new build first boot probs

[jaymanfl1]

hi all, first time poster here, long time reader and thankfull for all previous help. just finished building new system, powered up, got it to post, went through bios fine, save and exit bios, but after that i get error message: pxe-e6 media test failure check cables disk boot failure. have xp cd in cdrom, have checked all cables,no jumper on sata drive (wd 120gb 7200), have tried 5 different cdrom drives,bios recognizes wd120, but when save and exit bios, still get error. thank you in advance for any fixes or suggestions.


system:
tsunami dream case w/3fans
amd a64 3000+(no o/c)zalman hs/fan
chaintech vnf3-250 mobo
2x512 ddr pc3200
wd 120gb sata hdd
ati radeon 9200 se
win xp pro

 

[uchiha]

i think your motherboard is trying to do a network boot. This sometimes happens when your computer cannot detect a drive on your system. I would take these steps:

checking the xp disc on another pc to see if its bootable. (it could be a copy, but thats your case...just make sure its bootable)

make sure there are no special requirements for disc drives specified by your motherboard manufacturer.

i assume you configure your bootsettings every time you start bios. try starting it with default settings and see if you still get the error.

try booting from a floppy disc. i dont know how you will go about this one.

if all fails, contact your mobo tech support.

if they cant help you, reset CMOS.

 

[jaymanfl1]

thanx uchiha, found out that the xp disk was update only. made startup floppy from98 on another machine, rebooted, ran fdisk, formatc, and all is well! much thanx again

 

[jaymanfl1]

oh, no.............. 98 does not complete setup, keeps locking up@ time setup.kept restarting only to hang on ide detect, reminding me that i did not see "press f6 to install 3rd party drivers" during 98 blue setup screen. researched and found that 98 does not support sata, no sh!$! how and when do i install mobo sata drivers?, havecd and copy of files on floppy. i reset cmos and started over, formatted and named disk, stopped there till i hear back. do i have to go buy xp pro full instead of the burned copy of xp update edition i have?

 

[Apokalipse]

crashing could mean a number of things.. a defective disk, bad RAM, bad motherboard, overclocked CPU (though I doubt it)

 

[jaymanfl1]

checked every piece of hardware, all good, has to be software. will 98 run on athlon64 so i can then upgrade to xp with sata support?

 

[uchiha]

oh its an upgrade.

it is not possible to do a clean install using an update disc... there needs to be a previous version of windows that can be upgraded still existing on the drive.

 

[jaymanfl1]

guess i just have to buy xp full version, reset cmos, and try to installxp from cd?

 

[Sevoma]

well if you have the upgrade, it should ask for a older windows disk for verification. so then, just pop in the 98' cd-rom and it should install.

 

[DJ-CHRIS]

Just aqquire an XP disk, than use your legal cd key, should be able to use that cd key with an full install