Shof Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 Is there a way to remove the Media Center and just keep XP on a XP MCE laptop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+allan MVC Posted May 19, 2006 MVC Share Posted May 19, 2006 I assume they are two separate installations. If so, just boot to XP and delete the systemroot for MCE (the folder to which MCE is installed). Then edit the boot.ini file and remove the line referring to MCE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kraftman Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 Erm... why would you want to remove MCE? MCE is just XP Pro except with the Media Center add-on and removed domain login abilities. There is no viable reason to remove MCE... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shof Posted May 19, 2006 Author Share Posted May 19, 2006 I just dont need MCE ;) my laptop is coming with it, and i have no media use for it So i want to trash it to save room on the drive and speed it up a few Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sendmarksmail Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 The only possible way to remove MCE is to remove the folders where MCE is stored, but that might cause problems in XP since it's integrated into XP. The only possible way is to get a regular copy of XP. MCE doesn't really slow down XP at all. It's just another program. Kinda like having Windows Media Player. MCE is the same thing. Just a seperate Application. Just dont use it. It doesn't take up more than 500mb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shof Posted May 19, 2006 Author Share Posted May 19, 2006 In services.msc,disabled Media Center Extender, Receiver, and Scheduler .. and then went on to msconfig to disable ehtray.exe, which also got rid of ehmsas.exe. Is that true? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Post-It Note Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 If you get the MCE XP install disks, you can make it only install the XP portion by entering a non-MCE cd-key (or... maybe you can try selecting "ignore" when it asks you for the second disk. MCE comes in 2 cds.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shof Posted May 19, 2006 Author Share Posted May 19, 2006 my laptop dont come with the cds and i cant find my xp pro cds and also dell wants 10 dollars for the mce cds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sendmarksmail Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 10 Bucks is not bad. Most companies charge 30 dollars plus shipping and handling. I say get it, but make sure you have a Windows XP Pro key that would allow you to install XP without MCE. If you have an XP key, it won't ask for the 2nd cd to install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iguanadon Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 the disk from dell will be one dvd not two cd. call them and no matter what they say about you not needing a restore cd becuase of a hidden partion that dell installs, tell them to send the disk anyway. it will look like a bill from dell, but if you call you will be told there is no charge. this is what i and a friend both had to do. i can tell you that it took the good part of an hour to get past the (you don't need restore disks). try your best to stay calm, remember its not the person on the phones fault. a year ago i read on the dell forum that they have to send the disks if you request them. good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackc1990 Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 mce doesnt hardly take up any more room than xp, just stay with mce, it looks better and you might as well just keep it. your harddrive cant be THAT small that you NEED the space after installing xp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheppard Posted May 19, 2006 Share Posted May 19, 2006 Indeed, it doesnt slow your computer down, just disable the MCE services and it wont bother you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shof Posted May 19, 2006 Author Share Posted May 19, 2006 mce doesnt hardly take up any more room than xp, just stay with mce, it looks better and you might as well just keep it. your harddrive cant be THAT small that you NEED the space after installing xp Its a 60gb SATA drive in my laptop...but i planing on dumping some of my music on there so i will like to squeeze the most available space Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BFB Posted May 6, 2008 Share Posted May 6, 2008 I'm in stitches reading this old thread. I have XP MCE 2005, and am researching the same question (dump Media center, keep XP). Just don't use it? Maybe earlier versions were different, but on my computer, MC is in fact like a virus I can't escape. It opens on it's own and it's full of problematic glitches that freeze my computer. I have already shut down services, and all the auto functions I can find, but this could go on forever..... But the main reason I want to dump it is very simple: I have other software and hardware that just will not work properly if MC is present. Period. I don't suppose there's any new info re getting rid of MC without doing a reinstall? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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