Reinstalling XP - very silly question but I'm going to ask anyway

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anna
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A

Anna

Hi - I have a Dell XPS 200 and need to reinstall Wondows XP because of virus.

I have two questions - silly one first:
What should actually be plugged into the computer when reinstalling - cable
modem, router, printer, etc. (sorry not really good with this ascpect of the
comuter but do not have anyone to turn to especially Dell support).

Second, what should I do if it finishes reformating and I do not get any
sound or IE access?

Thanks!
 
Anna said:
Hi - I have a Dell XPS 200 and need to reinstall Wondows XP because of
virus.

I have two questions - silly one first:
What should actually be plugged into the computer when reinstalling -
cable
modem, router, printer, etc. (sorry not really good with this ascpect of
the
comuter but do not have anyone to turn to especially Dell support).
Click to expand...

Disconnect Printers, Scanner or All-in-One printers. Some of these require
that software driver be installed before connecting the hardware.

Do not have your Internet connection (Cable Modem) enabled (look for a small
button that disables the cable modem).
Before you start write your current IP settings on paper just in case you
need to reenter them after the install.
(Open a command prompt window and enter: ipconfig /all)

Before you start the clean install, (this assumes that you will be using a
Windows XP CD and not a Dell supplied install CD or Recovery partition) have
all the device drivers you need on a CD (Sound card, Video, Etc.)
Use Belarc Advisor to get a list of what hardware you need and then download
the drivers for the PC manufacture's or Hardware manufacture's web site and
burn the driver to a CD. You may also want to look into the drivers for the
motherboard also.
Belarc Advisor: http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html

Also verify your CD Key code matches what Belarc Advisor reports for your
existing install.
Note: OEM Windows Installs usually come with a key code sticker on the PC or
laptop and the code on the sticker may not match the
the factory installed key. Use the code on the sticker.

How to do a Clean Install of Windows XP
Change the BIOS setting to Boot from CD drive first.
Then see below:
From Michael Steven's: http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html
more info: http://windowsxp.mvps.org/XPClean.htm
and: http://www.theeldergeek.com/clean_installation_of_windows_xp.htm
also: http://www.bootdisk.com/

Don't forget to install your AV software, before connecting to the
Internet!!!
Second, what should I do if it finishes reformating and I do not get any
sound or IE access?
Click to expand...

No sound means the driver (mentioned above) has not been installed.
IE not able to access the Internet, you may need to set the IP address (also
see above) or contact your ISP.
 
Anna said:
Hi - I have a Dell XPS 200 and need to reinstall Windows XP because of virus.

I have two questions - silly one first:
What should actually be plugged into the computer when reinstalling - cable
modem, router, printer, etc. (sorry not really good with this aspect of the
computer but do not have anyone to turn to especially Dell support).

Second, what should I do if it finishes reformatting and I do not get any
sound or IE access?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Try one of these Virus Removal Tools first:

Avast! One tool for any current virus
http://www.avast.com/eng/avast-virus-cleaner.html

Symantec Virus Removal Tools
http://www.symantec.com/business/security_response/removaltools.jsp

F-Secure Virus Removal Tools
http://www.f-secure.com/download-purchase/tools.shtml

Kaspersky Virus Removal Tools
http://www.kaspersky.com/removaltools
 
Anna said:
Hi - I have a Dell XPS 200 and need to reinstall Wondows XP because of virus.

I have two questions - silly one first:
What should actually be plugged into the computer when reinstalling - cable
modem, router, printer, etc. (sorry not really good with this ascpect of the
comuter but do not have anyone to turn to especially Dell support).

Second, what should I do if it finishes reformating and I do not get any
sound or IE access?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Let's get the easy stuff out of the way first. Whenever you install an operating
system, the only items that should be connected to your computer are the mouse,
keyboard, and monitor.

Now comes the hard part.

You might want to check the documentation for your system to see if there's a
recovery process for reinstalling XP. On many of their systems, Dell has a
hidden partition that contains the files needed to restore your computer to the
state it was in when it left the factory.

How Do I Resolve My Computer Problems with Image Restore
http://support.dell.com/support/top...pe=&os=&component=&lang=&doclang=&toggle=&dl=

If the above procedure doesn't apply to your computer, you should have a Dell XP
installation CD. Before attempting to reinstall XP, go to Dell's web site and
get the latest drivers for the hardware on your system. Look on the back of your
computer for a bar-coded label with a 7 digit code. This is your Service Tag.
Enter the info from the tag on this site and you download the drivers.

Dell Drivers and Downloads
http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/index.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen

If you can't find the service tag, go to this web site and pick through the
drivers for the correct ones for your system.

XPS/Dimension 200/5150C
http://support.dell.com/support/dow...MENSION 200/5150C&os=WW1&osl=en&catid=&impid=

Before you wipe out your current installation you'll have to back up any files
you wish to save. Make sure you can recover those files before going forward.
Don't just assume that since you have them on a CD they're fine, test all files.

As for installing XP, I suspect the first problem you'll encounter will be the
need to hit the F6 key early in the installation procedure in order to install
XP on your SATA hard drive. You need to have the drivers for the SATA controller
for your motherboard available on a floppy disk. You can use a USB floppy drive
if your computer did not come with one installed.

Good luck

Nepatsfan
 
Anna said:
Hi - I have a Dell XPS 200 and need to reinstall Wondows XP because of virus.

I have two questions - silly one first:
What should actually be plugged into the computer when reinstalling - cable
modem, router, printer, etc. (sorry not really good with this ascpect of the
comuter but do not have anyone to turn to especially Dell support).

Second, what should I do if it finishes reformating and I do not get any
sound or IE access?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

My two cents..... All the suggestions that others gave you are good. In my
case, I have a Dell whose hard drive died. I simply put another hard drive
in and installed the Dell XP CD that came with the computer (making sure
that the BIOS was set to boot from the CD). The CD started the install
process and finished the installation completely -- all the drivers were in
place, and everything was ready to go. All I had to do afterwards was
install all the applications I had before (don't forget Flash and Shockwave)
and a ton of Windows updates.

But as another person said, you may have a Recovery Partition on your hard
drive that will save you some time. Good luck.

EW
 
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