Resolved Neophyte Recovery of XP on Fujitsu

I have a Fujitsu laptop with Pentium 4 2.8Ghz, 756MB, that came with Windows XP. It is clogged with bits and pieces of old software and components of Windows are missing. I want to start fresh with a plain vanilla XP knowing I will have to reinstall all applications. As far as I know the hardware is OK. It has a recovery image on the HDD. I also have the recovery disk that came with the system. If I need it, the sticker on the bottom has the product key. I have never recovered an OS so I am a little cautious.

Is there a better choice between the HDD image and the recovery CD?

Other than saving any data I might want, should I do anything (like hardware testing) before starting the recovery?

I have an SP2 update CD. Do I just run that after I get the recovered XP installed? After that, I then do the regular online update to get to SP3?

..Paul..

 

I would do a Clean install with the recovery disc. Format the HD and go from there. That way you will know that you are clean. Doing a backup of all you need is good.

 

In the process of copying some desired but not critical files, I am now thinking there may be hardware problems. The memory test that is part of POST shows no problems. On a recent reboot, CHKDSK was run automatically and found and corrected a file and index error(s). The report flashed by so quickly that I don't know what the error count was. Since this laptop had been "put out to pasture" a year ago, I haven't read or written a CD or DVD for more than a year. A few days ago I installed Process Explorer to get a better idea of what is going on. On occasion, the level of hardware interrupts is very high -- e.g. 25-100 % for several seconds and then drops to essentially zero. If I am using Windows Explorer to look at folders and files, it may work normally or it may take a long long time to open a folder. I notice that during that time even Processor Explorer is not updating its graphical display in the tray icon.

It seems to me I should try to test the hardware with minimal use of Windows. What tool(s) will do this? I guess I could reinstall drivers here and there but that seems like a mindless approach.

 

To test your hard drive using the manufacturer's disk diagnostics:

ExcelStore

Fujitsu

Hitachi/IBM

Samsung

Seagate, Maxtor, Quantum

Toshiba

Western Digital

Report back with your findings and we'll take it from there.

 

Thanks for posting the hard drive diagnostics. I was looking forward to downloading and running. Things have not gone well. Multiple attempts to launch Firefox after bootup failed to load Firefox. Always have to force reboot. Even getting the Start menu to open may take 3-4 minutes after a 3-4 minute bootup. Tried starting in safe mode with networking and it still takes 3-4 minutes to boot, 3-4 minutes to open start menu and after 10 minutes Windows Explorer has not yet opened and a message appears "Windows - Delayed write Failed." I have seen this message earlier today on three different occasions. Not sure where to go from here. Every subsequent attempt to do something gets half as far, takes twice as long, and results in paralysis, vegetative state, or spontaneous rebooting. Not a promising path.

 

Update: after an additional 12 minutes, the initial Windows Explorer screen opened. Perhaps I should lower my expectations.

 

Another update: Windows Explorer is now running at full speed. It opens folders in 1 second or less. It shows properties in a seconfd or two. I have no idea what is going on. However, still can't load Firefox.

 

Why are you worried about FireFox? You are going to wipe this PC and start over. What do you plan on doing first. Loading it to the hilt then wipe it?

 

"Windows - Delayed write Failed. "
Problems with a device driver, especially a SCSI or RAID device driver. Some RAID device drivers are known to issue spurious "Delayed Write Failed" errors in XP Service Pack 2. Most manufacturers have been alerted to this, so check to make sure the disk drivers are up-to-date.
Cabling problems. A faulty or broken cable "” especially for an external USB or Firewire enclosure—can generate this error. It can also happen if the cable is too long, or if it is hooked up through a hub that isn’t up to spec. Another possible culprit is if you have a UDMA drive that requires an 80-pin cable, and you are using a 40-pin cable.
SCSI termination errors. This has become less likely with the advent of self-terminating SCSI hardware, but it shouldn’t be counted out.
Media errors. This is the worst possible scenario "” essentially, drive failure, although it could be as the link below has a fix/workaround for.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330174

 

The idea was to use Firefox to download the drive manufacturers diagnostic test program.

 

The HDD diagnostics from the manufacturer had a download link but it didn't point to the file. Never the less, I'm pretty certain my drive is toast. Running the recovery disk led to fatal disk errors after running about 2-3 minutes so I now have no functioning OS. The current drive is a Toshiba MK6021GAS which seems to have been a widely used drive in the early 2000s. Though I've never done it before, I'd like to replace the drive to see if I can do it.

How can you be fairly certain a replacement is going to be compatible?
What do I do after I install it?
Can I just run the recovery disk?

 

You can still get that same HD on e-bay and also on Amazon for about 40 bucks. You can also ask the sellers a question and I have never had one give me a bad answer. That is a 4200 RPM HD. You may be able to find a 5400 for about the same price if you shop around on e-bay.

 

I ordered a used bare replacement HDD. I'll see what happens when I get it and install it.
I suppose I'll boot from the recovery disk and see what happens.

..P..

 

Got a used identical HDD for $42 including shipping. Installed the HDD. Ran the recovery DVD with Windows XP. It loaded in about 20 minutes. No surprises. It seems to work fine -- boots quickly, very responsive, very happy. I haven't updated or reinstalled apps nor connected to internet yet.

I consider this thread resolved, fixed, successful. Thanks for the help and encouragement.