- Joined
- Mar 11, 2003
Alright, I screwed my windows install, but I can't figure out how to get a DOS command prompt to fdisk.
How do you do it?
How do you do it?
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How to get to a command prompt?
- Thread starter sandman001
- Start date
- Joined
- Dec 26, 2003
Which version of Windows do you have? With 9x you just press F8 when it says Starting Windows... With ME, you press F8 and then you enter some other combination (they removed the Command Prompt menu option, but left the keyboard shortcut, though I can't remember it off the top of my head). With NT/2K/XP/Server 2k3 you need to use a bootdisk. You can get them from www.bootdisk.com
Last edited:
- Joined
- Dec 26, 2003
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2003
- Location
- Appleton, Wisconsin
XP does not use fdisk. When you boot from the XP CD, it allows you to paritition your hard drive. If you can get into Windows, you can delete and add paritions that are not active (aka are not where Windows is installed) via the Disk Management utility in Computer Management (Control Panel->Admin Tools->Computer Management)
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2003
- Location
- Appleton, Wisconsin
Well, if you want to start over, get hard drive utilities to zero the drive. The correct utility can be found at the manufacturer's website (WD, Seagate, Maxtor, etc.) Zero the the drive with the program, when that finishes, boot off the XP CD. If it still gives that error, then its something other than the hard drive screwing it up.
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2003
- Location
- San Jose, CA
How did you screw your windows install? What is the error that the cd gives you?
I'm not sure how a screwed install would give you errors when you boot off of the cd.
Most screwed XP installs can be fixed by doing a recovery install where only system files are replaced. To do that boot off the cd and hit enter to begin an install get passed licsense agreement then the cd should find your messed up install. Hit the R key to have it try to install over the previouse one.
If that doesn't work my guess is that you have a hardware problem.
I'm not sure how a screwed install would give you errors when you boot off of the cd.
Most screwed XP installs can be fixed by doing a recovery install where only system files are replaced. To do that boot off the cd and hit enter to begin an install get passed licsense agreement then the cd should find your messed up install. Hit the R key to have it try to install over the previouse one.
If that doesn't work my guess is that you have a hardware problem.
Hmm, so it does not let you boot from cd. Ok, do you have windows 98 or ME? If so, use a boot disk, format your drive, and install windows 98 or ME on there, then when that runs, just run the windows xp cd through windows, and choose the clean install option, that should do I would think....
- Joined
- Oct 13, 2003
- Location
- Rockville, MD & Athens, Greece
bert202 said:
when you hit the R key it tells you to type the location of the files to be recovered. What do you type there???
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2003
- Location
- San Jose, CA
I did a repair install yesterday and mine didn't ask that, it just went ahead and got started...
Maybe a complete format and reinstall is best.
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2003
- Location
- San Jose, CA
Yeah, that will screw an install. Glad the 2k cd worked.
