Dimension 4100 Resource CD

It's usually impossible to get a replacement CD more than 30 days or so after the system was originally purchased, but you don't really need it for what you want to do anyway, as newer versions (in many instances) of all the drivers and utilities are available for download via the Product Support tab above.  Click that, then choose Downloads.  Enter a Service Tag, then Download Category (choose "All"), operating system and OS language, click "Submit," and anything that's available for your model will show up.  You need to know which components are installed on your particular system, but the Current System Configuration tool (available by clicking on Product Support) should help you figure all that out, if you don't still have your system invoice, which also details the installed components.

Thanks for that.   I do see all of the hardware drivers located on the site.   I think I can figure out which ones I need after using the Current System Configuration tool.   How do I reinstall the operating system though, don't I need a disk for that or is that on another CD from Dell?

If you'll provide some information regarding which operating system you want to reinstall (always a good thing to include in any initial post regarding a problem), I can point you to a direct link for that sort of thing.  The operating system CD was (or should have been, at any rate) included with the rest of the software you received with the system.

Sorry, should have included this earlier.   I would like to reinstall Windows XP.   I don't think I have the CD for this either anymore.  Am I able to get a new one of these?

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@danhiggins wrote:
I don't think I have the CD for this either anymore.  Am I able to get a new one of these?

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Not without buying one from the vendor of your choice.  Assuming you're referring to Windows XP Pro (there's a price difference in the versions, too) the OEM version from the link below is about the best deal going that I'm aware of, and will work fine for your purposes.

http://www.buycheapsoftware.com/ms_products.asp?subcategory=24

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@Flooby wrote:

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@danhiggins wrote:
I don't think I have the CD for this either anymore.  Am I able to get a new one of these?

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Not without buying one from the vendor of your choice.  Assuming you're referring to Windows XP Pro (there's a price difference in the versions, too) the OEM version from the link below is about the best deal going that I'm aware of, and will work fine for your purposes.

http://www.buycheapsoftware.com/ms_products.asp?subcategory=24

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For as long as you own the system, Dell will replace the OS Media so long as what you're wanting replace is what originally shipped with the system (ie. you want or need to reinstall Windows 98, but can't find your CD - Dell can send you one - they do have stock).  If, however, you got the free Windows XP Upgrade, and you've since lost the XP Upgrade CD - Dell can't help you.  That upgrade CD didn't come from Dell, and was fulfilled from an entirely different company.

If a Tech Rep gives you any problems over this, tell them they'd better double-check their policies before you escalate - it's in there, believe me.

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@TheGreyOne wrote:

For as long as you own the system, Dell will replace the OS Media so long as what you're wanting replace is what originally shipped with the system (ie. you want or need to reinstall Windows 98, but can't find your CD - Dell can send you one -

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To clarify the official Dell position on replacement of lost operating system CDs please see this post and the next one in that thread.

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@TheGreyOne wrote:

For as long as you own the system, Dell will replace the OS Media so long as what you're wanting replace is what originally shipped with the system (ie. you want or need to reinstall Windows 98, but can't find your CD - Dell can send you one - they do have stock).  If, however, you got the free Windows XP Upgrade, and you've since lost the XP Upgrade CD - Dell can't help you.  That upgrade CD didn't come from Dell, and was fulfilled from an entirely different company.

If a Tech Rep gives you any problems over this, tell them they'd better double-check their policies before you escalate - it's in there, believe me.

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With all due respect, the Customer Care conferences are bursting at the seams with reports to the contrary, dating back to at least 1999.  While this may be published policy somewhere, it has no more been a regular practice than has the Boston Red Sox winning the World Series.  Countless reports of refusals on the part of reps to even offer "escalation" litter those boards, and they're not just from naive rookies, either.  I personally know of one small business customer who was promised a replacement CD by three different representatives in the space of as many days.  When none arrived and the customer called in yet again, the fourth representative accused the customer of lying about what the others had promised, and 6 months later, the customer is still waiting for the fabled CD to arrive.  Actually, he's not really waiting - he found the original in the mean time, but none of the people who promised him replacements knew that.  The unfortunate result of this incident is that he's already notified his service contractor (me) that he'll be considering other brands in the future, for the sole reason that he didn't receive what he was promised.

I know of a few instances where damaged CDs which were discovered that way immediately upon receipt of a system, and promptly reported as such have been replaced.  I've heard of a few actually being replaced past the 30 day mark, but I have yet to see even a scintilla of evidence that this is regular practice, "escalation" or not.  The question has been asked (and most often ignored, at least by company representatives) here more times than you or I can count, as a quick search of this forum will confirm.  There are lots of rumors and claims from other customers about what "might" happen if one loses or damages an OS CD, but verifiable reports of anyone actually receiving a replacement (regardless of whether it was a like version for like version or not) are few and far between, and I find it somewhat amusing that the only folks making any regular claims to the contrary are predominantly persons without any readily discernible affiliation (i.e., a little " DELL - John Doe" ID) with the company.

Certainly, there are more than a few instances where replacement of an OS CD may not be warranted, particularly if the original was loaned or otherwise misused, but there are certainly instances where such a thing might be a good idea.  I wouldn't even go so far as to claim that replacement for simple carelessness should be a regular practice, but it would be nice to know that it might happen once in a while, on a case-by-case basis, particularly when there is no claim or evidence of any unethical ulterior motive.  There have been some recent reports that this is indeed the current policy ( see this as yet another take on current "policy"), but if it is, it's relatively new, and I doubt very much that it's necessarily etched in stone.

Perhaps a moderator might like to offer some conclusive input on this question.  I'd be very interested in knowing whether there's been some recent change in practice that has yet to become common knowledge - policy notwithstanding.

*shrug*

I have it on good knowledge that there is an official "Policy" document that states that OS media and Driver media can be replaced at any time, in or out of warranty, inside or outside of 21 days.  The only exception being the Resource CD if the system is no longer in production.

I can't, of course, name my source or prove anything - to do so would violate a confidence - but should a tech not abide by that policy, then that is something between them and their management structure.

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@TheGreyOne wrote:

*shrug*

I can't, of course, name my source or prove anything - to do so would violate a confidence

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"*shrug*" indeed.  I have yet to see a policy that amounted to a hill of ant droppings that someone in a position of authority in a particular named organization wasn't willing to put their name behind, which only leads me to believe that either it isn't a policy at all, or that someone has been pulling your lariat, or both.