Partition/Data lost...what the heck happened?

[OC101]

I have two hard disks in my main computer.

250GB and 1TB.

I had both hard disks divided into multiple partitions.

Then yesterday I did a reformat/reinstall of OS.

Since my WinXP Pro disk is the oldest version (without even SP1), during the installation screen, it detects 2 x 131GB hard drives instead of the 250GB and 1TB.

So I installed the OS on the 131GB from the 250GB hard drive.


BUT, big BUT...

After I finished installing WinXP, (before I update to SP3), besides the 131GB partition from the 250GB hard drive, I saw only another partition of 127GB that couldn't be accessed.
I didn't touch any of it, and I went to update to SP3.

After SP3 was updated, that 127GB partition disappeared as well like all the other partitions.

I went to Disk Management, it showed that something was screwed up. The 1TB hard disk had 5 partitions of total over 1.5TB(previously it had 3 partitions)...but none was showing up under My Computer....

Anyway, after played around with it, I have both disks at correct sizes and working, but... I lost all data on the 1TB drive.

It seems if I try to reinstall WinXP Pro, as soon as it goes through the installation screen of showing me the 2 x 131GB partitions, it doesn't matter whether or not I had the 1TB drive divided into many working partitions previously, it will no longer working and lose all partition/data after the installation of the OS...

What the heck really happened? My random guess is that since I was depending on Disk Management to manage the higher than 131GB part of a hard drive, once I reinstall the OS, the "managing" part was lost...and I have to "re-manage" it after the re-installation...but by doing so, it lost everything from the last "management" including the partition and all data...
How do I stop this from happening again? I worry the same thing might happen next time I reinstall WinXP.

Has anyone else experienced similar situation of losing previous partition/data upon reinstall an OS that can't read more than 131GB off each drive without using Disk Management?

 

[Know Nuttin]

why not just create a slipstreamed version of XP with SP3 using nlite?

 

[OC101]

why not just create a slipstreamed version of XP with SP3 using nlite?

I have no idea how to do that.

 

[pharoer]

I have no idea how to do that.

http://www.nliteos.com/guide/

 

[4GHZ_or_bust]

Older OS including pre-SP1 XP had a nasty habit of ruining any partition over 128GB.

 

[OC101]

http://www.nliteos.com/guide/

Thanks, I will try that.

Older OS including pre-SP1 XP had a nasty habit of ruining any partition over 128GB.

Does that mean if all previous partitions are smaller than that, they won't be effected?

What happen if I unplug the 1TB drive before reinstall OS, then plug it only after SP3 is updated. Will it still be fine?

 

[4GHZ_or_bust]

Does that mean if all previous partitions are smaller than that, they won't be effected?

What happen if I unplug the 1TB drive before reinstall OS, then plug it only after SP3 is updated. Will it still be fine?

Way back when I had only XP install CD with no SP packs, twice I installed on my PC (used 40GB as main back then), and twice the 200GB hard drive somehow lost partition. It showed up as 137GB unformatted next to 40GB drive during install, I ignored the second hard drive, and after I got SP2 pack installed, I checked the hard drive. Both times, it was unformatted somehow. Moving the hard drive to another PC that was already up to date, it still showed up as unformatted.

I was able to recover files but after I got shafted twice, I made a slipstreamed XP with SP2 to end this annoyance and misery. And yes I'm pretty sure I didn't make dynamic partition on that 200GB drive both times.

Leaving it unplugged from before you start XP install until it is up to date should work. Or better yet make a slipstreamed XP disc with SP3 installed and save yourself the time and trouble later on.

 

[OC101]

Can I integrate SP3 with the plain WinXP directly?

I wonder if I can...because every time I reinstall WinXP, it wouldn't let me directly update to SP3. Instead, the windows update would update to SP2 first, then SP3 would show up in the windows update option. I'd think SP3 would have included SP2...but from the way how it was updated, I am not sure... If SP3 indeed included everything SP2 had to offer, why wouldn't it let me directly update to SP3?

 

[MARCI]

Yes, you can create a windows xp disk that includes sp3, that's what slipstreaming is.

Slipstreaming is good if you have to reinstall occasionally, since it eliminates ALOT of updates.

 

[OC101]

Awesome! It worked. I even tried it. The new disk with SP3 was able to read the 1TB drive no problem on OS installation screen.