Install Windows XP from external USB cdrom drive on Dell notebook

[Z Man]

I have a recent Dell notebook computer that does not have an internal cdrom
drive. My hard drive went bad. I purchased a new hard drive, plus a retail
copy of Windows XP. I am experiencing difficulty in booting to the external
USB cdrom drive to install Windows. How can I boot to the external USB cdrom
drive? Alternatively, if I cannot boot to the external cdrom drive, how do I
go about installing Windows on my brand new hard drive?

 

[Dave B.]

Go into BIOS setup (usually F2 on a Dell) and check the boot order and see
if you can select external USB device or something similar.

 

[Frank]

Z Man:
Also make sure that Legacy USB devices is enabled in the BIOS.
If these features are not available. Just place your new HDD into
any bare boned PC and install XP. Then place it into your laptop
and do a __repair install__. Make sure that you go to the dell
web page and download all the pertinent drivers for your make and
model.