Can't reinstall XP - boot from disk won't recoginze hard drive

[Guest]

I currently have XP home, and i am trying to reformat and install XP pro.
However when i try to reformat in windows, it says the hard drive is in use.
So i booted from the XP pro disc, but cannot find my hard drive, so i cannot
install it. anyone know what's up?

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I currently have XP home, and i am trying to reformat and install XP
pro. However when i try to reformat in windows, it says the hard
drive is in use. So i booted from the XP pro disc, but cannot find my
hard drive, so i cannot install it. anyone know what's up?

You can't format the Windows drive from within Windows, since that would
leave Windows without a leg to stand on.

Just boot from the Windows XP CD (change the BIOS boot order if necessary to
accomplish this) and follow the prompts for a clean installation (delete the
existing partition by pressing "D" when prompted, then create a new one).

You can find detailed instructions here:
http://michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

or here http://windowsxp.mvps.org/XPClean.htm

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

However, why do you want to format and do a clean installation? The upgrade
from Home to Professional is the easiest and most likely successful of all
possible upgrades. My recommendation is to at least try the upgrade, since
it's much easier than a clean installation. You can always change your mind
and reinstall cleanly if problems develop.