Reinstalling XP

[bill]

I think it is time to format and reinstall my Win XP Home Edit. Day after
day, I have to restart system because of error notice, like 4-6x a day.

My question is there any thing I should be aware of first? Will MSFT need a
call before? My CD is an upgrade version so I guess I will have to install
my 98 first.

Tks for any tips you all might have.


bw

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I think it is time to format and reinstall my Win XP Home Edit. Day after
day, I have to restart system because of error notice, like 4-6x a day.

My question is there any thing I should be aware of first? Will MSFT need a
call before? My CD is an upgrade version so I guess I will have to install
my 98 first.

Tks for any tips you all might have.


bw

No, you do not need to install Win98 first. Upgrade versions
will ask for the qualifying media (i.e. your Win98 CD) during
the installation process.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I think it is time to format and reinstall my Win XP Home Edit.

Not necessarily, and not usually.

Day after
day, I have to restart system because of error notice, like 4-6x a day.

Wouldn't it be simpler just to fix the problem(s) being reported in the
error messages? After all, reinstalling the OS won't have any affect on
problems caused by defective hardware, for example.

My question is there any thing I should be aware of first?

Back up any data you wish to preserve. Make sure that you have any
necessary device drivers readily available before starting. Don't
connect the newly installed OS to the Internet until _after_ you've
installed an anti-virus application and enabled a firewall.

Will MSFT need a
call before?

No, of course not.

My CD is an upgrade version so I guess I will have to install
my 98 first.

Again, not necessarily. It's quite possible to perform a clean
installation using the WinXP Upgrade CD, provided you have the true
installation CD for the earlier OS.

Simply boot from the WinXP Upgrade CD. You'll be offered the
opportunity to delete, create, and format partitions as part of the
installation process. The Upgrade CD checks to see if a qualifying OS
is installed, and, if it finds none, it asks you to insert the
installation media (CD) of that OS. Unfortunately, an OEM
"Recovery/Restore" CD will not work for this purpose; you must have a
true installation CD, complete with the "\Win98" folder and *.cab files.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



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

 

[Ron Martell]

I think it is time to format and reinstall my Win XP Home Edit. Day after
day, I have to restart system because of error notice, like 4-6x a day.

My question is there any thing I should be aware of first? Will MSFT need a
call before? My CD is an upgrade version so I guess I will have to install
my 98 first.

Tks for any tips you all might have.

Why not post the detailed information about the error message back
here and see if there is a fix for it?

Some errors in the category you describe are caused by hardware faults
(defective RAM, failing hard drive, etc etc etc) and reinstalling
Windows will not do anything about this.

Other errors in this category are caused by malware (viruses, trojans,
spyware, etc.) and if you reinstall Windows and continue your same
usage habits you are very likely to get reinfested with the same or
similar malware.

Still other errors in this category are caused by misbehaving
application programs and/or device drivers. If you reinstall
Windows, then install the same applications as you now have and
connect up the same hardware accessories as you now have connected you
are almost certain to encounter these exact same errors again.

Finally, a few (very very few) errors of this instance are caused by a
messed up Windows installation. Reinstalling Windows is one way of
fixing these problems, but it is probably the worst possible choice in
this regard, at least not without having tried other options first.

Good luck

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP (1997 - 2006)
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca
Syberfix Remote Computer Repair

"Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference
has never been in bed with a mosquito."

 

[Guest]

Find out what the problem is first, did you write down the blue screen error???
Does it give a blue screen?
What is the error it displays

 

[bill]

Tks Pegasus, Bruce, Ron and Sgopus, will try posting error msg to this fine
group. BTW, I can save the screen image but it is in a file, what is best
way to post the error image to a newsgroup?

tks again all


bill

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Tks Pegasus, Bruce, Ron and Sgopus, will try posting error msg to this fine
group. BTW, I can save the screen image but it is in a file, what is best
way to post the error image to a newsgroup?

It's "best" not to post any images to this newsgroup; simply quote the
error message.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



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

 

[bill]

It's "best" not to post any images to this newsgroup; simply quote the
error message.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



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

Problem is the detail page on error msg is jam full of codes that it would
hours to copy it all, can I save it to text or similar?
tks Bruce

bw

 

[Andy]

Problem is the detail page on error msg is jam full of codes that it would
hours to copy it all, can I save it to text or similar?
tks Bruce

bw

Uploaded it to tinypic.com and provide a link to it.

 

[Daave]

Tks Pegasus, Bruce, Ron and Sgopus, will try posting error msg to this
fine group. BTW, I can save the screen image but it is in a file,
what is best way to post the error image to a newsgroup?

Bill, since Gerry hasn't posted yet, the following is what he would
normally
say in this sort of situation:

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Can you please post copies of all Warning and Error Reports appearing
in the System and Application logs of Event Viewer during the 5 minutes
before the last stop error occurred.

You can access Event Viewer by selecting Start, Administrative Tools,
and
Event Viewer. When researching the meaning of the error, information
regarding Event ID, Source and Description are important.

HOW TO: View and Manage Event Logs in Event Viewer in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308427&sd=tech

Part of the Description of the error will include a link, which you
should
double click for further information. You can copy using copy and paste.
Often the link will, however, say there is no further information.
http://go.microsoft.com/fw.link/events.asp
(Please note the hyperlink above is for illustration purposes only)

A tip for posting copies of Error Reports! Run Event Viewer and double
click
on the error you want to copy. In the window, which appears is a button
resembling two pages. Double click the button and close Event Viewer.
Now
start your message (email) and do a paste into the body of the message.
This
will paste the info from the Event Viewer Error Report complete with
links
into the message. Make sure this is the first paste after exiting from
Event
Viewer.

 

[Daave]

(Gerry wrote
You can access Event Viewer by selecting Start, Administrative Tools,
and Event Viewer.

Actually, you may need to do the following:

Start > Control Panel > Performance and Maintenance > Administrative
Tools > Event Viewer