my computer wont work when/...[Old HDD installed]

Hi,
One of my pc broke so i tryed putting the oldder hardrive in it , the HD works and all, but my pc keeps restating without going to windows xp screen before that it keeps restarting never goes to windows xp load screen. i need help plz some one

 

Have you reinstalled Windows? You might be able to run a repair reinstall of Windows, which is where you boot to the Windows CD, go through the first few screens and after you press F8 at the Eula, can choose to repair the current installation of Windows.

If you don't need the old version of Windows, you could format and install fresh.

You will need to install the version of Windows XP that goes with the new computer, not the old computer's HDD.

Matt

 

but i do really need the stuff on the Hard drive how can i get that ? or is it going to restore it when i repair it. also the comouter reads the Hard drive but it keeps restarting its self is something wrong with hardware in computer?

 

You should not lose any data by doing a repair reinstall, although I think you will see a warning to back up your data.

If you don't have a back-up system consider making one up now. I expect this HDD from the old computer is smaller than the original and it is filled with "ancient" data. Is it going to fulfil your needs in the future?

You don't say what the problem was with the original HDD. Did you test it with the HDD manufacturer's testing utilities? If the problem is in the boot file system or partitioning (MBR), the data will still be there and the drive still usable.

A utility I use frequently is Ultimate Boot Disk for Windows (UBD4W), it is a large download though. If you connect a USB storage device to the machine, then boot to the disk, as long as it can read the HDD, the data can be copied off it (and there are burning tools).

If the HDD you are trying to run is not going to be large enough for the future, I would consider getting a new HDD, if not for using as a main HDD, then by putting it in an external (USB) enclosure and using it for data backup and storage space.

If you get a new HDD and the HDD you are working on still runs in the old computer, you can get the data by networking or putting it in the PC jumpered as a slave or secondary master.

Lots of possibilities, but I think you see the need for back-up system when you say "but i do really need the stuff on the Hard drive ". I can reformat any of my systems or replace the HDD at any time because I have my data backed up.

Matt

 

Thank you very much for writting a big respons to me , but i have 3 hard drives and i m trying to work them on one comp, which none of them are working i m not sure if all the hard drives are damaged or something else is broken in the comp, i do have another comp which i will try to hook up to it and see it the cables in the old comp is messed up, i really appricate you helping me thanks man.

 

No probs. You will need to explain what you are trying to do and what error messages you are getting.

The first advice still stands...you cannot take the HDD out of one machine and put it into another (unless it is the same model motherboard) and expect it to work. You need to reinstall all the drivers, which can be done by doing a "Repair Reinstall ".

Matt