First pc build and Windows 8.1 OS installation nightmare

[invokerisk]

Hey guys. I'm building my first PC and I'm having issues installing windows 8.1 OEM. I've been able to get to the bios and it registers my ram, hard drive, and cpu. From there, I changed the boot order and loaded in the windows 8.1 oem dvd. There the problems start. It restarts constantly, sometimes getting far enough that I can type in my product key and it asks me how i want to partition. Somehow, I got a 300mb partition that I didn't ask for. Anyways, it constantly restarts after giving me a "Windows discovered an error and needs to restart after taking note of it" sort of message. Long story short, any ideas?

BTW, I'm using a MSI 970A-G43 motherboard, an AMD FX 6350 cpu, and the cooler master hyper N520 cpu cooler.

 

[lp231]

First set the bios back to defaults and try that out.
The 300mb partition is for the OS, so just leave that alone.
Also try booting the disc in Uefi mode and see if os will install or not.
To boot from uefi mode, launch the boot order menu during post and select uefi dvd drive.
Note this will create 4 patitions on the hdd and set the hdd to gpt.

 

[invokerisk]

First set the bios back to defaults and try that out.
The 300mb partition is for the OS, so just leave that alone.
Also try booting the disc in Uefi mode and see if os will install or not.
To boot from uefi mode, launch the boot order menu during post and select uefi dvd drive.
Note this will create 4 patitions on the hdd and set the hdd to gpt.

Thanks for the suggestion. I didn't touch the MB settings at all so I don't think I can get it back to the original default settings any more than I have besides changing the boot order. I tried the UEFI mode and it won't work, saying that I can't format the drive nor write to an unformatted drive.

On another note, I chatted with a windows tech and they said that OEM are for companies like Dell and HP. For my purposes, I needed to get the retail version. Does this jibe with what other people know?

 

[lp231]

Check the bios and see if the HDD is detected in the boot order.
There is also a section for HDD boot order, make sure the OS drive it at the top of the list.
Try another HDD (a spare one if you have) and see what it does.

About OEM, this can only be bought along with a piece of hardware.
The other thing is, there is no support for OEM, you're on your own when it comes to troubleshooting, so that's why we have this awesome forum to get help and share knowledge.
The tech support personal is just following by the book. Many have used OEM for their builds.

 

[invokerisk]

Check the bios and see if the HDD is detected in the boot order.
There is also a section for HDD boot order, make sure the OS drive it at the top of the list.
Try another HDD (a spare one if you have) and see what it does.

About OEM, this can only be bought along with a piece of hardware.
The other thing is, there is no support for OEM, you're on your own when it comes to troubleshooting, so that's why we have this awesome forum to get help and share knowledge.
The tech support personal is just following by the book. Many have used OEM for their builds.

I've checked that the HDD is detected in the boot order so I don't think the HDD is the issue. And I don't have a HDD to spare/swap out to test it unfortunately. But thanks for the advice.

A nagging question I have is whether OEMs/windows 8.1 needs a previous version of windows before installation is allowed. I can't seem to get a straight answer from googling. But besides that, to reiterate, I can't even load windows 8.1 on it. It craps out before that happens. It also craps out a different places. Some times, it craps out before I get a chance to punch in my product code, other times, it craps out afterwards. Does this suggest power instabiity? Its brand new and all the calculators say that I should have more than enough for even peak loads.

 

[lp231]

Windows 8.1 OEM and retail are full versions. Only Windows 8 Retail is upgrade, where it needs a previous version of windows for it to install.
For the problem you're having, it could be the power supply, ram, motherboard... basically there is no definitive answer. You will have to test each parts one by one to find out what's causing it.
Even if it's brand new, we all hope it has no problems, but sometimes it happens. Not to long ago I had to RMA a monitor and graphic card for my 2nd spare PC and it was brand new too, not even a week old.

Do you have another computer or is this your only one?
If you have another computer, then create a bootable USB flash drive, Copy Windows 8.1 install files into USB and install from USB.

 

[invokerisk]

lp231, thanks for all your help. I had my hard drive and RAM checked by a service at the university I attend and they said the hard drive and ram are all good. The power supply should be ok since it turns on and is stable (or so I think). The mobo should be ok since i can get to the bios screen. That leaves the CPU and it turns on so IDK how to test for that. Thanks for the suggestions though. I have a friend who has a working computer and hopefully by swapping parts, I can figure out what's going on.

 

[insightdriver]

For what it is worth. I had a similar issue with trying to install Windows 7 Professional. I discovered that the DVD did not like installing on an already-formatted drive. When I used the DVD to format the drive, the installation then completed successfully.