baylakates Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 (edited) Am on a desperate hunt for a way out of this labryinth: Relative with expert abilities rebuilt an old CPU which contained an older wireless D-Link card. After he installed his :rolleyes: copy of XP Pro, the unit would not network. He said that the networking card needed to be updated and changed it out to a new one. The installation of the driver would not work. Can't remember what the error msg. was. . .something maybe about a missing file. He left and said he'd be back the next day. That was a month ago. So now I'm trying to get this mess cleaned up, and today it seems like my only option is to remove the hard drive, destroy it, and put in a new one along with a fresh, out of the box purchased copy of Windows. But trying hard to avoid that expense. Here's what I've tried: 1) Using a copy of Windows XP Home to get to the recovery area to reformat. When I use the Run command for setup, the msg is: "D:\setup.exe is not a valid win32 application" 2) Uninstalled the new network card drivers and the actual physical hardware. Attempt to reinstall the driver was unsuccessful. 3) Tried to uninstall windows via the add/remove tool, but windows xp does not appear on the list, so. . . 4) Searched online for "uninstall windows xp" and found a page which described the "manual" uninstall of the OS by booting in safe mode and using the command prompt. Another msg. saying something about missing registry information. I've seen some things on the neowin forums regarding registry fixing, and also wondered if running autopatcher would be the answer, but of course, I can't get online because the driver for the new card won't install due to "registry issues". I am an experienced user but absolutely NOT a technogeek. I can probably do a great deal of damage by my relentless need to fix this mess, but would love to save the time and aggravation by having the help of true experts. Any ideas? Edited June 4, 2006 by baylakates Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin- Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 I'd say find someone who knows about computers. You can't uninstall XP unless you did the "Upgrade" ... then you can do the "downgrading" ... you probably don't want to see the results of that, though. ;) You can get rid of XP by formatting ... but if you don't have a Windows setup disk, you're better off finding someone to help you out. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573819 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unholy Moley! Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 Removing the hard drive and destroying it is not necessary, but if you want to waste money then fine. The best way to go about this problem is to format the hard drive prior to installing WinXP Home. You can do this by booting the computer with the WinXP CD, letting it load, deleting all the existing partitions and formatting a new one (NTFS, dont choose quick). Doing the above format will remove all data currently on your disk, so backup the stuff you want first. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573820 Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrA Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 What do you mean by "uninstall windows"? Did you upgrade from an older version and now want it back or is this a fresh windows install that you want to get rid of? If it's the latter, just reformat. If the former, I'll let other people answer since I have no clue (I don't use windows). Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573821 Share on other sites More sharing options...
baylakates Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 Unholy Moley! said: Removing the hard drive and destroying it is not necessary, but if you want to waste money then fine. The best way to go about this problem is to format the hard drive prior to installing WinXP Home. You can do this by booting the computer with the WinXP CD, letting it load, deleting all the existing partitions and formatting a new one (NTFS, dont choose quick). Doing the above format will remove all data currently on your disk, so backup the stuff you want first. That's the problem. . .I've tried using my windows xp home cd, (from our other computer) to reformat this hard drive, but when I use the Run command for setup, the msg is: "D:\setup.exe is not a valid win32 application". Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573837 Share on other sites More sharing options...
gertin Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 baylakates said: That's the problem. . .I've tried using my windows xp home cd, (from our other computer) to reformat this hard drive, but when I use the Run command for setup, the msg is: "D:\setup.exe is not a valid win32 application". Try booting from the CD instead. Insert the CD and reboot. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573866 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evilpig Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 MrA said: What do you mean by "uninstall windows"? Did you upgrade from an older version and now want it back or is this a fresh windows install that you want to get rid of? If it's the latter, just reformat. If the former, I'll let other people answer since I have no clue (I don't use windows). Sometimes it is a good idea to read more than the title, the post. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573869 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trong Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 You can just slap the drive into another computer and then format the drive. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573936 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unholy Moley! Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 baylakates said: That's the problem. . .I've tried using my windows xp home cd, (from our other computer) to reformat this hard drive, but when I use the Run command for setup, the msg is: "D:\setup.exe is not a valid win32 application". Ok. I assume that you did indeed boot from the CD. It might be the case that the WinXP CD you have is damaged. If such is the case, it's not a big deal because Microsoft will send you a replacement as long as you have a valid key. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573970 Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrA Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Evilpig said: Sometimes it is a good idea to read more than the title, the post. I did and still couldn't tell what the OP's intentions were. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587573994 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evilpig Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Sorry for sounding mean. I was just ****ed. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587574129 Share on other sites More sharing options...
baylakates Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 gertin said: Try booting from the CD instead. Insert the CD and reboot. I've tried placing the winXP cd in the drive, shutting down, and then turning on the computer again. Shouldn't that cause it to boot from the CD? It doesn't, though. . .it just starts running windows again like there's nothing in the drive. Am I forgetting to do something to get it to boot from the CD? Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587574212 Share on other sites More sharing options...
42n81 Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 baylakates said: I've tried placing the winXP cd in the drive, shutting down, and then turning on the computer again. Shouldn't that cause it to boot from the CD? It doesn't, though. . .it just starts running windows again like there's nothing in the drive. Am I forgetting to do something to get it to boot from the CD? While it is first rebooting, hit "del" until you get into the BIOS. Check the boot sequence. Ensure that it is set to boot from CD first, before the hard-drive. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587574725 Share on other sites More sharing options...
baylakates Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 Thanks so much for the tip. . .I did what you said and it came up during restart as "cannont boot from cd. Code: 5" This is a winXPHome cd that was used on another computer. Is there something in the cds that prevents them from being used in another unit, even if you're just trying to utilize the reformat function, (as opposed to actually installing the operating system onto an additional computer)? The cd drive in this unit is functioning, as far as I can tell. Do you or does anyone else know what "code: 5" means? Again, very appreciative of the input you've all responded with! Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587575287 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilhelmus Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot diskettes. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/467069-uninstalling-windows-xp-i-cant/#findComment-587575837 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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