P4C800-E Deluxe -- Can't install Windows XP Pro

[wot_fan]

I am trying to re-install Widows XP Professional and having a problem.
Every time I try, the installation hangs early on when XP is detecting
my hardware. The floppy drive light turns on and stays on.

I have tried the following:
-Disabling and disconnecting the floppy.
-Booting off the installation cd (works on my 3 other machines).
-Booting from installation floppies (doesn't get past the first
floppy).
-Starting the install from inside my existing XP with the "copy all
files to hard drive" option enabled.

Since the CD works on other machines and I tried the floppies as well,
I have to believe it isn't the media. I have disconnected almost all
of the optional hardware, so I am focusing on the motherboard now
(maybe a bios setting?).

Here are my system specs:
P4C800E-Deluxe Motherboard w/ latest firmware (1017).
Intel P4 3.2Ghz w/512k cache.
2 x Corsair PC3200 Paired 512 Mb DDRAM (Total of 2Gb).
Western Digital 250Gb SATA w/ 8MB Cache Hard Drive.
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128Mb Video Card.
LiteOn 16x DVD-Rom.
Pioneer DVR-107 DVD Burner.
Atech Internal USB Digital Card Reader/Writer.
Thermaltake Xaser III Super Tower Case.
Enermax 460W Power Supply.
Sony MPF920 Floppy Drive.
Viewsonic 17" LCD Display Model VP171B.
Maxtor 300Gb external USB hard drive (Disconnected for install).
40Gb iPod connected via Firewire (Disconnected for install).

Any thoughts/comments/ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
wot_fan

 

[Paul]

I am trying to re-install Widows XP Professional and having a problem.
Every time I try, the installation hangs early on when XP is detecting
my hardware. The floppy drive light turns on and stays on.

I have tried the following:
-Disabling and disconnecting the floppy.
-Booting off the installation cd (works on my 3 other machines).
-Booting from installation floppies (doesn't get past the first
floppy).
-Starting the install from inside my existing XP with the "copy all
files to hard drive" option enabled.

Since the CD works on other machines and I tried the floppies as well,
I have to believe it isn't the media. I have disconnected almost all
of the optional hardware, so I am focusing on the motherboard now
(maybe a bios setting?).

Here are my system specs:
P4C800E-Deluxe Motherboard w/ latest firmware (1017).
Intel P4 3.2Ghz w/512k cache.
2 x Corsair PC3200 Paired 512 Mb DDRAM (Total of 2Gb).
Western Digital 250Gb SATA w/ 8MB Cache Hard Drive.
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128Mb Video Card.
LiteOn 16x DVD-Rom.
Pioneer DVR-107 DVD Burner.
Atech Internal USB Digital Card Reader/Writer.
Thermaltake Xaser III Super Tower Case.
Enermax 460W Power Supply.
Sony MPF920 Floppy Drive.
Viewsonic 17" LCD Display Model VP171B.
Maxtor 300Gb external USB hard drive (Disconnected for install).
40Gb iPod connected via Firewire (Disconnected for install).

Any thoughts/comments/ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
wot_fan

The latest BIOS is not necessarily the greatest one.

http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?p=769912&postcount=46

The whole thread is here:
http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67479

Since your processor is not a Prescott, you have more BIOS
options, according to the cpusupport page:

http://www.asus.com.tw/support/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx

Verify the version of BIOS needed for your CPU before
flashing the BIOS. Perhaps going back to 1014 will help
with your install problem. Read any warnings that come
with the BIOS downloads on the download web page. Returning
to default conditions before flashing the BIOS is a good idea,
if your motherboard is overclocked to the bleeding edge.

Paul

 

[wot_fan]

The latest BIOS is not necessarily the greatest one.

http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?p=769912&postcount=46

The whole thread is here:
http://www.abxzone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67479

Since your processor is not a Prescott, you have more BIOS
options, according to the cpusupport page:

http://www.asus.com.tw/support/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx

Verify the version of BIOS needed for your CPU before
flashing the BIOS. Perhaps going back to 1014 will help
with your install problem. Read any warnings that come
with the BIOS downloads on the download web page. Returning
to default conditions before flashing the BIOS is a good idea,
if your motherboard is overclocked to the bleeding edge.

Paul

Thanks for info Paul. I will check out the links you provided. I
really appreciate you taking the time to help .

wot_fan

 

[Michael S.]

wot_fan--Paul always comes up with great ideas. Some other ideas--did you
once successfully install XP since this is a "reinstall" or did it fail? I
agree with Paul to go back to an earlier BIOS. However, I am using ver 1016
and also the same mobo and CPU and two sticks of Corsair XPS DIMMs along
with two S-ATA drives and the hardware nor XP install even gave me a burp
(but the conflict with Norton and the Audigy 2ZS Platinum sound card caused
me to do three virgin XP installs to try to resolve a &^%$ software
conflict). Suggest that you not use EZ Flash if you change your BIOS but
use the Afudos BIOS Update tool--some of the later BIOSs require version
2.07 update tool if you do this method. This method involves using a boot
floppy with the BIOS update files on it. After reading info at
www.badflash.com, I am a little gunshy about routine flashing of the BIOS
just to get the latest and greatest version.

Does the POST give you any errors when you boot up?

Wonder about using just two of the four DIMMs to see if that does any
good--there is a small potential for a bad stick of memory.

Good luck

MikeSp
----------------------

 

[wot_fan]

Hi MikeSp,

I built this machine at the end of May and haven't had any problems
with it until now. Yesterday I installed SP2 for XP. After that, my
system would hang during boot up. The only way I could get the
machine to boot was in safe mode.

I uninstalled SP2 and everything seems to be back to the way it was.
I have been using a bunch of trialware software lately and just
figured that one of them was the cause of my SP2 problem. I decided
to start with a fresh install of XP and that is when my problems
really started.

As far as flashing the bios, that was one of the first things I tried.
I did use the Afudos utility you recommended. Unfortunately, I
assumed that the latest bios would be the best. Silly me . It
looks like I may be flashing again tonight.

I don't get any errors during the POST. It seems like the XP install
is trying to identify a piece of hardware and can't. I would have
thought that XP would have timed out/given up and moved on. I left
the machine sit for almost 30 minutes without a change so I guess that
there isn't a watchdog timer.

I will try removing 2 of my memory DIMMs, but I think they are OK. My
machine has always been very stable and I have used several
applications that have used almost all of the 2Gb (like 3D Studio
Max). At this point I am willing to try anything and everything to
figure this out.

Since I have been at work, I realized that I didn't disconnect the
internal usb card reader in any of my attempts. I wonder if XP's
install doesn't like it for some reason. It works fine in my existing
installation.

When I get home tonight I will look over the info Paul provided and
try disconnecting the card reader as well as removing memory. I will
let you know how it goes.

Thanks for the help,
wot_fan

PS I emailed Asus tech support with the same info I posted here.
Below is their response. I am sure glad this NG exists. I think the
language barrier would have been a major problem.

Dear Friend :
Thank you for contacting ASUS Customer Service.
My name is Leon and I would be assisting you today.

If having any problems, please don't hesitate to let me know. Let's
discuss this issue together.
Thank you for using ASUS products and services!

well, leave 2 of the GND and use then one by one. i mean .please
connect them such as 1 ,2, 3, 4 ,but not 1 ,2 ,4, make a try to see if
could solve the problem

Thank you for using ASUS products and services!
ASUS Customer Service Center (Shanghai , China)
If you have any suggestion or complaints about our tech support
service, please send your valuable info to (e-mail address removed) , we
arrange specilists to handle relative issue, your suggestion may give
us more elicitation to serve our customers much better.

leon

 

[wot_fan]

Well my problem is fixed. My card reader was the source of my
difficulties. I disconnected it and the installation progressed as it
should. I decided to hold off on a new install and try SP2 again
without the card reader. It appears to have worked. For whatever
reason XP no longer likes my card reader. I can live with that .

Thanks again Paul and MikeSp for your help.

Peace,
wot_fan

 

[Ender]

Any thoughts/comments/ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
wot_fan

Sorry you are having difficulty with the reinstall of XP. I suspect I
would try the following if I ran into the same issue:

I would disable all the onboard peripheral stuff in the bios (I/O
devices, audio, USB controllers and whatever else I did not need for
the basic install) and go in with just the video card, boot hard
drive, and cdrom.

Definitely unplug any USB peripherals.

I would attempt an OS load from the bootable XP cd to see if it will
succeed in this configuration

If that is a no go, I would then load the setup defaults in the bios
and try again to install from the bootable cd

If the above does not work, I would underclock the cpu fsb and memory
bus and go to a minimal memory configuration (one module) just for the
install. Definitely check the AGP bus setting to assure it is
correct. Then give it another shot with no peripheral devices
enabled.

If the above fails again I would be tempted to bump the CPU voltage up
slightly in the bios and give it another shot.

You certainly have a nice collection of components, I don't know why
it would give you problems. However, I will say that when I set up my
P4C800E Deluxe I had all kinds of problems with my XP install.
Corrupt files and crazy stuff. It turned out that my trusty old
Plextor cd-r which I have overworked for years was dying and
generating read errors. When I subbed in a different cdrom it all
went perfectly. Incidentally my board came with 1016.11 bios and it
has given me no issues.

As for this: "well, leave 2 of the GND and use then one by one. i
mean .please connect them such as 1 ,2, 3, 4 ,but not 1 ,2 ,4, make a
try to see if could solve the problem" I have no clue what Leon is
trying to tell you! Strange stuff!

Good luck!

Ender






"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke