Windows 2000 okay on Gigabyte GA-7VXRP ?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Kevin Lawton
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Kevin Lawton

Has anyone else had any problems or success with the above combination ?
Installing Win2K from the command line using \i386\WINNT.
Goes through all the file copying okay and re-boots to start Win2000.
Blue screen (not BSOD) title: 'Windows 2000 Setup' and message 'Setup is
starting Windows 2000'.
It then activates the floppy drive - light is on - and stays there - nothing
else. No floppy in the drive. Not using floppies.
Was expecting it to be 'Preparing to run Windows 2000 for the first time' or
whatever and ask about region/locale settings.
Anyone got any ideas - please !
Kevin.
TIA
 
Read manual with motherboard and check your Hard drive configuration. Make sure that your harddrive is initially connected to IDE0 and not the RAID port. Then attempt install.
 
One has to suspect a RAM problem.
Be aware that the VXRP is picky when it comes to memory types.

Jeff C.
 
Kevin Lawton said:
Has anyone else had any problems or success with the above combination ?
Installing Win2K from the command line using \i386\WINNT.
Goes through all the file copying okay and re-boots to start Win2000.
Blue screen (not BSOD) title: 'Windows 2000 Setup' and message 'Setup is
starting Windows 2000'.
It then activates the floppy drive - light is on - and stays there - nothing
else. No floppy in the drive. Not using floppies.
Was expecting it to be 'Preparing to run Windows 2000 for the first time' or
whatever and ask about region/locale settings.
Anyone got any ideas - please !
Click to expand...
Installing from the command line? How? By booting from a floppy with CDROM
support? Or booting another OS on another drive or partition? Is the HDD
connected to the mobo chipset IDE port or to a Promise port?
 
Alien Zord said:
time'
Installing from the command line? How? By booting from a floppy with CDROM
support? Or booting another OS on another drive or partition? Is the HDD
connected to the mobo chipset IDE port or to a Promise port?
Click to expand...
Thanks.
Two Seagate 80 Gb HDDs, Master & Slave on Primary IDE port (IDE 1) - not
Promise (IDE 3 & 4).
On Master HDD - one 2 Gb DOS partition, with DOS installed, made active -
boots fine - shows as 'C:'.
On Slave HDD - one 2 Gb DOS partition with a copy of the Windows 2000
install CD - shows as 'D:'.
Issueing the command: D:\i386\WINNT.exe to start the install.
The above method has been used succesfully many times in the past on older
Athlon and Pentium-III systems.
This is the first one I've built using an XP2400 on a GA-7VRXP.
Have tried install Linux and it goes in and runs fine, but I need Windows on
it.
Tried running memtest - memory seems okay.
What next ?
TIA
Kevin.
 
I've got three strips of Samsung PC2700 in it:
1 = 512 Mb, 2 = 256 Mb, 3 = 256 Mb.
A test install of Linux ran okay and reported no problems.
Thanks.
Kevin.
 
Kevin Lawton said:
Thanks.
Two Seagate 80 Gb HDDs, Master & Slave on Primary IDE port (IDE 1) - not
Promise (IDE 3 & 4).
On Master HDD - one 2 Gb DOS partition, with DOS installed, made active -
boots fine - shows as 'C:'.
On Slave HDD - one 2 Gb DOS partition with a copy of the Windows 2000
install CD - shows as 'D:'.
Issueing the command: D:\i386\WINNT.exe to start the install.
The above method has been used succesfully many times in the past on older
Athlon and Pentium-III systems.
This is the first one I've built using an XP2400 on a GA-7VRXP.
Have tried install Linux and it goes in and runs fine, but I need Windows on
it.
Click to expand...
Two suggestions:
1) make the installation directory current, i.e. type d:\i386 and then
winnt.
2) if it fails again boot from a floppy and check the content of boot.ini on
C drive.
 
Alien Zord said:
combination 'Setup Windows
Two suggestions:
1) make the installation directory current, i.e. type d:\i386 and then
winnt.
2) if it fails again boot from a floppy and check the content of boot.ini on
C drive.
Click to expand...

Thanks again for the response.
I've tried setting the install off from either the C:\, C:\i386, D:\,
D:\i386 or A: drives and directories - which exactly the same result every
time (yes, I copied the i386 directcory in its entrity from D: to C: just to
see if it would help). As far as I can tell, it is at the point where it is
using the NT5 instead of the DOS kernel for the very first time, and it
hangs with the floppy drive light on. This is a real puzzler, as I'm not
using the floppy for anything. I tried a go with no floppy drives connected
(and removed floppy in BIOS) and it made no difference.
Hence the question in the thread title - is this an incomptibilty with the
m/board ? I've checked on the Gigabyte web site and the F12 BIOS which my
Rev1.1 GA-VRXP has is the latest one. I read about a dozen magazine reviews
before picking this board for my rounds of upgrades, and words like 'solid',
'stable' and 'reliable' predominated.
I've had a good look for a boot.ini file on C: and it doesn't seem to be
there.
So what next ?
I ran out of ideas long before I posted to the NGs - I think I'm now running
out of sanity !
As before - all ideas gratefully appreciated.
Kevin
 
Try taking the stick of ram in the third dimm socket. Many motherboard are
fussy when all sockets are occupied. I have this motherboard myself and it's
given me nothing but problems whenever I want to upgrade. Maybe it was
gigabyte's fault trying to rush it out before all the other KT333
motherboards.

Dan
 
Dan said:
Try taking the stick of ram in the third dimm socket. Many motherboard are
fussy when all sockets are occupied. I have this motherboard myself and it's
given me nothing but problems whenever I want to upgrade. Maybe it was
gigabyte's fault trying to rush it out before all the other KT333
motherboards.
Click to expand...

Okay - I've tried playing around with thr RAM configuration, but to no
avail. :-(
I tried removing the third stick, and then the second stick - still the same
behaviour.
I tried setting the memory speed down to 266 MHZ (it is 333 MHz PC2700) and
still the same.
After the 'inspecting your hardware configuration' message I get a quick
burst of 'Setup is loading xxxxxxxx' where the 'xxxxxx' is a rapidly
changing filename and the floppy drive light comes on (why ?), then it goes
to the 'Setup is starting Windows 2000' and stays there forever.
So, having taken my memory down to only 512 Mb running at 266 MHz, I still
have the problem.
Any further ideas wouldbe very welcome - i'm now tearing my hair out !
Kevin.
 
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