hard drive problems

[annie fay]

Hi, this is my problem. I removed the hard drive from a optiplex gx150 to replace it with a hard drive from optiplex gx240. when i powered on the dell splash appeared , then black screen with message hard drive not found. I could only go to f2 the system utility page it wont let me boot. I have been trying for days, I would love some help!!:

 

[Lexluethar]

Can't remove one hard drive that has an OS from one computer and move it to another computer. The OS has configuration files to allow it to read the hardware profile of the system (CPU, motherboard, etc), and if that profile has changed the OS cannot load.

Only two options here, either do a repair installation of the OS or reinstall your OS. The former SHOULDN'T delete your files or programs, but always backup if possible. The latter will delete everything, but sometimes that isn't an important factor.

 

[annie fay]

Can't remove one hard drive that has an OS from one computer and move it to another computer. The OS has configuration files to allow it to read the hardware profile of the system (CPU, motherboard, etc), and if that profile has changed the OS cannot load.

Only two options here, either do a repair installation of the OS or reinstall your OS. The former SHOULDN'T delete your files or programs, but always backup if possible. The latter will delete everything, but sometimes that isn't an important factor.

Thanks for the reply, how do I do a repair install? also my computer was refurbished so I do not have the software. any suggestion?

 

[Lexluethar]

Explain specifically what you are trying to do. Do you care if you lose information on either drive?

For a repair installation you will need a CD of the same version of the OS as you have (available in XP not Vista). Put the boot priority to your CD/DVD drive and boot to CD. Then follow the guide below.

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install