A friend's hard drive crashed. She went out and purchased a 160gig drive. She is using Windows 2000 and wants to reload the system using the drive as 1 partition only.

I know that for greater than 137gig drive support, SP3 or higher is needed. Per the MS KB 305098 article about it, you can apply the SP3 or 4 after Windows is installed and change a reg setting to see the rest of the drive.

But since she wants to create the single 160gig partition durring install, I was wondering if I slip stream SP 4 into the Win2K CD, will she be able to use the full drive right off the bat?

i.e. if I slip stream SP4 into the W2K CD, can she make 1 partition that takes the entire drive, and install windows to it without having to do anything else?

Or is she stuck having to install Windows to a 137gig or less partition, apply the SP and make the reg change? Then resize the partition to the full capacity of the drive with something like Partition Magic?

Oh, I should probably mention, we don't want to use any overlay type software to do this.

It should be doable with the slipstreamed SP4.

safer to slipstream SP4

Why have only one 160g partition, it would be safer to split it..

Why have only one 160g partition, it would be safer to split it..

I suggested one partition for the OS and apps... a 2nd partition for data, but she doesn't want it that way

If I do slip stream SP4, do I still have to make reg change after installing Win2K?

I dont think so.

I would still try and convince her to split the drive, if the C drive became corrupt she could loose everything..At least with a C & D there is a chance of saving stuff

better to split it

lets say 20-30gb and rest as d:\

and this is why

you could use acronis true image or other software to capture c:\ partition and if you have problems(driver corruption or some kind of update can ruin something)

just restore the image file to c:\ after you backed up your files to d:\

i also redirect my documents to D:\ r even e:\

so only thing i have to do is backup its content and im fixed

I agree with the posts above, recommend to her to split the drive into two or more partitions, C:\ could be 100GB perhaps and the other one ~56.5GB (due to the whole formatted capacity thing you mightn't get the full 160GB), and then install Windows 2000 with a SP4 slipstreamed CD. Probably the safest and easiest way.

Also, if using a 2000 SP4 CD you will not have to make a reg. change after installation when using 1 big 160GB partition.

Hope this information helps

Well, I could not convince her to make two partitions, but since I dont have to support the machine, oh well its up to her.

Anyhow... We slipstreamed SP4 into the W2K cd. We still could not make/use a partition that took the full drive right off the bat and she doesn't have Partition Magic or anything to resize it with after. I have it, but I'm not there, just talking over phone.

Btw, I was not expecting the 160gig drive (as marked on package) to be 160 gig as reported by the OS as I know about the decimal vs binary as it relates to drive makers and the OS. I was expecting 148 to 152ish as reported by the OS.

even with sp4 installed, MS K305098 supplies a lba reg solution and min. hardware specs for support.

even with sp4 installed, MS K305098 supplies a lba reg solution and min. hardware specs for support.

Thanks, But I knew about the KB article (see my first post) and the reg change if the OS was installed then you installed the SP. What I wasn't sure of, and why I posted, was if I slipstream the pack would I still need to make the change (OS was installed with SP applied).

Seeing as replies from peachy and spud seemed to indicate that if I installed via slipstreamed SP4, I would not, but as I found trying it you do, I figured I'd post my follow up as to what happend with the slipstreamed disc.