For the personal computer assistant who can have not in any way formatted a hard drive and initiated an operating system before, this mode may be a little staggering.
Practicing the Windows XP installation disk to format the hard drive and thereupon set up the operating system is a practice that an standard personal computer controller can take care of, be that as it may if it is the first time doing so there are a few things that need to be explained.
Before proceeding, make certain that you have the original packaging that came with your edition of Windows. To execute an installation you will require the license key that is by and large affixed to the packaging that came with the Windows installation disks. Do not proceed with this operation until you are positive that you have the proper certificate key to accomplish the install. You will not be able to install Windows without the authorization key.
Before doing anything at all find out if there is any information on the computer system that should to be backed up first. Formatting the hard drive is going to completely clear out any data that is presently on the system. It would be an excellent idea to look through the 'All Programs' menu in Windows (if it is presently installed and running) to see if there are any applications or applications that will necessitate to be reinstalled after the format and Windows installation.
The authentic establishment disks for any installed application software or hardware will all be required once the Windows installment has been performed. Formatting entirely and permanently erases all information on the complete hard drive. Any applications or programs will have to be completely reinstalled once you accomplish the establishment of the Windows operating system.
It would likewise be advisable to take a look at the 'My Documents' folder as this is the utmost common place for personal data to be saved in Windows. It would not be a poor idea to back this folder up to an external storage drive, flash drive, or CD/DVD.
Another thing that will necessitate to be ascertained in front of starting the format and set up is the boot sequence of the pc system. The CD/DVD drive will need to be designated as the first boot appliance to allow the computer to boot without deviation from the Windows installment disk. To modify the start order it may be desired to go into the BIOS settings page to do so.
Contingent on the constructor of the computer system or the motherboard, exactly which key is used to get in the BIOS can vary. Frequently on Dell computers it will be the F2 or Del key, for HP it is usually the F1 or F2, Toshiba Esc or F1, and Sony F2 or F3. Rebooting the minicomputer and paying close regard to the messages exhibited during the POST can likewise commonly provide the appropriate key to enter the BIOS.
After entering the BIOS use the arrow keys to traverse around the assorted menus until the boot sequence is located. If the Hard Drive is the first start appliance then the boot order will have to be reprogrammed to attribute the CD/DVD as the first apparatus. Be certain to save the changes when leaving the BIOS.
Set the Windows XP installment disk into the CD/DVD drive and then restart or power up the computer system with the disk in the drive. If the CD/DVD drive is the first start device Windows XP Setup should start at this juncture.
At the 'Welcome to Setup' page press 'Enter'.
Press F8 to acknowledge the Windows Licensing Agreement.
You may be prompted with a 'repair' option if you previously had windows set up on the system before now.
To go around the repair press 'Esc'.
A list of all existing partitions and non-partitioned spaces will be shown.
Dump any existing partition(s) by using the arrow keys to highlight each existing partition and then pressing the 'D' to delete and then pushing 'L' to confirm the erasure. Do this for any other partitions that may be present. Once all of the partitions have been erased nominate the remaining non-partitioned space and press 'Enter'.
Designate the format selection that is desired. Formatting employing the NTFS file system (quick) will usually work well.
Format the partition by utilizing the NTFS file system (Quick).
Contingent on the breadth of the Hard Drive, the rate of motion and the maturity, formatting may take anywhere from a few minutes to very many hours. Be calm and DO NOT power the system off during the format strategy, doing so can physically demolish the hard drive.
Once the format process has achieved, obey the on screen directions to install Windows XP.
Allow up to 2 hours for this process to complete, be patient and compliments you have swimmingly formatted your Hard Drive and installed Windows XP