How set Bios to CD-Rom?

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Soldier

I need to reinstall XP from the OEM recovery CD's after kid bro deleted and
corrupted lots of stuff using Spybot Seach and Destroy default options.
Goback didn't help. PC reboots itself 3 or 4 times after initial boot up,
then seems to stabilise, but reboots sporadically when I'm doing something
important <sigh>

I followed links posted here and found instructions for my machine (Advent
9000 series P4) which guide users through non destructive recovery and/or
format and recovery, but step 1 says "Set bios so that the 1st boot device
is CD-Rom."

It's been a long time (been busy elsewhere for 9 months) and I forgot how to
access Bios. I remember it uses page up/page down and the arrow keys to
navigate/make changes, Esc to exit, but I can't remember which Function key
to hit or when to access bios settings.

Do I need to disable the Bios AV for the recovery?
Is there anything serious I need to be aware of?

I'm going for the non-destructive recovery, but can go for a format and
recovery if that fails. The only things worth keeping are a few email
addys, my favourites list and logon details (saves me typing a text file and
Prt Screens and typing them all back in).

Can any be saved to floppy, CD-R, DVD+R or slave HD ?

I will remember to disconnect the slave HD before restoring <G>

Squaddie
 
In "Soldier"
It's been a long time (been busy elsewhere for 9 months) and I forgot
how to access Bios. I remember it uses page up/page down and the arrow
keys to navigate/make changes, Esc to exit, but I can't remember which
Function key to hit or when to access bios settings.
Click to expand...

On most machines, it's either "Del" or "F2", but who knows ...

Also, most machines display that information while booting, but if your
monitor takes a while to stabilize, you might not be able to see it.

If your machine is configured to try to boot from a floppy before going to
the HD, try sticking a non-bootable floppy in the drive; maybe the BIOS
display will hang around long enough to read it.
 
Greetings --

Only you know what motherboard and BIOS you have, so only you know
the answer to your question. ;-}

In the extremely unlikely event that your PC's manual doesn't
contain the needed information, try one or more of the following:

How do I access my computer's setup (BIOS)
http://www.iomega.com/support/documents/2157.html

Wim's BIOS Page
http://www.wimsbios.com/

Accessing Motherboard BIOS
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/bios_manufacturer.htm

You should also be aware that it's very easy to render, at least
temporarily, your PC unbootable by making an incorrect change in the
BIOS. So be very careful.


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH
 
Bruce Chambers said:
Greetings --
Click to expand...
Greetings back at ya Bruce.
Only you know what motherboard and BIOS you have, so only you know
the answer to your question. ;-}
Click to expand...

Typically of the Dixon Retail Group Plc (DRG) the MoBo make is unknown,
unbranded, unmarked, and the importsnt chips have foil stickers with DRG's
own code numbers and barcodes on them, but it's a square card with chips and
fans and a couple of free expansion slots if that's any help <G>.

---at this point, the system closed down and rebooted

---then closed and rebooted again

---and again

---ditto
In the extremely unlikely event that your PC's manual doesn't
contain the needed information, try one or more of the following:
Click to expand...

This is an Advent Desk-top. Their manual is a list of premium rate phone
numbers rated at UK£1 per minute. There's more info in the advert on the
retail website (www.pcworld.co.uk then search for Advent 3109) than there is
in the joke of a loose leaf ringbinder aptly named "Getting started with
Windows XP" they supplied as the only documentation they supplied with this
box of tricks. That's why I asked here.
How do I access my computer's setup (BIOS)
http://www.iomega.com/support/documents/2157.html
Click to expand...

9 times out of 10 Opening Explorer shuts down the system as well, but I'll
check it out when this box of corruptions will let me
 
Soldier said:
I need to reinstall XP from the OEM recovery CD's after kid bro deleted and
corrupted lots of stuff using Spybot Seach and Destroy default options.
Goback didn't help. PC reboots itself 3 or 4 times after initial boot up,
then seems to stabilise, but reboots sporadically when I'm doing something
important <sigh>

I followed links posted here and found instructions for my machine (Advent
9000 series P4) which guide users through non destructive recovery and/or
format and recovery, but step 1 says "Set bios so that the 1st boot device
is CD-Rom."

It's been a long time (been busy elsewhere for 9 months) and I forgot how to
access Bios. I remember it uses page up/page down and the arrow keys to
navigate/make changes, Esc to exit, but I can't remember which Function key
to hit or when to access bios settings.

Do I need to disable the Bios AV for the recovery?
Is there anything serious I need to be aware of?

I'm going for the non-destructive recovery, but can go for a format and
recovery if that fails. The only things worth keeping are a few email
addys, my favourites list and logon details (saves me typing a text file and
Prt Screens and typing them all back in).

Can any be saved to floppy, CD-R, DVD+R or slave HD ?

I will remember to disconnect the slave HD before restoring <G>

Squaddie
Click to expand...

If you cannot find the correct key to enter BIOS setup, try the following.

a. Insert the recovery CD and try to boot. Your BIOS may already be set
to boot from the CD first.

b. Unplug the power connection on your hard drive. Try to boot. You
should get a hard drive failure message with an option to enter setup.

Don
 
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