W2K install via Winnt failed

[Guest]

CPU: Pentium 4, 1.8Ghz
Primary Master 40 GBs
Primary Slave 60 GBs
256MBs DDR memory
MSI M/board 645 Ultra Socket 478

You may have noticed from my previous posting that I have discovered that the problem was a dodgy HDD. Since then I have successfully loaded W2K on the new disk. Thank you to everyone who answered my last query.
Now here's a new brain teaser!

What I'm trying to do now (an exercise) is to load W2k via DOS.
I have booted off a Win98 boot floppy, selected option 1 (load with CD enabled).
After navigating throuhg the W2K install CD to the Winnt.exe I launch the this file and I get a window saying that "Setup did not detect Smartdrive on your computer".
I then selected to continue anyway but a further window appeared saying that W2K couldn't find an uncompressed disk with a minimum of 252MBs.(could this be referring to the Install CD itself?)
I had no further option other than exit.

Keep in mind that the HDD I want to install to already has W2K install on an HDD with 2 partitions. C which is formatted to 20 Gbs and D also 20GBs which is unformatted.
Is this relevent?
Maybe the above error indicated that I am trying to install on the CD itself?? (The error message came up really quickly!)
What am I doing wrong and how do I get winnt.exe to run setup and see my existing C drive?

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by ffisher on 03/08/02 09:31 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Toejam31]

I'm not quite sure as to the point of the exercise, but it's your party.

I suspect that the setup program could not detect which partition should be used for the installation in DOS, as this does not allow the partition to be "defined".

You'll avoid the error simply by using Win2K boot disks, if you prefer this method, install of installing directly from the CD.

<A HREF="http://support.microsoft.com/search/preview.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q228218" target="_new">Error Message Installing Windows 2000 from an MS- DOS Boot Disk (Q228218)</A>

As for Smartdrive:

<A HREF="http://support.microsoft.com/search/preview.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q203128" target="_new">Err Msg: Setup Did Not Detect Smartdrive on Your Computer (Q203128)</A>

<A HREF="http://www.broomeman.com/support/smartdrv.html" target="_new">Smartdrive.exe</A>

Here is <A HREF="http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q197063#Task1" target="_new">how</A> to create a set of Win2K boot disks, if you are not already aware of the process. If so ... please disregard.

Toejam31

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[QuantumPhysics]

If you wanna install from dos, do this
1.)C:\md i386
2.)C:\cd i386
3.)(cdrom drive):\cd i386
4.)(cdrom):\copy *.* c:

Now the files will copy, this will take quite some time.

when completed:

1.)get to c:\i386
2.)Type WINNT

after this launches you shouldnt have any problems. you can put your cd away, you dont need it after this point. All system files are in i386, and you shouldnt ever be prompted in windows to insert the 2k CD, unless your installing the Windows XP Framework. The problem was that you were trying to install directly onto the CD . Just ignore the smartdrive crap btw..

 

[CALV]

FFS i just replied to an identical post a few threads up, WHY do people do that?


If they squeeze olives to get olive oil, how do they get baby oil?

 

[Guest]

Thanks Everyone!
The solution was that first I needed copy smartdrv onto the 98 boot disk and run it after booting. This got rid of the first error. Secondly winnt failed to find a drive because the partition was formated in NTFS!

 

[Toejam31]

Trying to load WinXP from DOS onto a NTFS partition strikes me as an exercise in futility.

Live and learn.

You are welcome for the help, whatever it was worth!

Toejam31

<font color=red>My Rig:</font color=red> <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=6847" target="_new"><font color=green>Toejam31's Tantalizing Tantric Toy</font color=green></A>
<font color=red>Second Rig:</font color=red> <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=15942" target="_new"><font color=green>Toey's Dynamite DDR Duron</font color=green></A>
____________________________________________________________

<font color=purple>"Procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part."</font color=purple>