Thread: Worse sector workaround applying Dell OS re-setup disks

Running XP with an older Dell laptop.Sector died causing a extremely tough crash. Dell OS XP Pro diskswould not set up. Dell OS Win 98 disk would set up without finding aboot loader. Dell OS Win 2000 Pro would repartition around thesector and re setup with the working part of the disks. Today, I havea native XP Pro laptop with 2000 Pro.

I have 3 copies of XP Pro Dell re setupdisks and 1 copy of retail XP Home. I can not apply the XP Pro fulldisks ... errors upon installation. I can not apply the XP home diskunless I modify the 2000 Pro installation to deceive the laptoparound its own operating system. Is there any way to do this?

Yes. That is a possibility for 50 bucks I could solve the trouble. I suppose it is more the challenge to acquire one of my six older laptops running again with the software for the laptop that I presently own. Particularly since I own everything of the OS software that I am applying. I would quite apply the 50 bucks to take my kids out to Pizza.

You do not own the software. You bought a license to run it with the laptop or PC it arrived with. Or possibly you took a retail license letting you to run it in multiple PC's sequentially. But the OS is owned by Microsoft.

If the HDD is dodgy then any workaround is only that. The drive usually develops more faults and few owners that forgot to save their files with support copies lose it everything. Few have lost their business, few only lose a few thousand at drive recovery houses. I wish this is your risk alone and not something you will Ebay to others.

If you can load the other OSes, they are in fact smaller sets up and/or not as critical of the set up like XP is. Beginning with XP OS, sets up became a more intensive operation. Not only you going to require larger set up space but even complete the set up with drivers from either the supplied OEM disc or going to fetch them like required.

If in fact your HD is acquiring flaky, there is no actual work-around. This is a hardware fault, also if software like in soft bug, it will lead to a major fault or become kaput. In other words, It seems your HD is old and saw better days. If you access to other HDs from other laptops of the same type, then try selecting which maybe the more important to save or apply. Otherwise, as already stated to you, acquiring another HD at some cost is best repair alternative. This not to tell there maybe a work-around, but I find with older devices, these just work as long as the h/w does. IMHO, you h/w is going South.