What have you done to narrow the problem to a hardware versus software issue? For example, have you run the diagnostics on your hard drive or other components? How about your diagnostic lights?

It might help if you provided your hardware details.

That was going to be my next suggestion. Try the XP reinstallation disc. Another thought, do you have a CD drive cleaner? You may have a dirty lens.

I haver two CD drives and have tried both.  But that is a thought to follow up on.

 

Thanks

 

 

I'm a computer technician working on a Dell Dimension 8400 and kinda having the same problem as you. Couldn't boot to the Windows XP CD for both CD drives - even though the BIOS was configured right and the boot order was correct.

What I did was hooked up a CD drive to the Dell that I KNEW worked booting to a CD. It worked no problems at all. So maybe connect a CD drive that you have lying around. Especially if none of the CD drives in the Dell don't work with bootable cd's.

Mark

Good suggestion. 

 

I called Dell (on the chat line) and they suggested I try the Dell CD.  It started (when the Norton and Windows CD's failed.) But the extended diagnostics said everything is fine.  It is not.  I am going to replace the BIOS.  However, my wife's computer (that I am using now) does not have a floppy drive.  (Bigget mistake I maed in buying a computer.)  So, I just downloaded the BIOS.  Put it on my portable USB drive and will make a floppy with the BIOS at work.  Then I bring it home and see if that will work.  There was a time when I checked the hard drives with my Western Digital CD that a program said the BIOS was not working with the hard drive - wrong size.

 

That may be the problem.

 

Thanks for the suggestion.  That is a way to go.

 

Gary