Re-installing Windows XP Home

Question

I have a Dell Dimension 4600 which I purchased  in March, 2004.  I have a Dell Reinstallation CD of Windows SP Home Edition with Service Pack 1a.  I downloaded/installed Microsoft Service Pack 2 on this system.  I now have problems with my pc and want to re-install Windows XP but when I get to the options screen on the installation disk and choose 'Install Windows XP' an error message comes back 'Setup cannot continue because the version of Windows on your computer is newer than the version on the CD'.   Is this because I have Service Pack 2 installed on my P.C.?  Can I remove the SP 2 program (which is in the Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel) and then try the installation Disk?   Thanks,   Noel

rj1127 · Answer

This questions is asked on daily basis, sometimes 2-3x a day. If you search for XP installation in this forum, you'll get quite a few hits.

My wild guess is you run WinXP setup from within WinXP desktop? Can't do it that way. You must boot from the Setup CD.

rickmktg · Answer

@NBoudreaux wrote:

I have a Dell Dimension 4600 which I purchased in March, 2004. I have a Dell Reinstallation CD of Windows SP Home Edition with Service Pack 1a. I downloaded/installed Microsoft Service Pack 2 on this system. I now have problems with my pc and want to re-install Windows XP but when I get to the options screen on the installation disk and choose "Install Windows XP" an error message comes back "Setup cannot continue because the version of Windows on your computer is newer than the version on the CD".

Is this because I have Service Pack 2 installed on my P.C.? Can I remove the SP 2 program (which is in the Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel) and then try the installation Disk?

Thanks,

Noel

Using the Advanced Forum Search on the bottom of this page, you can quite easily find the answer to this often asked question.

It's because you're sticking the disk in instead of booting to it.

Windows General

Re-installing Windows XP Home

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