install OEM xp from usb flash drive

[Stratospaly]

I am trying to do as the topic explains, but with either a Dell SP3 install disk, or an OEM (hologram) XP pro sp2 disk. I want to get around the "asking for cd key" part by just including the OEM dell XP key. I have used many programs and tools to try and make this happen to no avail.

I have gotten a blinking cursor when attempting to boot to the usb drive, no blinking cursor at that point, I have even gotten one way to allow me to boot to the drive and install the drivers for pre-installation, only to blue screen when the XP install moves past that point. I have a 2gb drive and a 4gb drive, have tried Fat16, 32, and NTFS. I have tried copying straight from the Dell OEM XP pro SP3 disk, and using the hologram disk edited with Nlite (not changing any XP files but going from SP2 on the disk to SP3 I downloaded, and adding the cd key). I need some serious help because I am at the end of my rope trying to figure out how to install XP from a thumb drive. I have spent 1000x the time I wanted to save with this process and am no closer to figuring it out than I was when I started.

Thanks,

Stratos

[Sp0iLedBrAt]

It's got a setting to add a second (very small) partition which will make setup see it as a HDD, and you can setup BIOS to boot from HDD.

You can still edit it with nLite before using it. I'd recommend you use the hologram disk and use nLite to slipstream SP3. Users have reported problems with Dell disks, but you're always free to give it a try.

Cheers