Computer won't recognize Windows XP CD on reinstall

I'm new here and I did a search but couldn't find anything to fit my problem, so forgive me if this has already been answered before:

I have a really frustrating problem. My girlfriend turned her computer off and left town for a few days. When she got back, she found out that she was having problems with windows. Whenever she got to the point where Windows was beginning to load, her computer simply restarted. She tried safe mode. That didn't work either. Being out of town myself, I had no way of fixing it for her. So I suggested to her that she set her BIOS to boot from CD, pop in her Windows XP CD and try to repair the issue from the disc. She wasn't very comfortable with using the recovery console, so i suggested she do a repair reinstall. All was going well, until we realized she didn't have the cd key the installation asked for.

This is where the problems began. After trying a couple different cd keys (apparently her parents had the cd keys for her software and everything but they didn't know the correct one), I realized at this point we'd better get in there and try to salvage some files. I had her create a BartPE CD, and she used that to go in and retrieve her files. I also had her use a keyfinder (virus checked before use and downloaded from a well known site) from within BartPE to see if we could salvage her cd key from the registry. The key that we retrieved did not work. After trying repeatedly, we discovered that after a while, the computer stopped recognizing the Windows XP CD. We began to get an error saying that the config file was corrupted. Whenever it asked for her CD, she'd put it in, but the computer simply would not recognize it. I had her use the BartPE cd again to determine whether or not it was the cd drive. The cd drive worked just fine. But no matter what, the computer would not continue the installation anymore from her CD.

So I said fine. Let's make some setup boot disks. We did that, loaded the floppies into her computer. Everything was going just fine until it asked for her CD, and the computer again refused to recognize it.

So I'm at a loss. We can't go any further unless the computer can recognize the CD. We can't get into Windows itself because of the config corruption error. I use Windows 2000 myself, and know next to nothing about XP. I don't know why it kept restarting in the first place, and this whole situation has just been very stressful for both her and us. Does anyone have any idea as to why the computer is doing this and what I can do to fix it? She's running Windows XP Professional. Thanks.

 

The exact error would help in figuring out what is wrong but without a valid key, it won't matter.

If the PC is an OEM one (Dell, Gateway, similar) then they might be able to offer assistance based on the serial number of the system.

If it was built locally, then maybe the shop that did the deed can help.

It really sounds like the original XP install used a bogus key though.

And BTW - if you run 2K-pro and hers is XP-pro, you already know around 90% of her OS. They are more similar than different. XP-home is different but the Pro version will be very familiar to a 2K user.

 

I believe we've gotten a hold of the valid key. It's just getting into the system right now that's the problem. Her father built the system for her but he's currently away in the military. We're all pretty much separated at the moment. I'll try to get the exact error code from her later on when she gets home and post an update here.

 

Well I talked to her again and this is what we're getting:

When booted from the cd, we get a message saying that setup cannot detect a previous installation of windows. Then it says please wait. Then it says Setup cannot detect a cd or this is not a valid windows cd.

When she tries to let it boot from the hard drive it says it cannot detect the cd. Additionally we get an error stating that this file is corrupted:

C:/windows/system32/config/system

 

The 'setup cannot detect a previous installation of windows' does indicate there probably is no way to boot from the hard drive without getting the OS reloaded.

Since the system seems to do OK with a different CD, it really sounds like the OS CD is messed up. Most likely would be a scratch that prevents it from being read or possibly just a bunch of scrunge on the CD surface.

Toothpaste makes a good cleaner. Very mild abrasive that will usually remove scrunge (fingerprints and such) along with superficial scratches and possibly leave a CD that can be read.

Try wetting the disk, putting on a dab of toothpaste and using a fingertip to lightly scrub the disk, then rinsing well with warm water. After the disk is dry, try it again.

If that fails, another OS CD is probably going to be needed. Just use the key you have when asked for that information rather than any key associated with the other install CD.

 

well we're going to see about getting a hold of another win xp cd and hope for the best. I'll let you guys know if it worked. thanks.