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January 9th, 2011 16:00
Harddrive failure ~ now cannot boot....
Hi All,
I hope I am posting in the correct section. I have a Dell XPS410 that came with XP Media Center Edition (I bought it new). Now the HDD has failed (makes loud clicking noises when it begins to spin on boot-up). This PC came with the OS on the HDD partition (no disc was sent with the PC). Also came with the recovery console on the partition. When I power up the PC, the HDD makes the noises and then I get a (black) screen saying that it was unable to boot from device. I cant get into safe mode or recovery console - I get the Dell splash screen but Ctrl+f11 and f8 do nothing (why is this?). I have all my data safely backed up. So I guess I don't really need to worry about trying to revive my PC in it's current state (with a defective hard drive), correct? My question is: what is the best way to get up and running again? The PC is only 3 years old and is highly upgraded. I'm guessing I'll need to purchase a new HDD, but what is the best way to go about loading a Windows OS system (without spending a lot of money)? Would Dell help by sending me a full OS disk? If not, can I buy a used original copy of XP (with key) and load it on my PC? I'm a total virgin in this area and could use some guideance.
Thanks!
RoHe
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January 9th, 2011 17:00
It does sound like you need a new hard drive.
If you reside in the US and the registered owner (with Dell) of this system, they will provide you with replacement disks -one time only. Complete the form here. Dell may charge for the disks.
Follow the instructions here to reinstall Windows. You'll need to know what hardware you have installed (eg, video card, etc) so you can install the correct drivers. Drivers have to be installed in the correct order, XP followed by:
Desktop System Software (System Utillties)
Chipset driver
Video driver
Audio driver
Network driver
etc.
Note: You'll also have to install the SATA drivers from a floppy drive during the XP installation (watch for the prompt to press F6). If you don't have an internal floppy drive, you will have to install the SATA driver after the XP installation is complete. All drivers can be downloaded on any PC and burned on a CD or copied onto a USB memory stick for installation on this system.
Ron
maxxam888888
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January 9th, 2011 18:00
Hi Ron,
Thanks for the response. I filled out the form and will wait to see what happens on that front. If I find a friend who has an XP or Vista installation disc, would that also work? I do have a floppy ~ so you are saying I will need to download some files from Dell onto a floppy?
I don't really understand SATA & Raid. Can you give me a quick lesson and maybe just tell me what kind of HDD I will need to buy? I don't understand if I will need to partition it, etc.
Thanks ~ I'm sure I'll have more questions.
ieee488
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January 9th, 2011 18:00
Only if your friend has a Dell reinstallation disc would it be useable. SATA is a type of hard drive. RAID is a type of hard drive configuration.
maxxam888888
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January 9th, 2011 20:00
So, even if I have a new HDD installed I can only install XP or any other OS using a Dell disc?? If I am starting from scratch with a new hard drive, shouldn't I be able to load any OS I please on my machine?
theflash1932
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January 9th, 2011 22:00
You can install using any disk you want to, but if you want to use the Product Key/license that came with the computer, you must use a Dell disk. Meaning, if it came with XP and you want to install Vista, you must buy the license for Vista. If you want to install Windows 7, you must buy the license for Windows 7. Also, if you want to install XP using a non-Dell (non-OEM, as a Gateway or HP disk will not work on a Dell) disk, then you must purchase or have purchased a new license to run XP.
RoHe
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January 10th, 2011 09:00
You need to buy a new SATA hard drive, not an IDE hard drive. The size depends on your preference, budget, and the max size hard drive your system's chipset can handle, which might be up to 1T.
You have to format the new hard drive before you can install XP (there should be an option to format, very early during the XP installation process) but you don't have to partition it. Some people like to partition a large hard drive into C: and D:. They keep Windows and software on C: and put data on D:. It's personal preference to partition or not, and what size for each partition, as long as C: has enough space for Windows and all the software you plan to install.
Look at the drivers/download page for this PC model. Read the instructions for the SATA driver. If it says you need to make a floppy disk with the SATA driver, then you'll need to do that and install it from the floppy by pressing F6 when the XP installation process gives you that option.
If the instructions for the SATA driver don't mention floppy disks, then you'd install it after downloading or copying it onto hard drive after XP is installed (in which case you just ignore the F6 option during the installation).
Ron