cant install xp to save my life

i really need some help here. i am completely unable to install or repair windows xp pro. i have tried everything. i can get to the point in the install where it says 'setup will now load windows' after all drivers are loaded and i get 'unmountable boot image' blue scree.
before you suggest anything look here at the list of things i have tried.

I have 2 windows xp pro cds, i have tried both
I have 2 hard drives, i have tried both, with every combination of one or the other, master/slave, different ide cables or connectors, etc.
i have two motherboards, this happens with both of them.
I have tried fail safe bios settings, disabling caches, lowering dma values for ide channels, etc.
i have tried removing sticks of ram and placing them in different slots or only leaving one in.

what the hell?

i am completely baffled.
please help.



my specs
foxconn 915-p7ac
p4 ht 3.2 gig
1 gig 3200u ram
40 gig seagate master hd, 100 gig maxtor slave
geforce pci-e 256meg 7600gt
lite-on-it dvd-rw cd-rw

 

if you have xp pro can you Exit install screen and do Sfc /scannow to repair ?
i have not tried this, it's just a thought. i think when you do sfc it asks for your cd to look for what you need if you are trying to repair ? might be wise to see who else replies.

 

ok, how would i exit the install to do that?

 

do you have an existing os ? if it is xp pro sign in insert xp cd when install options shows hit exit

 

i dont understand what you mean. when you exit the windows xp install screen, it just exits.

 

i dont know what a scannow is, but i have done chkdsk /p chkdsk /r and fixmbr.

 

what is your os now? did you run the compatability wizard

 

Did you copy one installation CD from the other? It looks very much like the original was possibly already with errors. (It does say "image ", not "volume" ??)
But, if that is not the case, try this:
Maybe, your boot.ini file is corrupt. Here is a fix:

Start Windows XP with the Windows XP CD in your CD/DVD drive.
Once you see the "Welcome to setup" message, press the letter 'R' on your keyboard to enter the Recovery Console.

Select the Windows installation to be repaired (you will need to know the administrator password, if you have already put one).

You will then get a DOS prompt. from here, type: chkdsk /p [Enter]

When that is done type: fixboot [Enter]

Type: Y at the next prompt [Enter]

Then type: exit [Enter]

The system will now reboot into Windows.

If for some reason that didn't work, you can boot to the recovery console (example above).
Type: "chkdsk /r" [Enter]
When done type: exit [Enter].

 

I'll throw in some other possibilities.

If you are installing with both HDDs connected, disconnect the Maxtor.

If you still get the error, use the Seagate Diskwizard utilities to partition and format the Seagate. Still no luck, Low-level (Zero) format the Seagate drive.

If you get Windows installed your troubles might not be over. If the Maxtor drive has a DDO (Dynamic Drive Overlay) it could corrupt the MBR of the Seagate again when you reconnect it. Use the Maxblast utility to back up the MBR of the Maxtor drive and "update" or create a new one (or use it to remove the DDO, if it says one is present).

I might be barking up the wrong tree, but try it if the other suggestions fail.

Matt

 

i tried a 3rd hard drive and it didnt work, so its not a hard drive issue. can i just put my hard drive in another computer, install xp but no drivers, then put it back in mine and install drivers?

 

if you have a operating os on one of your hard drives. after starting left click my comp. insert xp cd. right click on the drive where the cd is then open to see what is on the cd ?

 

Hello heyzeus,

You can try that, but you'd still have to use the install disc to repair the installation once the OS "wakes" up and finds itself in a new hardware environment.

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

BTW, how to on sfc scannow http://www.helpwithwindows.com/WindowsXP/howto-24.html

Regards - Charles

 

fixed it. (kind of)
what i had to do was 'slipstream' sp2 into my xp installation folder, thereby fixing the error 'the installation on your computer is newer...' when trying to install straight from windows.
so i was able to format and clean install windows from windows.
got a new wierd thing though. bios STILL does not recognize my hard drives (one reason i was eager to re-install) after using the raid driver at beginning of install as per manufacturer instructions. also, the mobo cd now claims 'this uitl not for your mobo!'
also, i left my previous install on another partition. will this damage/confuse things?

 

That would concern me. Actually, I don't know how Windows is operating like that. Check in the motherboard manual for how to "Autodetect Hard Disk Drives ". You could run those utilities I mentioned in my previous reply (#9).

If you are not setting up a RAID array, you do not need to install the RAID drivers at all. Different versions of the same motherboard may have different RAID controllers and there may be several drivers to choose from.

The setup you have made seems to be good enough to get Windows running. I would be very wary of it's stability though.

If you installed Windows with the second HDD connected (where the other Windows partition is), the new install may have set up a dual boot. You could well come across problems with this, especially considering the problems you have had so far.

I would be trying to find out why the BIOS does not recognize the drives. I would expect that RAID driver installation program would have the ability to uninstall the drivers.

If the system did not seem to be 100% stable, I would not expect it to be dependable in the future. Struggling to get Windows installed is always a (very) bad sign for me. Now, I don't tend to try and keep it "hobbling along ", I find the cause (which might be the BIOS problem in your case) and start from scratch.

Matt

 

ill try that with the hard drives. but yes, with this motherboard, you do have to install raid drivers whether you want to use raid or not. if you dont install them bios will not recognize the two bottom ide connectors (so says the manual and the 'one man support line' for foxconn. in my case if i dont install raid driver i cant access any hard drives. if i do install the raid driver bios says there is nothing there, but at least windows sees them.