Preinstalled W2K

[MarchHare]

I am having a dumb question time. I wish to change the HDD in a machine with a preinstalled Win2000 OS and change the configuration a bit. The HP has only this \"recovery\" cd and not OEM discs. Is it only the /i386 files I have to worry about when I make a disc for a total \"clean slate\" install? (I\'ll do it from DOS) As I am planning to save my data from the old to the new and don\'t wish it to mess up my partitions. How do these \"recovery\" discs differ from OEM?

[meV 0]

Hi!

I know something about Windows 98 recovery CD. It should be similar.I will explain what I know about these (win9x) RCD

They DO NOT allow you to install more than one OS at a time. i.e you can only recovery existing installation or repartition the whole Harddisk and lose all your data!

-OEM CD does not allow you to upgrade or install second OS but you can use something like Partition Magic to hide partition before installing second OS. This is not possible with win 9x Recovery CD.

In Short: To Install with Recovery CD You have to Delete Everything, To install with OEM CD you have to Hide existing OS.

There also many other difference between them which may not affect you because you might be installing on the same PC

My Suggestion 1:

Disable Your Old Disk by plugging it out so that you wont make very big mistake

Then use your Recovery CD to install  Win2k on your new HDD.

You could use Disk imaging technics, which can copy an OS without HDD/Partition specific Infomation. but that would be too much work.


meV

[MarchHare]

They DO NOT allow you to install more than one OS at a time. i.e you can only recovery existing installation or repartition the whole Harddisk and lose all your data!

Hmmmm... I was wondering getting the CAB\'s...

See, my previous system I sold had at one point 6.22, 95 and two NT\'s running, all installed from OEM\'s.(as wellas Beos and two Linuxes) And I had tried the 95 with the 6.22 underneath \"boot to previous OS\" working as well, (even it is supposedly not possible). Ranish Partition Manager lets you also to hide the partitions and I had a bootloader that started the Linuxes separately as well - all OS  thought they \"owned\" the computer while installation and after it.

So forking a bit is not a problem http://images.thetechguide.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif\' class=\'bbc_emoticon\' alt=\'\' />

Thanks, this is somewhat I was expecting.

[The_Flames]

you could try by coping all the i386 folder, then removing / editing the winnt.sif file, that is the file that controlls the setup process usally

[Josetann]

There may be other things they do though.  The most surefire way of doing it \"right\" is to obtain a copy of a windows 2000 oem cd.  Then use the oem key you got with your PC.

[MarchHare]

Aha. I suppose if I equate 2000=NT
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/ar...s/Q131/7/35.ASP
This\'ll answer the .sif -file dilemma.

[MarchHare]

...yeah, right. Now if I could just get a copy of the OEM disk at the snap of the finger that\'d be dandy. Maybe Billy-boy sends me one from Redmond? The whole idea of this asinine \"preinstalled\" [censored]e is AFAIK to avoid the (illegal) copying of OEM disks...