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Thread ID: 82689	2007-09-04 19:41:00	Reinstalling/refomatting XP on a Dell	Neil McC (178)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
587911	2007-09-04 19:41:00	While my friend is away overseas I've offered to reload Xp on her Dell 2-3 year old pc, which has slowed considerably,she has a 13 year old son who fiddles.(Don't they all) Are all the drivers necessary in her reinstall setup, i.e motherboard, etc. Still haven't seen how to do a reinstall, will check that out tomorrow night. I'll do an image first.	Neil McC (178)
587912	2007-09-04 20:40:00	'll do an image first. smart lad ! as for the rest well it'll either have a restore partition or disks either way all the necessary drivers for her original setup (the pc as originally supplied by dell) will be included	drcspy (146)
587913	2007-09-04 21:09:00	When reinstalling, just make sure you have the original Dell driiver CDs. I recently reformatted my Dell laptop's hard disk, installed the drivers from Dell's supplied driver disc and everything worked fine!:thumbs: If you don't have the original driver CD that shipped with your Dell, google the device name and add "driver" to the end. This info can be found in Device Manager (Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device Mgr). Common devices drivers are needed for are: -Video Card -Sound Card -Network Card -Modem If you are worried about Windows Activation :yuck: don't be. Assuming you are using the original Dell XP CD, you won't be asked to activate or even enter a serial number!	jwil1 (65)
587914	2007-09-04 21:18:00	If you are doing a install from a Non Dell XP CD you will need to use the product key on the bottom of the laptop. Sometimes it activates fine other times you have to call MS and tell them the original install was damaged and you had to use the product key on the Laptop. They simply relicence it. - Just tell them the recovery CD was lost. ( MS's # 0800 676 334) For the drivers - if you don't have the CD that may have come with the Laptop, normally they are in a folder in the C: drive ,as they don't load dircetly from the CD,they transfer from the CD to the folder, then load, I think it's in the C:/Dell or Drivers, but they wil be there someplace,usually as (numbers).exe and it may be a hidden folder. Worst case go to dells driver site and download for your model. Dell Driver Downloads (support.dell.com) Select the model and away you go.	wainuitech (129)
587915	2007-09-05 10:50:00	Thanks guys for your advice. It's a desktop and I'm sure she's got all the original material so will have a look tomorrow night. Get back to you if I need any help. Thanks again.	Neil McC (178)
587916	2007-09-05 12:10:00	She may have a hidden restore partition on her pc usually accessed when booting (usually by pressing a function key e.g. F12), would pay to check the Dell site about the model first, before you go reformatting the hdd :eek:	feersumendjinn (64)
587917	2007-09-24 00:00:00	Well, everything has gone ok, with a few images made of new setup. Only strange thing is, I slipstreamed her Dell XPSP1 cd with SP2 and loaded it,and didn't get asked for a product key, and it also hasn't asked for activation!! This was a new install, not a repair. According to SIW and others, the original product key is different to the one on the side of the box. Any ideas on why this is? Not worried as it's obviously installed and getting updates from Micro. Just reread your post jwil1 and that explains it :D Thanks for all your help.	Neil McC (178)
587918	2007-09-24 00:22:00	The original Dell XP SP1 CD will have an OEM version that is tied to the Dell BIOS and won't need to be activated. It will also have a Dell OEM Volume License key so it will be different to the one on the sticker on the case.	CYaBro (73)
587919	2007-09-24 00:40:00	The original Dell XP SP1 CD will have an OEM version that is tied to the Dell BIOS and won't need to be activated. It will also have a Dell OEM Volume License key so it will be different to the one on the sticker on the case. That also goes for HP/ Compaq's in fact Compaq actually use the same product key on a lot of their systems - Volume License.	wainuitech (129)
587920	2007-09-24 01:27:00	OK. Thanks for that info, I can safely give it back now!! Certainly running a lot quicker.Have partitioned a D drive as well now so her boy won't be able to load as many games as before :lol:	Neil McC (178)
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