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December 9th, 2014 03:00
Cannot boot from Win 8.1 installation disk
My mother has a Dimension 3000 system that runs XP and now I am trying to install WIndows 8.1 so she can use online bank services again. The problem is that it will not boot from the installation disk.
I have updated BIOS to A03 and updated all other drivers using Driver Booster 2. Now the system is set to first boot from CD-ROM and then HDD but it ends up to always boot from HDD. I am about 400 km away so I am trying to help her by phone. I tested to boot from the disc on my own XP-computer and had no problem so the disc is fine. I also ran the Upgrade assistant on her system and all was fine.
I can't understand what's wrong, anyone?
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Philip_Yip
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December 9th, 2014 06:00
The system is 10 years old... BIOS A00 - August 2004. The latest BIOS is 8 years old February 2006. That system may be too old to be able to boot from USB.
There are other problems, the standard installed memory was 0.5-1 GB, 1 GB is minimum requirements so it may also need to be upgraded.
As mentioned the onboard video, Intel 82865G is unsupported by Intel for Windows Vista or later. For Vista/7 there were some tricks you could use to get it to work but even then still not very well. For Windows 8.1 it will use the generic driver only and the screen will be blurry.
Moreover the systems hard drive is IDE and likely of a low capacity. The hard drive being the most likely component to fail and this type no longer being manufactured.
So at least you will need a DVD drive, probably some memory modules and a video card. Even then the system still won't perform well. I wouldn't advise wasting money in upgrading such an old machine. For this price of all these upgrades you can buy a used OptiPlex 760/780 from eBay which come with a Windows 7 license. As you already have bought Windows 8.1 you could even source out an OptiPlex 745/755 and use your Windows 8.1 license on that. All these systems will perform substantially better than the Dimension 3000.
Of course you can also look to a new system, the new Dell Inspiron is very cheap and can be had for $230:
http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-3646-small-desktop/pd?oc=fdcwnt7101h&model_id=inspiron-3646-small-desktop
While its a low end model compared to the Dimension 3000 its a significant upgrade.
Philip_Yip
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December 9th, 2014 04:00
That's exactly whats wrong, you are booting from a CD drive. Windows 8.1 is a DVD. The system is ancient and has 0 chance of running Windows 8.1 64 Bit. While you may install Windows 8.1 32 Bit with a DVD drive, the video controller likely will be incompatible giving a bad end user experience. Buy a new PC, or a second hand Dell such as the OptiPlex 760/780 which will come with a Windows 7 license.
bgtb
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December 9th, 2014 05:00
Thanks. Ok, so the problem is that Dimension 3000 cannot boot from a DVD, only a CD?
Since she have already bought the license (32-bit OEM) and opened it I doubt that it can be returned so I would try to get it running anyway, if it doesn't work I'll have to get her a new PC.
If we copy the DVD contents to a USB-stick maybe we can boot from that? I'll give that a shot this evening.
DELL-Jesse L
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December 9th, 2014 05:00
answered.
Philip_Yip
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December 10th, 2014 04:00
No problem, I hope your mother enjoys her new system.
bgtb
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December 10th, 2014 04:00
I have BIOS A03 already and can boot from USB, memory upgraded to max many years ago so it should work but the video card issue is a deal breaker for me (my mother has no idea what we are talking about here...). We just placed an order on a new computer instead, it's not worth the time fiddling with this. Thanks for all replies!