID=14 and here one that also has a command line interface: http://www.cezeo.com/products/disk-redactor/ More ideas here: http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?showtopic=21073 jaclaz

Wrong approach. hiren's boot CD is considered WAREZ. Get the real ntfs4dos from its homepage and read the docs: http://www.free-av.com/en/tools/11/avira_n...s_personal.html jaclaz

Happy to hear you made it . A PCB on modern hard disks is "tied" to it's mechanical parts. To exchange succesfully PCB boards you need to also exchange the data in some flash chips (or physically exchange the chips by de-soldering them from one PCB and re-solder it on the other). Firmware is (obviously) the same for each "family" of drives, so it doesn't make difference if you flash it with the PCB connected to one or the other drive. Most probably by exchanging the boards you somehow managed to get the board in an "error" state that allowed re-flashing the firmware and recover from error once the "right" PCB and drive were again coupled. This is however NOT, NOT recommended as there are concrete possibilities that you can end with two dead drives instead of one. jaclaz