Problems installing ME - advice needed!

[Jack Pollard]

Hey, quick history about what I've done:

Had some issues with my computer a few weeks ago, got a local computer technician to sort it out. During this he installed Windows XP (I was previously running ME) and since then the computer seemed quite slow and a lot of the software I had wouldn't work properly on XP. So I tried to format the disk so I could reinstall ME but didn't realise how complicated it would be. By then I couldn't start up the computer without the boot disk so I thought maybe I could create a partition, install Windows ME on that and then go from there. I think I managed to delete all the partitions and now I've got 1 single partition which hasn't got any operating system on it.

However it won't let me install Windows ME, saying that there isn't sufficient space. Through typing "fdisk" I can see that there is only one partition which is C: with 19GB free - the whole disk.

So my question is how can I tell the computer that there is sufficient space so I can install Windows ME?

Hope that that's quite clear, admittedly I'm not too clued up on computers so I'd be very grateful if someone could try and help me out!

Thanks very much, Jack

 

[Kage]

Hey, first of all, Welcome.

Second of all. May I ask you how you formatted?

I have a horrible feeling that because Windows XP was installed before, you've re-formatted it with the NTFS standard of compression, since Windows XP can use this fine (Just the way it handles data)

Windows before that though needs FAT32 (the standard type) to run, and this includes ME. You may find it can't run because it isn't seeing the right kind of formatted disc to install.

Is there an option to re-format from within the Windows ME disk?

I hope this helps

 

[joxley1990]

Uumm what I would do, to make life easier, is completly wipe the HD, and start from scratch, using the FAT32 as kage suggested. Try it and let us know

 

[grantmc1]

in dos type a:\>FORMAT C: if this doesnt work you need to change the directory d:\>cd d:\win9x and the type in d:\>win9x\format c:

 

[joxley1990]

Yeah a good idea from grantmc1 - you might find this easier...i dno..do both lol

You could put it in another computer as a "slave" hdd, and reformat from there. If you dont know how to do this...well theres an explanation here lol..

On the back of the HDD there is a set of pins, probs about 5 sets..kinda like this

:::::

On one of those pins a jumper will be placed. You need to take that off.
Now, look on the HDD somwhere for a lil diagram named jumper settings or something like that. Find the one for slave and put the jumper onto that. Put it in another computer (with another HDD) load up the pc, and go into my computer. It should display two hard drives. Right click on the secondary one, click format, and then FAT32.

Easy - peezy lemon squizzy

 

[grantmc1]

joxley1990 has a good idea if you plug rthe second HDD IN TO AN XP MACHINE format the hard drive in computer managment or adminastartor tools and thats easyier fastewr and cheaper

 

[joxley1990]

joxley1990 has a good idea if you plug rthe second HDD IN TO AN XP MACHINE format the hard drive in computer managment or adminastartor tools and thats easyier fastewr and cheaper

Thanks you very much. Its easier than it sounds dont worry lol, any noob could do it.