installing xp over vista

[jrpowell3]

I'm trying to install xp over factory installed vista. i've tried virtually
everything. when i try to boot off the xp cd, i just get an error after all
the drivers load. i tried making a new partition and installing xp on that,
again error when the drivers load. i tried finding a dos boot disk so i can
format the hard drive and then install xp, but i wasn't able to find one that
worked, so i'm stuck. any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[Richard in AZ]

| I'm trying to install xp over factory installed vista. i've tried virtually
| everything. when i try to boot off the xp cd, i just get an error after all
| the drivers load. i tried making a new partition and installing xp on that,
| again error when the drivers load. i tried finding a dos boot disk so i can
| format the hard drive and then install xp, but i wasn't able to find one that
| worked, so i'm stuck. any help would be greatly appreciated

You did not say what the brand of computer is that has Vista.
You did not say what version of XP installation disks you are using or where you got them.
But if your XP installation disk has drivers, it may be a "RESTORE" disk and I doubt that your Vista
machine will accept that version of XP or it drivers.
Did you even try to find out if there are XP drivers for your computer?
A true XP installation disk would have formatted the drive for you, you do not need or even want a
set of DOS boot disks.

By now, I hope you have a set of RESTORE disks for the Vista that came with your computer.

 

[David]

The driver problem could be if you are trying to install XP on an SATA drive
without any SATA drivers.

I don't know enough about this area of installation, but I do know that
during the bootup process, it will ask you if you want to use another
driver.

Perhaps someone can expand on my basic knowledge of this. (I know this when
I tried installing XP on my sons Vista machine and found out that it was due
to the SATA drivers... ended up abandoning it.)

--
Best regards,
Dave Colliver.
http://www.AshfieldFOCUS.com
~~
http://www.FOCUSPortals.com - Local franchises available

 

[M]

The driver problem could be if you are trying to install XP on an SATA drive
without any SATA drivers.

Not a problem with new motherboards. I just installed XP on a SATA drive
and didn't need to do anything different than if it were an IDE drive.

M

 

[HeyBub]

I'm trying to install xp over factory installed vista. i've tried
virtually everything. when i try to boot off the xp cd, i just get
an error after all the drivers load. i tried making a new partition
and installing xp on that, again error when the drivers load. i
tried finding a dos boot disk so i can format the hard drive and then
install xp, but i wasn't able to find one that worked, so i'm stuck.
any help would be greatly appreciated

You may not be able to install XP on a Vista-loaded machine.

The reason is that the machine may have hardware for which only Vista
drivers exist. That means you can't install XP, Win98, or anything else.

You should visit the web site of the manufacturer to discover whether
drivers for XP even exist. If the don't, you're probably screwed as far as
XP is concerned.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I'm trying to install xp over factory installed vista.

Well, that certainly can't be done. You'd need to format the hard
drive first.

i've tried virtually
everything.

Hardly. It sounds like you tried the same thing twice. Did you even
take the first, most fundamental, step of determining that WinXP can be
installed on that particular make and model computer, and that device
drivers were available from the manufacturer _before_ starting this?


when i try to boot off the xp cd, i just get an error after all

the drivers load.

And what's this mysterious error? Or is that a secret?

i tried making a new partition and installing xp on that,
again error when the drivers load.

And what's this mysterious error? Or is that a secret?

i tried finding a dos boot disk so i can
format the hard drive and then install xp, but i wasn't able to find one that
worked, so i'm stuck.

No DOS boot disk would be able to do anything with today's large hard
drives. And none is needed, as all legitimate WinXP installation CDs
are bootable.

There could be a couple possible adverse repercussions of which you
should be aware. First and foremost, if the specific computer model in
question was designed specifically for Vista, there may well be no
WinXP-specific device drivers available to make the computer's diverse
components work properly. Consult the computer's manufacturer about the
availability of device drivers. Secondly, removing an OEM-installed
operating system and replacing it with another will almost invariably
void any and all support agreements and, in rare cases, possibly even
the warranty. You would, at the very least, have to re-install Vista
before getting any support from the manufacturer. Again, consult the
computer's manufacturer for specifics. Thirdly, there will be the
additional cost involved in purchasing a WinXP license for this new
computer.

After backing up any data you wish to transfer to the new OS
installation, simply boot from the WinXP installation CD. You'll be
offered the opportunity to delete, create, and format partitions as part
of the installation process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of
boot devices in the PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)

HOW TO Install Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm

Then, assuming you were successful in obtaining WinXP-specific
device drivers so that the computer can be made to work with WinXP, the
backed up data can be restored and applications (those that are
WinXP-compatible, that is) re-installed.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

 

[David]

Another alternative that you could do is to use a virtual machine (VM) and
put xp on the VM.

MS do a VM but I don't know what it is called, and it will only support
Windows, but VMWare also do a virtual machine and you can install just about
any operating system on it.

--
Best regards,
Dave Colliver.
http://www.AshfieldFOCUS.com
~~
http://www.FOCUSPortals.com - Local franchises available

 

[Peter Foldes]

You cannot do that. You have to do a clean installation after a full clean format.

Format and then install XP