[thatguy03]

Hey guys I had a friend give me an Dell Inspiron 2500 the other day which had Windows XP installed on it. When I start up the computer the dell inspiron screen comes on and after that it says a disk error has occurred and to press ctrl + alt +del to restart. After pressing that it goes back to the dell screen and displays the same message again because it restarted. My friend said that it had just had XP installed on it. I have a Windows 2000 cd that came with it. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated because I would like to use this computer.

Thanks

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Can you boot into SAFE Mode or Last known good configuration, or SAFE Mode with command prompt?

[Doug]

Can you boot into SAFE Mode or Last known good configuration, or SAFE Mode with command prompt?

[thatguy03]

I have already tried both and neither one would work. I would like to just take xp off and put 2000 back on or if I can save it with xp on it then that would be fine as well. What else could I do?

[Doug]

Does the Tower have a Windows Proof of License Product ID sticker for XP?

If so, and if you can get your hands on the correct flavor of XP installation CD, you should be able to reinstall XP

If it has Windows 2000 Proof of License, then Win2k would be the direction to go.

[Doug]

Actually this is a laptop. Correct?
And Dell probably pre-installed it with XP.
And there is probably a System Recovery partition.

Let's see if we can boot to Recovery Console and allow the machine to reinstall back to factory original.

Ask your friend about any Dell CD's that might be available.

[thatguy03]

Well it had 2000 from th start is what I am getting from him. I have no xp cd or anything. I am thinking maybe whoever installed it had a bad copy or something. How can I get to the recovery console on it? And yes it is a laptop.

[Doug]

Look on the bottom of the laptop to identify what operating system (Windows 2000 or Windows XP) came with the laptop originally.
There should be a Microsoft holographic sticker with a 25 digit alpha-numeric Product Key, and it should say what version of Windows it was originally licensed for.

Knowing which Windows operating system we are working with will give us a starting point.

[Doug]

Oooops.

Looks like you already told me the original operating system.

I have a Windows 2000 cd that came with it.

Is this a Dell branded Windows 2000 installation CD that was originally with the laptop?

[thatguy03]

Yes

[Doug]

In that case, your option is to use Windows 2000 on this laptop.
You should be aware that Windows 2000 Professional should include Service Pack 4 and additional updates from MS Updates

Otherwise, if you wish to use Windows XP, you will have to obtain a legitimate copy of XP installation CD with Product ID License Code.

[thatguy03]

After It goes from the dell inspiron screen it goes black and says invalid bootini.file. Then it goes back to the screen where you can choose to go into safe mode in which it wont load. If I try to go in last known good config i see the blue screen of death for a split second but it goes off soo quick i cant see the error code. After this it just goes back to the same screen where you can choose to go into safe mode or start windows normally.

[Doug]

Time for a Repair Installation.

Unless, you have the legitimate XP installation CD and Product ID (25 digit alpha-numeric code), then your best bet may be format and install Windows 2000.

Since it's still supported, you will be good to go with most current software, antispyware, antivirus, and firewall applications.

As a bonus, Windows 2000 often runs more briskly than XP, particularly on lower-resource machines.

If you do have the legitimate XP CD and Product Code, then there may be some intermediate steps you could take with the XP Recovery Console.

But that depends upon whether or not you have the CD and Product ID.

Best Regards,
Doug

[thatguy03]

I have been busy with work and havent been able to reply or even work on the computer. I cant get the computer to load the 2000 disc because when i start it it goes to the dell inspiron screen like its starting up like it should then the screen goes black and says invalid boot ini file then it goes to the f8 screen where you can choose safe mode. Where do I go from here to get the stupid thing to take the cd?

[Doug]

You will need to enter your machine's BIOS SETUP in order to change the boot device sequence.
Use the on-screen instructions for moving your Optical Drive (CD/DVD) up into the first position, followed by IDE (Hard Drive).

Generally, getting into BIOS SETUP is achieved by pressing F1. F2, F10, or DEL early in the Boot sequence.
I don't know which, but you will see a Prompt such as....

(F1 = BIOS) or (F1 to Enter SETUP)
Watch closely immediately when the screen is still black. The "prompt" will be included in the first printed displayed information.

Once in BIOS, the BOOT Device Order will probably be on the first or second screen.
you will be instructed to use your arrow keys to navigate and probably your + / - keys to toggle the position of the device.
Don't make any other changes.
When exiting, select "Save Changes and Exit"

If you already have the MS Windows 2000 CD in the CD ROM, you should probably get a "Press "any" key to boot from CD"
Follow the on-screen prompts.

Doug

[thatguy03]

Sorry again for late late reply I am horrible with work. I have the cd in the cd-rom drive and it doesnt give me a press any key option.