Rick,

The OEM XP disk is not a Dell disk, it is the Microsoft XP home edition OS install.

Does this have any bearing on the clean install / driver questions?

western22,

No, it doesn't, and the links for the driver installation are here.

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@western22 wrote:
Have Latitude C610 with Win 2000 OS. Have new, unopened Win XP OEM disk for clean install. Have configured machine to use CD Rom for first boot. Am familiar enough with machine to reinstall software thereafter. Currently I have the a16 flash bios version. Basically, I want to change from Win 2000 to XP with SP-2.

I have read many excellent post in these forums on clean and reinstalls. I'm reluctant because I do not understand enough info on the drivers. Let me say this: I bought the C610 from Dell FS and had to go to the downloads (on my desktop machine) and download the needed drivers, burn to disk, then installed in the C610 but do not remember which drivers they actually were. My concern on the clean install is: where do I look -- either on the machine or download site -- to find out what SPECIFIC drivers I need? And if so, can I burn them to CD for reinstallation after the XP install? Also, I do not understand the chipset (drivers?) that I have read about. The C610 came with only the Win 2000 reinstall CD.

Thanking all in advance for any help or clarification on the driver inquiry. I can supply additional info specific to my inquiry if need be.

If the OEM CD is a Dell CD, it will work.  Otherwise, it may not. 

You install XP, then update it, then the chipset driver (downloaded from Dell), then the other drivers IF you need them (as shown by checking device manager for exclamation points).  You will need drivers for Quickset, Audio, Touchpad, Wireless card, and Video driver at a minimum. 

Yes, you burn to CD and then use them.

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@western22 wrote:
Rick,

The OEM XP disk is not a Dell disk, it is the Microsoft XP home edition OS install.

Does this have any bearing on the clean install / driver questions?

---

OEM means that the CD shipped with a computer.  Therefore, it may be an HP, Compaq, etc.  Dell CDs are locked to Dell Bios.  You may find that others are locked to their machines.  If it doesn't have any brand on it but Microsoft, then it's likely not OEM.  You will need the CD key to do the install, and not the one that came on your Dell.

Thank you for the clarification on the OEM disk issue. Any viewers who read this thread please take note: The XP disk I formerly referred to is not "OEM" as it did not arrive with any computer or other hardware device.

The disk I am referring to is a new, factory sealed, genuine Microsoft labled Windows XP home edition install disk.

I surely do not want to confuse or mislead any reader of this thread as to the XP disk I intend to install.

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@western22 wrote:
Thank you for the clarification on the OEM disk issue. Any viewers who read this thread please take note: The XP disk I formerly referred to is not "OEM" as it did not arrive with any computer or other hardware device.

The disk I am referring to is a new, factory sealed, genuine Microsoft labled Windows XP home edition install disk.

I surely do not want to confuse or mislead any reader of this thread as to the XP disk I intend to install.

---

If the CD has the key on it as it should, then you will be fine doing your installation (do a CLEAN install).

I have successfully installed the "clean install" of Windows XP on my machine. It appears to me that during the install process, the XP program checks for and saves certain settings on my computer to the new partition that is created. Best guess is this is the hidden and protected files used for a system "recovery". All the drivers and stuff that I was concerned about being deleted were saved. Thanks to all the folks who replied to my post for your help. I may not have been able to accomplish this task without your excellent advise.

One note on clean install: I reinstalled my Norton Internet Security/Anti Virus software immediately after the XP install. You will have to disable the XP (default) firewall if using Norton IS. Then, after reinstalling my Internet (ISP) software, I was ready to go online and update XP files to the latest versions.

In the event anyone who may have the similar concerns about the drivers and clean install issues on this post, I have copied some additional info from Dell Tech Support that may help. Print and follow these instructions TO THE LETTER for a clean install:


Prior to installing or reinstalling the Windows XP operating system on
your Dell computer, there are several guidelines you should follow to
ensure a quick and easy process.

Locate your Windows XP operating system CD.
Remove any external devices from the notebook computer, such as PCMCIA
cards, external mice, external keyboards, external serial or parallel
port device, external monitor, external USB peripherals, and port
replicator.
Connect the portable computer to its external AC adapter and plug the
adapter into the wall. This will ensure that your system does not run
out of battery power during the software reinstallation process.
Configure your computer to boot to the CD or DVD drive. Would you please
refer to the link below for me?

http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=1035156

Operating System Installation

After you have prepared your system for the installation process, you
are ready to proceed with the installation. Perform the following steps:

Insert Microsoft
Windows XP CD into the CD or DVD drive.
Restart the computer.
The following message appears: Press any key to boot from the CD.
Press the to boot to the Windows XP CD.
The Windows XP Setup screen appears.
Press the key to setup Windows.
The Windows XP Licensing Agreement screen appears.
Press the key to accept the license agreement.
The partitioning screen appears.
If the hard drive is already partitioned (this is most common), press
the key to continue.

If the hard drive partitions are not listed or detected, you will need
to create a partition on the hard drive. Press the key and then
follow the on-screen prompts to create a partition. If you are unsure
which settings to select, you may want to use the default selections
that are displayed.


If your hard drive already contains a copy of a Windows operating
system, a Caution screen appears. Press the key to continue.
The format options screen appears.
You have several options to select from to format your hard drive:

Format the partition using the NTFS file system (Quick)
Format the partition using the FAT file system (Quick)
Format the partition using the NTFS file system
Format the partition using the FAT file system
Leave the current file system in place (no changes)

Dell recommends that you select the first option, Format the partition
using the NTFS file system (Quick).

NOTICE: Performing the following steps will lead to the loss of all
data on the hard drive. Please ensure that all necessary backups have
been created prior to proceeding.


Press the key to select the option that you want and then
press the key.
The Caution screen appears if you select to format the hard drive.
Press the key to format the hard drive.
The setup program will now copy files to your system. This will take
several minutes, please wait. After the files have been copied, a
message appears and notifies you that the computer will be restarted.
Press the key to restart the computer or a timer will count down
and restart the computer automatically.
When the computer restarts, the following message appears: Press any key
to boot from the CD.

NOTE: Do not press any keys when this message appears and allow the
operating system to load.

The Windows XP Setup window appears. Many devices will be detected
during this process. This will take several minutes, please wait. Once
this process is completed, the Regional and Language Options window
appears.
Click Next.
The Personalize Your Software window appears.
In the Name: field, type your name. Optionally, you may type your
organization's name into the Organization: field.
Click Next.
If you are installing Windows XP Home Edition: The What's your
computer's name window appears.

If you are installing Windows XP Home Edition, click Next to accept the
default selection.

Type a password in the Administrator Password: field and then type the
same password in the Confirm Password: field. Click Next to continue.

NOTE: If you have a modem installed in your computer, you may be
prompted to type the area code for your location.

The Date and Time Settings window appears.
Click to select the appropriate time zone for your location from the
Time Zone field and then click Next.
Depending upon your network configuration, you may be prompted for
additional information regarding your network card (such as the domain
name and workgroup name). If you are unsure of these settings, contact
your Network Administrator or accept the default selections.
After all hardware has been detected and the files have been copied to
the hard drive, the system will restart. When the computer restarts, the
following message appears: Press any key to boot from the CD.

NOTE: Do not press any keys when this message appears and allow the
operating system to load.


Once the Desktop appears, eject the Windows XP from the CD or DVD drive.
You may be prompted for user information.
Type the name of any additional users that will be using the computer
and then click Next to continue.

Driver and Software Installation

Windows XP provides native driver support for many hardware devices that
may be installed on your computer. These devices may not require updates
or driver installations; however, for optimal performance Dell
recommends you install the most current drivers available for your
system.

To help you install your drivers and related software for your Dell
computer, view or print step-by-step instructions from the Dell Software
Reinstall Guide at:

http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/org.

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@western22 wrote:
I have successfully installed the "clean install" of Windows XP on my machine. It appears to me that during the install process, the XP program checks for and saves certain settings on my computer to the new partition that is created. Best guess is this is the hidden and protected files used for a system "recovery". All the drivers and stuff that I was concerned about being deleted were saved. Thanks to all the folks who replied to my post for your help. I may not have been able to accomplish this task without your excellent advise.

One note on clean install: I reinstalled my Norton Internet Security/Anti Virus software immediately after the XP install. You will have to disable the XP (default) firewall if using Norton IS. Then, after reinstalling my Internet (ISP) software, I was ready to go online and update XP files to the latest versions.

If the drivers and stuff were "saved", then you did not do a CLEAN install.  A CLEAN install removes everything from the computer.