Solved Install troubles

Sonyack

Member
I gave my very tech unsavvy brother my two or three year old desktop and the Vista installation disc that goes with it. Now he calls me and says he "fixed it" several times, but now it "won't do anything." I had him open the case and remove the power plug from the back of the hdd, then turn the computer on. He said it started up, but windows won't "show up," and the computer tells him to restart it.

So I bought him a new bare bones hard drive, knowing that Vista will offer to partition and format the drive, and sent him a print-out of instructions with pictures. He says Vista stops loading and says it cannot proceed and it gives "60 error things." He says he has tried to install Vista several times and the installation gives out at various percentages of installation, 90% done being the most. It seems that he gets the irql_not_greater_or _equal_to error as the first error, and I don't know why he says he gets 60+ error numbers. But Vista did partition the drive, or at least reports a partition.

So I need some tips as to what to look for and how best to deal with this problem of busted hard drive and Vista won't install on the new one.
 

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Hello, that installation dvd may have got corrupted, have him try to install free of Ubuntu from Linux. If he can install that, that would eliminate the hard drive and point at the Installation dvd as bad . On the other hand, if the Linux Ubuntu fails to install, then that would indicate that the hard drive is bad .
 
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My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Emachine ET 1161-05
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640
    Motherboard
    eMachines MCP61PM-GM (Socket AM2 )
    Memory
    2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 387MHz (6-6-6-18)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Acer E181H (1280x768@60Hz) 128MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name Acer E181H on NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
    Screen Resolution
    1280x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    ST316081 5AS SCSI Disk Device
    PSU
    MCP61PM-GM 9000 NVIDIA Chipset Model MCP61 Chipset Revisio
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Fan Speed 1247 RPM
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    PS/2 Compatible Mouse
    Internet Speed
    http://www.speedtest.net/result/1538974261.png
Thanks Yard Dog. It was on my mind that there is something about the install disc. Actually, it could be dirt from my ham handed brother causing this. That the hdd is bad might be the case, but it is brand new and Vista partitioned it....
 

My Computer

Have him double check that the cable is connected securely also.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Emachine ET 1161-05
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640
    Motherboard
    eMachines MCP61PM-GM (Socket AM2 )
    Memory
    2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 387MHz (6-6-6-18)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Acer E181H (1280x768@60Hz) 128MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name Acer E181H on NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
    Screen Resolution
    1280x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    ST316081 5AS SCSI Disk Device
    PSU
    MCP61PM-GM 9000 NVIDIA Chipset Model MCP61 Chipset Revisio
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Fan Speed 1247 RPM
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    PS/2 Compatible Mouse
    Internet Speed
    http://www.speedtest.net/result/1538974261.png
I had him check the ram, the video card, and the hdd connection [SATA]. As you know, trying to fix things over the phone is pretty iffy. And my brother is, as mentioned, very unsavvy about the tech side of these things. He kept telling me about getting a blue screen and it turns out he meant the installation screens:0)
 
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I have a SATA external hard drive enclosure hooked to my laptop. Can Vista be installed on a hdd in that? For sure the disc can be checked for useability, yes?

Oops, of course Vista won't install via usb....but I guess I could ask the bro to send me the hdd and disc so as to check them for useability.
 
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My Computer

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Emachine ET 1161-05
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640
    Motherboard
    eMachines MCP61PM-GM (Socket AM2 )
    Memory
    2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 387MHz (6-6-6-18)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Acer E181H (1280x768@60Hz) 128MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name Acer E181H on NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
    Screen Resolution
    1280x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    ST316081 5AS SCSI Disk Device
    PSU
    MCP61PM-GM 9000 NVIDIA Chipset Model MCP61 Chipset Revisio
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Fan Speed 1247 RPM
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    PS/2 Compatible Mouse
    Internet Speed
    http://www.speedtest.net/result/1538974261.png
Thanks but that's not what I was wishfully thinking. I was thinking I could install Vista onto a hdd in an enclosure connected to my laptop via usb. I wasn't thinking of making an installation device out of a thumb drive. My understanding is that Windows will not make a bootable drive through a usb port. And might not recognize the hdd through a usb port in the first place. Do I understand wrongly?
 

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I just went searching online and see adapter cables and external hard drives that connect with USB 2.0 . Seems to me there are hard drives that will function off of a USB connection , if cabled correctly or made for that type connection. Depends on what you have and how much money you want to spend. Sorry, if i can not help you exactly with this issue.
We have other users here that do all kinds of stuff and may be able to assist you more on what might be best for you.
I just hope the main issue with the brother is solved .
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Emachine ET 1161-05
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640
    Motherboard
    eMachines MCP61PM-GM (Socket AM2 )
    Memory
    2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 387MHz (6-6-6-18)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Acer E181H (1280x768@60Hz) 128MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name Acer E181H on NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
    Screen Resolution
    1280x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    ST316081 5AS SCSI Disk Device
    PSU
    MCP61PM-GM 9000 NVIDIA Chipset Model MCP61 Chipset Revisio
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Fan Speed 1247 RPM
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    PS/2 Compatible Mouse
    Internet Speed
    http://www.speedtest.net/result/1538974261.png
Thanks a million, Yard Dog, for taking the time with this. The main problem it turns out was the brother and his total lack of tech skill and his peculiar manner of thinking.

It's true that the hard drive needed replacement, for sure. But I got a call today from him that he finally succeeded in installing Vista. He can't tell me how he did it or what was so different from earlier tries. I tried to get him to run the SP1 exe file off the disc I had given him, and he couldn't even navigate to the D drive to locate the file. Later on, I called him to try to give him more info and he says he got the SP1 to install, but he "needed a special program" to do it, lol. I guess he means the dialog box you get when you insert a CD in the drive, giving options... So I just said, "Do the same with the SP2 disc I gave you."

In any case, the install Vista problem is solved, and thanks again.
 

My Computer

Your welcome, glad i could help out, come back anytime , if just to check out the excellent tutorials posted.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Emachine ET 1161-05
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640
    Motherboard
    eMachines MCP61PM-GM (Socket AM2 )
    Memory
    2.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 387MHz (6-6-6-18)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Acer E181H (1280x768@60Hz) 128MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name Acer E181H on NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
    Screen Resolution
    1280x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    ST316081 5AS SCSI Disk Device
    PSU
    MCP61PM-GM 9000 NVIDIA Chipset Model MCP61 Chipset Revisio
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Fan Speed 1247 RPM
    Keyboard
    Standard PS/2 Keyboard
    Mouse
    PS/2 Compatible Mouse
    Internet Speed
    http://www.speedtest.net/result/1538974261.png
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