Installing Windows XP x86 from a non-bootable disc

Question

I have a genuine Windows XP x86 SP3 downloaded from MS Website (Partners) but this CD is not bootable when trying to fresh-install it. The autorun works fine when I put it in my DVD reader but can't install it on any computer.

I'm trying to find a way, with a bootdisk to have it installed but for any reason (Might be n00b) I just can't make a proper NTFS boot disk and have that CD to run for a clean installation.

I know this is an easy question but I need a little help.

Answer 1

Have you changed the BIOS so it includes the optical drive in it's boot sequence?

UPDATE

From your other comments it appears that the CD is not bootable. You'll need to re-burn it.

Answer 2

If you CD is not bootable for some reason, you can always create your own installation disk as long as you have the installation source files (i386 folder), here's a guide that explains the procedure step-by-step-:

How to Create a Bootable Windows XP Setup Disk on a Preinstalled / Preloaded Windows System

Answer 3

the boot disk doesn't need to be NTFS. Can you elaborate on how you burned that CD-ROM? Did you download an .ISO file? What burning tool did you use?

As ChrisF suggested, I believe it can be fixed with a change in your BIOS.

Answer 4

Here's a tutorial to making a bootable CD:

You will need to get the boot sector files, which you can get from here. Open the zip and browse to cds\winxppro\files (or cds\winxphome\files), copy w2ksect.bin to C:\ (you can copy to another location but in that case you will need to adjust some parameter).

Copy all the files on your non-bootable CD to one folder, for example C:\winxpinst (if you have more than one cd/dvd drive you don't need to do this, you can copy straight from the second cd drive).

Download and install ImgBurn which is a free utility to burn files/images to CD. We will now create a script to be imported in ImgBurn, to do so open a text editor (e.g. Notepad) and paste the following:

[START_BACKUP_OPTIONS]
BuildMode=1
Destination=0
TestMode=0
Verify=1
WriteSpeed=0
Copies=0
FileSystem=1
PreserveFullPathnames=0
RecurseSubdirectories=1
IncludeHiddenFiles=1
IncludeSystemFiles=1
IncludeArchiveFilesOnly=0
AddToWriteQueueWhenDone=0
ClearArchiveAttribute=0
VolumeLabel_ISO9660=VRMHOEM_EN
VolumeLabel_Joliet=
VolumeLabel_UDF=
Identifier_System=
Identifier_VolumeSet=
Identifier_Publisher=
Identifier_Preparer=
Identifier_Application=
Dates_FolderFileType=0
Restrictions_ISO9660_InterchangeLevel=0
Restrictions_ISO9660_AllowMoreThan8DirectoryLevels=1
Restrictions_ISO9660_AllowMoreThan255CharactersInPath=1
Restrictions_ISO9660_AllowFilesWithoutExtensions=1
Restrictions_ISO9660_AllowFullASCIICharacterSet=1
Restrictions_ISO9660_DontAddVersionNumberToFiles=1
Restrictions_Joliet_InterchangeLevel=1
Restrictions_Joliet_AllowFilesWithoutExtensions=1
Restrictions_Joliet_AddVersionNumberToFiles=0
BootableDisc_MakeImageBootable=1
BootableDisc_MediaEmulationType=0
BootableDisc_BootImageFile=C:\w2ksect.bin
BootableDisc_DeveloperIdentifier=
BootableDisc_LoadSegment=07C0
BootableDisc_LoadSectorCount=4
[END_BACKUP_OPTIONS]

[START_BACKUP_LIST]
C:\winxpinst
[END_BACKUP_LIST]

Be sure to change:

BootableDisc_BootImageFile=C:\w2ksect.bin

and

[START_BACKUP_LIST]
C:\winxpinst

to the locations where you copied the w2ksect.bin file and you stored the Windows installation files (can be the cd drive letter if you are using two cd drives). Then save the file as some-name.ibb (important, make sure windows does not add a txt extension to the file name).

If you have installed ImgBurn you can double-click this file and the program will open with the right configuration. At this point you only have to hit "Burn" or similar command in the program and the bootable cd will be created. The installation files will also be copied to the cd.

Answer 5

The problem is likely with your computer; I don't think Microsoft has ever created a non-bootable XP CD. Try booting the computer to a known bootable CD, such as Knoppix.

If the CD really isn't bootable, you can make a bootable one using nLite.

Answer 6

Just create a boot floppy. Use it to boot into the machine. Then restart the machine. Set the BIOS boot option to Floppy. Then boot using it. Move to (CDROM Drive):\WINNT\setup.exe