formatted my computer. stuck at invalid system disk replace and press any key

[coco]

hi
my friend gave me his old computer. it was full of junk so formatted the c: in DOS mode. i wanted to instal windows XP but i can only get to were my computer says invalid system disk replace and press any key.
do i need a boot disk? i dont have one, and my floppy drive doesnt work.

any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[brady]

sounds like you need either the windows98 os disk or a 98 bootdisk.

 

[coco]

thanx
am i supposed to have that from before?
can i download it anywhere?

 

[RicoDirenzo]

Try this: go into your Cmos and make your first boot dirve the cdrom>insert the xp cd and boot into xp setup from the cd. Install xp and format that drive NTFS but do not use quick format. Once xp is installed go back into the CMOS and make the HD the first boot device.

 

[coco]

i made a few attemps but no dice.
would you mind walking me throught the cmos part? nothing straight out ask my what i want to boot first in plain english.
sorry, thanx for yr help

 

[RicoDirenzo]

NP. Start your comnputer you will come to a screen that says hit the Del to enter the system setup. If you are unsure just when that is alternately hit the F2 and Del key and you should be taken to a system setup screen. look across the top menu items until you find something that says boot priority. Click on that and then scroll down to the ist boot device and hit enter. You will then be given the option to select a currently installed drive. Choose> cdrom and then hit F10 key and when prompted to save the current settings say yes and the system restart.

make sure the xp cd is in the computer cd dirve already.
You will then be prompted to "hit any key to boot from CD" and then hit any key.
Windows XP should then load into the setup mode.
When prompted to setup do all that setup asks:
When prompted to keep the current system files say no and then you will be taken to a format screen for the current drive which should be C:
You will be given 4 formatting options: choose the one that says: NTFS (not the Quick NTFS): it will take several minutes to a hour to format the drive depending on it's size. Once the formatting is completed windows will go through the standard setup process. Just do as you are told!

If you need more help just reply.

 

[derrmc]

hi
my friend gave me his old computer. it was full of junk so formatted the c: in DOS mode. i wanted to instal windows XP but i can only get to were my computer says invalid system disk replace and press any key.
do i need a boot disk? i dont have one, and my floppy drive doesnt work.

any help would be greatly appreciated

how did you get c: to format itself?

 

[RicoDirenzo]

Re: Re: formatted my computer. stuck at invalid system disk replace and press any key

how did you get c: to format itself?

Huh? Dude, no confusion is necessary here. C: cannot "format itself".....it takes software. What is the heck is the point to asking that question? No pancake on your head today anyway!!

Edit: Yes, he was trying to format the primary IDE from the dos prompt....is that your rhetorical question???

Coco: I'm going home form work. I'll check the thread this evening to see if you have made any progress.

 

[derrmc]

Re: Re: Re: formatted my computer. stuck at invalid system disk replace and press any key

Huh? Dude, no confusion is necessary here. C: cannot "format itself".....it takes software. What is the heck is the point to asking that question? No pancake on your head today anyway!!

Edit: Yes, he was trying to format the primary IDE from the dos prompt....is that your rhetorical question???

shut the f up

 

[coco]

thanx rico. ill try that now.

derrmc, when you went to shut down the computer one of the option was to go to DOS mode. the i type in fromat c: