Windows xp on new computer + slave drive problems

[Spencer]

Okay, so i don't know if this is the right place to post this but i am
having a problem. I just got my brothers old custom desktop as he got a lap
top a while ago and i planned on taking my harddives from my compq presario
and putting them in that computer and also add my 1gb of ram to his 512mb to
make 1.5gb, basically just upgrade my computer with all of his stuff and an
extra hard drive for some space Smile. My plan was to have my harddrives as
the Master then the other one as slave (like it was before in my old
computer) and then Master hard drive turn into another slave. So i made sure
the computer worked without my hard drives in and his hard drive as the only
one in there and it worked fine. then i added mine to it which are IDE and
set the jumpers so that my first one was master then my second one was the
first slave, and this is where the first problem occured. His hard drive used
a sata cable so i didnt know how to set it as a slave drive. so i plugged it
in anyway and then started the comp. it worked fine except it thought the
sata drive ( my brothers) was the master and my other two were slaves. So i
tried unplugging his and just using my original two just like it was in my
old computer and it just wouldn't start! it got to the part where it says
windows and has the loading bar with the 3 little blue squares going by and
then just restarted. I tried it again about 5 times, unplugged the drives and
put them back in then after several failed attempts i had no idea what was
wrong with it. So i just put the sata drive back in and now im just workin
with it like that (but i would rather not have to as i cant access all the
things that were in my documents and desktop ( there might be a way but as of
right now i do not know it.) so about an hour later my brother came in the
room with the disc that came with that computer and on the package it said
Windows XP for Compaq and HP only. So he thinks the reason my drive wont work
on that computer is that since the computer that it was installed on was a
compaw presario, and this one was just a custom computer thats why it wont
runas the master drive. I have no other ideas to why it wont work, but im
more worried about the fact that the drive wont act as the master even
without the sata one in more than i am worrying about how to make the sata
act as a slave drive because even if i do that first it still wont work until
i solver the first problem. But if anyone knows the answer to any of these
problems please reply or email me at (e-mail address removed)

 

[David B.]

You cannot take a hard drive running XP from one PC and stick it in an
entirely different PC and expect it to run, 90% of the time it will not,
this is due to the differences in the motherboard chipset (specifically the
hard drive controller) on the 2 boards. In order to get your old drive
working in the new system you'd need to perform a repair installation using
an XP OEM disk, a recovery disk that shipped with the PC will usually not
work.
Also there is no master/slave for SATA, they are one drive per connection.

 

[Spencer]

You cannot take a hard drive running XP from one PC and stick it in an
entirely different PC and expect it to run, 90% of the time it will not,
this is due to the differences in the motherboard chipset (specifically the
hard drive controller) on the 2 boards. In order to get your old drive
working in the new system you'd need to perform a repair installation using
an XP OEM disk, a recovery disk that shipped with the PC will usually not
work.
Also there is no master/slave for SATA, they are one drive per connection.

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if there is no slave for sata then how do you tell the pc to run the operating system off of an old IDE drive? Or does the SATA HAVE to be the one that is running the OS?

 

[Spencer]

k well sorry about thaat really long message repeating everything there, i
didnt think it would do that, and now i cant edit it :\ anyway where can i
get this XP OEM disk?

 

[David B.]

You PC BIOS should have a setting somewhere in the boot options to specify
which hard drive is the primary boot drive, regardless of whether it's SATA
or IDE

 

[David B.]

You'd have to purchase it with a new license or find someone that has one
and borrow it, and it must be the same version as the version of XP that's
already installed, XP Home, Pro, Media Center, etc.

 

[Nepatsfan]

k well sorry about thaat really long message repeating everything there, i
didnt think it would do that, and now i cant edit it :\ anyway where can i
get this XP OEM disk?

You said earlier that the computer you're trying to move your hard drives to is
your brother's custom desktop. How did he install XP on it originally? Use that
CD to perform a repair installation. Take a look at this web site for more info.

Courtesy of Michael Stevens, MS-MVP
How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

Also, before you do anything else, I'd suggest you back up all of your important
files. And test your backup to make sure the files can be restored if something
goes wrong.

Good luck

Nepatsfan

 

[Spencer]

So i could try just reinstalling windows on my old harddrive that i want to
be the master with the cd that my brother used to install windows in his
drive when he first got the computer?

 

[Nepatsfan]

So i could try just reinstalling windows on my old harddrive that i want to
be the master with the cd that my brother used to install windows in his
drive when he first got the computer?

It has to be a repair installation. Did you take a look at the web site I
included in my earlier response? Here's the condensed version.

Booting with your old hard drives in your old computer, backup your important
files, preferably to CDs or DVDs. Don't do anything else until you're satisfied
that you can recover these files if something goes wrong.

Next, move your old hard drives to your brother's computer. Remove or disconnect
the SATA drive. Boot the computer and enter the BIOS setup program. This usually
involves hitting a key such as DEL or F2. Look on the startup screen for a hint
as to what key gets you into the Setup program. Once there, configure the boot
options so the CD drive is listed as the first device. Restart the computer and
hit a key when asked if you want to boot from the CD.

When the XP installation process gets to this screen, hit the Enter key.

http://www.theeldergeek.com/images/XP Pro Setup Graphic/CC.gif

Hit the F8 key at the next screen.
You should then see a screen which list your old XP installation and gives you
the option of hitting the R key to repair that installation.

http://www.microsoft.com/library/media/1033/windowsxp/images/using/setup/support/68224press-r.gif

If you don't see this screen, stop the process by hitting the F3 key.

Here's another web site you may find helpful. While it's written for XP Pro, the
procedure is basically the same if you're trying to repair XP Home Edition.

Microsoft's Windows XP Professional (Pro) Repair Install step by step
http://www.windowsxpprofessional.windowsreinstall.com/installxpcdrepair/indexfullpage.htm

Finally, if all this seems a bit overwhelming, seek the help of a local
professional computer repair shop. And I'm not talking about the Geek Squad.

Good luck

Nepatsfan

 

[Spencer]

Thank you very much for all of this information, when i get the time i will
definatley try all those steps you said and read all of the websites you gave
me and hopefully it will work

 

[Spencer]

But if i do do this repair installation does it erase all of my data anyway
and that's why i have to back it up? Or is backing it up just in case
something goes wrong?

 

[Nepatsfan]

But if i do do this repair installation does it erase all of my data anyway
and that's why i have to back it up? Or is backing it up just in case
something goes wrong?

That's exactly why you back up your data. It's a safeguard in case something
goes wrong. A repair installation should preserve your data as well as the
programs that are installed on your old hard drive. But as always, you should be
prepared for the worst case scenario, that being having to perform a clean
installation of XP.

Here are some other things you should keep in mind. First, you may have to
install the latest drivers for some of the hardware devices after completing the
repair installation. Check Device Manager (Start -> Run -> devmgmt.msc) and look
for any problem devices. Also, you should visit the Windows Update site and
download any missing updates and patches.

Finally, the version of XP on the CD you're using to do the repair must be the
same as the version installed on your old computer. Bottom line, if you had XP
Home Edition on your old computer, the CD you use to do the repair has to be an
XP Home Edition installation CD.

Good luck

Nepatsfan

 

[Spencer]

okay, because if it 100% for sure DID delete it all then i wouldn't even
bother trying, because i already have all of the data, it's just that some
things that were in like My Documents and Desktop and stuff i cant access for
some reason with the new one as the master drive, but if there is a chance
that it will be like it used to then i will definatly back up my data and try
it out