clean install

[Lancelot]

I bought a compaq presario with vista pre-installed and no CD supplied. I
cleaned the disk with killdisk and bought a dell reinstallation cd for xp
home sp2. The vendor didn't tell me it was going to be a dell cd and he
apparently thinks that it will work on other pcs too.

On booting with the dell cd i get a blue windows setup screen and a lot of
useful looking files are loaded. I do have the xp product code and I am
prepared to accept the licensing agreement, but neither of these 2 items are
asked for. After about 20 files are loaded comes an abort message complaining
about the hard drive and giving code STOP: 0x0000007B
(0xF78D2524,0xC0000034,0x00000000,0x00000000)

What do i do next? It worked alright when i killed the disk on my
fujiitsu-siemens and reinstalled xp with the f-s cd. But that time i used
another version of killdisk ...

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I bought a compaq presario with vista pre-installed and no CD
supplied. I cleaned the disk with killdisk and bought a dell
reinstallation cd for xp home sp2. The vendor didn't tell me it was
going to be a dell cd and he apparently thinks that it will work on
other pcs too.

On booting with the dell cd i get a blue windows setup screen and a
lot of useful looking files are loaded. I do have the xp product
code and I am prepared to accept the licensing agreement, but
neither of these 2 items are asked for. After about 20 files are
loaded comes an abort message complaining about the hard drive and
giving code STOP: 0x0000007B
(0xF78D2524,0xC0000034,0x00000000,0x00000000)

What do i do next? It worked alright when i killed the disk on my
fujiitsu-siemens and reinstalled xp with the f-s cd. But that time
i used another version of killdisk ...

First - you got rooked into purchasing a Dell CD. That is to be sold (bet
it says so on it) with a new Dell system.

Second - "7B" means you need the controller driver and/or you need to change
the hard disk controller in the BIOS to 'legacy' or the lowest operating
state it can make. If you have a floppy disk drive and floppy diskette, you
can get the driver from the manufacturer's web page (likely) and use it to
perform the install, pressing F6 at the correct time.

You have some keywords, some ideas so...

Now is a great time to point you to one of the easiest ways to find
information on problems you may be having and solutions others have found:

Search using Google!
http://www.google.com/
(How-to: http://www.google.com/intl/en/help/basics.html )

 

[Kelly]

A Dell CD won't ask you for the #'s.

Stop 7B
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/324103
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/883114

More:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...:+0x0000007B&btnG=Google+Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=
--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

 

[HeyBub]

I bought a compaq presario with vista pre-installed and no CD
supplied. I cleaned the disk with killdisk and bought a dell
reinstallation cd for xp home sp2. The vendor didn't tell me it was
going to be a dell cd and he apparently thinks that it will work on
other pcs too.

On booting with the dell cd i get a blue windows setup screen and a
lot of useful looking files are loaded. I do have the xp product code
and I am prepared to accept the licensing agreement, but neither of
these 2 items are asked for. After about 20 files are loaded comes an
abort message complaining about the hard drive and giving code STOP:
0x0000007B (0xF78D2524,0xC0000034,0x00000000,0x00000000)

What do i do next? It worked alright when i killed the disk on my
fujiitsu-siemens and reinstalled xp with the f-s cd. But that time i
used another version of killdisk ...

Why do you keep running "killdisk?" There is absolutely no need to wipe a
disk in preparation for an OS installation. By wiping the disk you have
destroyed the ability to restore the Vista operating system (contained in a
hidden partition on the hard drive).

Fact is, you may not be ABLE to install XP on a Vista-equipped computer due
to the absence of XP-required drivers for the hardware.

And now you can't restore Vista!

If you COULD restore Vista (and wait a couple of weeks), you could upgrade
to Win7 which has been described as a "Happy XP."

I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

You've totally screwed the pooch (including your Compaq warranty and any
service contracts).

 

[Lancelot]

You've totally screwed the pooch (including your Compaq warranty and any
service contracts).

Thank you PA Bear, Shenan Stanley, Kelly, HeyBub.

I have found a couple of drivers in HP Community, which may or may not work.
Since I don't have a floppy drive on the Presario laptop, I cannot load them.

HP no longer supports XP on Compaq consumer laptops. I don't have a hardware
problem and if I get one, let's see what the retailer will say to my
attorney. What I have is an assumed MS compatible computer without an OS.

So I want to buy XP on a CD and load it. The mail order company did not rook
me, they sent me what I ordered, which did not have a full description. They
offer that many packages, I just took the cheapest.

So what do I have to do to get XP on this computer? If I can't do it, how
will the computer shop do it?

 

[Malke]

Lancelot wrote:

So I want to buy XP on a CD and load it. The mail order company did not
rook me, they sent me what I ordered, which did not have a full
description. They offer that many packages, I just took the cheapest.

So what do I have to do to get XP on this computer? If I can't do it, how
will the computer shop do it?

You will get XP on your computer by either buying a full retail version or a
generic OEM version (not recommended in your case because of licensing
limitations). You will also need to have all the drivers and laptop software
(like power management) downloaded and available on USB thumb drive or CD-R
before you start.

If you don't want to do this, take the machine to a competent computer
repair shop. They will have a generic OEM installation disc and use the
Product Key from the COA sticker on your laptop. Or they may even have an
HP-branded installation disc. I have one from before HP stopped providing
anything except recovery discs so I'm sure other techs do, too.

Or even better, see if this site has recovery CDs for your specific model
laptop:

http://www.recovery-cds.com/

Caveat: I have not used the above site so can't make any comment on its
trusthworthiness. I heard about it somewhere and bookmarked it and then
never did anything with it.

Malke

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Lancelot wrote:

I bought a compaq presario with vista pre-installed and no CD supplied. I
cleaned the disk with killdisk and bought a dell reinstallation cd for xp
home sp2. The vendor didn't tell me it was going to be a dell cd and he
apparently thinks that it will work on other pcs too.

On booting with the dell cd i get a blue windows setup screen and a lot of
useful looking files are loaded. I do have the xp product code and I am
prepared to accept the licensing agreement, but neither of these 2 items
are
asked for. After about 20 files are loaded comes an abort message
complaining about the hard drive and giving code STOP: 0x0000007B
(0xF78D2524,0xC0000034,0x00000000,0x00000000)

What do i do next? It worked alright when i killed the disk on my
fujiitsu-siemens and reinstalled xp with the f-s cd. But that time i used
another version of killdisk ...

Thank you PA Bear, Shenan Stanley, Kelly, HeyBub.

I have found a couple of drivers in HP Community, which may or may not
work.
Since I don't have a floppy drive on the Presario laptop, I cannot load
them.

HP no longer supports XP on Compaq consumer laptops. I don't have a
hardware
problem and if I get one, let's see what the retailer will say to my
attorney. What I have is an assumed MS compatible computer without an OS.

So I want to buy XP on a CD and load it. The mail order company did not
rook
me, they sent me what I ordered, which did not have a full description.
They
offer that many packages, I just took the cheapest.

So what do I have to do to get XP on this computer? If I can't do it, how
will the computer shop do it?

Your assumption above is flawed: MS didn't sell you the computer, HP did.
And it's a Vista-compatible computer, not an MS-compatible computer.

See Malke's reply for possible resolutions but understand that your HP
warranty and any service contract are both void now.

PS: I see plenty of WinXP PCs still for sale at HP website; e.g.,
http://www.hp.com/sbso/buyguides/pg_notebooks/notebook-finder.html

 

[Lancelot]

Your assumption above is flawed: MS didn't sell you the computer, HP did.
And it's a Vista-compatible computer, not an MS-compatible computer.

See Malke's reply for possible resolutions but understand that your HP
warranty and any service contract are both void now.

PS: I see plenty of WinXP PCs still for sale at HP website; e.g.,
http://www.hp.com/sbso/buyguides/pg_notebooks/notebook-finder.html

Dear PA, you seem to be taking me for a fool. So let me explain to you how I
got into this what you seem to think is a mess.

- I have been using XP for years and I like it. Apart from the newly
purchased notebook, I have a HP Compaq and a Dell desktop PC at 2 home
locations, both running XP Home. My wife is about to take an Excel course
which is given using XP Home, like most PC courses in Switzerland. Almost the
only people using Vista here are those who have recently bought a cheap
laptop or notebook and didn't change the OS.

- I work for a company with more than 80,000 employees and we have about
50,000 HP desktops, laptops and notebooks, as well as HP screens, servers and
laser printers. We switched the PCs from Dell 2-3 years ago. It goes without
saying that all this stuff has to be able to run recent and near-future MS-OS
systems. We are still using XP-Professional as the company wide OS standard.
It was decided that it is not worthwhile to switch to Vista. Sufficient
benefits are just not there. Neither at work nor at home do I play a
significant amount of videos or films and nowhere games. Our computers at
work and in our homes are protected by the best Norton products (free for
employees).

- From this you can deduce that I am hardly a perfect customer for Vista.
However, MS has contrived that all volume (=low price) sales of PCs are
supplied with Vista pre-installed, at least in Switzerland. I paid approx.
$575 for my Compaq Presario Laptop which has 4 MB RAM and a 2.16 GHz
processor. At that price I don't complain about Vista, I change it. The
prices on the HP website which you directed me to are ridiculously high.

- This is the second time you told me that I have breached the product
warranty. I don't care. I am not going to pay the double for a notebook, just
so that I can choose the OS. The only risk I am taking is a hardware fault,
which I have never had in the past 30 years, but if it should happen within
12 months, I would try to claim against the retailer. I am insured for legal
expenses.

- Let me make it clear that I have a high regard for both MS and HP, both on
the grounds of customer loyalty through having used their excellent products
for the last nearly 30 years and on the grounds of their innovation and
competitiveness in the computing industry. I was one of the first Compaq
portable users in 1983 and I expect an equivalent high standard now. If HP
brings Compaq computers onto the market which are not MS compatible, it can
say goodbye to its reputation.

Regards, Lancelot

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

If you wanted a new PC running WinXP, you should have bought a computer with
WinXP installed (possibly downgraded by the OEM from Vista...which probably
would have entitled you to a free Win7 upgrade after restoring Vista).

Yes, such PCs do tend to cost more.

Good luck to you and yours.


Lancelot wrote:

 

[Daave]

I bought a compaq presario with vista pre-installed and no CD
supplied. I cleaned the disk with killdisk and bought a dell
reinstallation cd for xp home sp2. The vendor didn't tell me it was
going to be a dell cd and he apparently thinks that it will work on
other pcs too.

On booting with the dell cd i get a blue windows setup screen and a
lot of useful looking files are loaded. I do have the xp product code
and I am prepared to accept the licensing agreement, but neither of
these 2 items are asked for. After about 20 files are loaded comes an
abort message complaining about the hard drive and giving code STOP:
0x0000007B (0xF78D2524,0xC0000034,0x00000000,0x00000000)

What do i do next? It worked alright when i killed the disk on my
fujiitsu-siemens and reinstalled xp with the f-s cd. But that time i
used another version of killdisk ...

Unless you can somehow "hack" the Dell XP CD (and I am not advocating
this!), it won't work on non-Dell PCs because of its SLP (system-locked
preinstallation) feature. At the very least, you really need to purchase
a generic OEM XP Home installation CD:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116511

(I sure hope you didn't pay too much for that Dell XP CD!)

The CD from the Newegg link will work just fine (with the one proviso
listed below) but note that the license is *non-transferrable*. That is,
once you install it on the Preario, using the unique product key, you
are not permitted to use it on any other PC. If you want to purchase a
CD that *is* transferreable (a Retail CD), it will cost you more, and
you will have to make sure you buy it from a reputable vendor because
these CDs are no longer manufactured.

Finally (the proviso), what is the model number of the Presario? If HP
doesn't make XP-compatible drivers available for its hardware
components, you won't be able to run XP on it. You should be able to get
this information from the support section of the HP Web site.

 

[Lancelot]

Unless you can somehow "hack" the Dell XP CD (and I am not advocating
this!), it won't work on non-Dell PCs because of its SLP (system-locked
preinstallation) feature. At the very least, you really need to purchase
a generic OEM XP Home installation CD:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116511

(I sure hope you didn't pay too much for that Dell XP CD!)

The CD from the Newegg link will work just fine (with the one proviso
listed below) but note that the license is *non-transferrable*. That is,
once you install it on the Preario, using the unique product key, you
are not permitted to use it on any other PC. If you want to purchase a
CD that *is* transferreable (a Retail CD), it will cost you more, and
you will have to make sure you buy it from a reputable vendor because
these CDs are no longer manufactured.

Finally (the proviso), what is the model number of the Presario? If HP
doesn't make XP-compatible drivers available for its hardware
components, you won't be able to run XP on it. You should be able to get
this information from the support section of the HP Web site.

Thank you Daave.

HP does not make XP drivers for its Compaq Presario Notebooks. I am very
disappointed in this lack of customer support on the part of HP Compaq, which
is obviously a deliberate marketing decision. I am going to warn all
potential customers I meet to avoid Compaq products.

I already found offers from third parties to supply me with the XP drivers.
However, I am not going to take more risks and I will ask a professional to
get the drivers and install XP for me. The cost of the Dell Recovery disk was
$40 because I took the cheapest available. I reckon that my further costs
will be about $200-$300, which will bring the total investment up to
$800-$900.

That doesn't count my time, but hopefully it will save all the fooling
around I would have had with Vista. Thanks to all you guys and this is a very
good facility hosted by MS. No thanks to HP.

Regards and so long, Lancelot

 

[Daave]

Thank you Daave.

HP does not make XP drivers for its Compaq Presario Notebooks. I am
very disappointed in this lack of customer support on the part of HP
Compaq, which is obviously a deliberate marketing decision. I am
going to warn all potential customers I meet to avoid Compaq products.

I already found offers from third parties to supply me with the XP
drivers. However, I am not going to take more risks and I will ask a
professional to get the drivers and install XP for me.

Offers from third parties for XP drivers that don't officially exist?
Sounds fishy to me. Then again, perhaps you can locate the XP drivers
(again, if they exist) for specific hardware components by going
directly to the manufacturers.

You never did give the model number of this Presario. It is quite
possible that XP drivers don't exist, which means you won't be able to
run XP on it. One last ditch measure you can try is to post to an HP
forum or a laptop forum. Perhaps someone with your model number has done
all the leg work and can point you to all the different sources you
need.

The cost of
the Dell Recovery disk was $40 because I took the cheapest available.

Cheap perhaps, but still a wasted expenditure. Always research first!
This newsgroup would have given you good advice.

I reckon that my further costs will be about $200-$300, which will
bring the total investment up to $800-$900.

Suddenly, PA Bear's advice doesn't seem so bad...

If you decide to run Vista on your laptop after all, the warranty should
still be fine -- provided that you return your Presario to its original
fresh-from-the-factory condition. Hopefully the procedure doesn't
involve using a hidden recovery partition which apparently has been
erased!

That doesn't count my time, but hopefully it will save all the fooling
around I would have had with Vista. Thanks to all you guys and this
is a very good facility hosted by MS. No thanks to HP.

Regards and so long, Lancelot

YW and good luck.

 

[Patrick Keenan]

Thank you Daave.

HP does not make XP drivers for its Compaq Presario Notebooks. I am very
disappointed in this lack of customer support on the part of HP Compaq,
which
is obviously a deliberate marketing decision. I am going to warn all
potential customers I meet to avoid Compaq products.

I already found offers from third parties to supply me with the XP
drivers.
However, I am not going to take more risks and I will ask a professional
to
get the drivers and install XP for me. The cost of the Dell Recovery disk
was
$40 because I took the cheapest available. I reckon that my further costs
will be about $200-$300, which will bring the total investment up to
$800-$900.

That doesn't count my time, but hopefully it will save all the fooling
around I would have had with Vista. Thanks to all you guys and this is a
very
good facility hosted by MS. No thanks to HP.

Regards and so long, Lancelot

Driver development isn't cheap, and it's normally only a cost center. I
don't think you'll find any system manufacturer that hasn't made similar
decisions.

Systems targeted to consumers aren't likely to generate a lot of call for XP
drivers. That's why, if you need XP, you look for systems targeted to
*business* use. Then, it's often easy to get XP drivers; many businesses
could not migrate to Vista for legacy compatibility reasons.