Remove all Linux partitions and....

gman587 · 02-10-2005, 06:52 PM

I want to remove Fedora Core 3 completely off my system and freshly install XP Pro on my system. I tried inserting the XP disk and restarting and all I got was a blank screen. Can anyone give me a good procedure in doing this?

secesh · 02-10-2005, 07:58 PM

there was a discussion on this earlier this week.. the thread starter did not get overly happy responses... hopefully you will receive more mature treatment

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...hreadid=285870

so, people, let's not redirect to microsoft with an attitude, please.

here's the idea:
start your FC install to get to the partitioning section. blow away linux partitions and setup NTFS. from here you can reboot using XP install CD.

As far as your PC not booting from CD -- do you know you have good windows CD? is your BIOS boot order correct? did you 'press any key to boot from cd' ?

capnpayne · 02-10-2005, 08:14 PM

If your CD isn't booting, it's probably either a bad CD or a misconfigured BIOS.
Also, there's no reason whatsoever to use the FC3 CDs - just boot from the XP CD and delete away.

As far as procedure goes, press whatever key your system tells you to at boot to get into (what is usually called) 'setup'. Find your boot sequence and set it how you want. I usually do:
1. FDD
2. CD
3. HDD-0

Save and exit. Reboot with the XP CD in.

gman587 · 02-10-2005, 08:37 PM

Hmmmm I went through the FC3 install and got to the partition part. Under Automatic patitioning I checked "Remove all partitions on this system". So basically when the install gets through removing all the partitions and formatting, its just going to start installling FC3 again.

secesh · 02-10-2005, 08:42 PM

you didn't see i had been corrected

Quote:

Originally posted by capnpayne
...
Also, there's no reason whatsoever to use the FC3 CDs - just boot from the XP CD and delete away.
...

gman587 · 02-10-2005, 08:47 PM

hmmm ok then, let me try this again.

gman587 · 02-10-2005, 09:32 PM

Ok I tired XP disk again and I restarted and a command line came up and said "Press enter to boot from CD..." After i did that another prompt came up and said "Configuring hardware..." said more than that but I cant all remember. After that, that prompts goes away and it just sits there with a blank screen. So then I restarted to try to get into BIOS and for some reason I cant. Ive tried hitting F1, F10, esc. How else can I get in BIOS?

gman587 · 02-10-2005, 09:40 PM

OK nevermind, im in PhoenixBIOS Setup Utility. Im under Boot - Boot Device Priority and under this it has
+Hard Drive
+Removable Devices
CD-ROM Drive
Network Boot

So I mean what is there to change?

When i restart with CD in and after it says starting up hardware configuration, the CDROM runs for a lil bit and then it just quits and is on a blank screen

capnpayne · 02-11-2005, 07:09 AM

I don't understand how it's booting off of the CD when the CD is lower in the boot priority than your hard drive. However, if it does get to the 'press any key to boot from CD' (or something like that) stage, you're probably set. The issue you're having sounds like a bad XP CD more than anything else. Borrow another from a friend, if you can.

vectordrake · 02-14-2005, 01:32 PM

STOP NOW!!!!!

vectordrake · 02-14-2005, 01:41 PM

Now that I have your attention, I'll tell you why I asked you to stop. This is a problem that sometimes comes up for no apparent reason. If you take a day and search through my past posts, you'll see that on 3 or 4 threads, I have discussed this problem. You can google your brains out if you want, bot there's little out there to support your finding. I've been there already, as my machines both did the same thing yours did. It seems to be a problem with the XP cd, your BIOS, and GRUB. That's the only common thing I can find.

Now for the solution. If this is caused by the same reason that my experiences have, then you have a very easy fix in front of you. Somehow in all the juggling, your BIOS may have been reset in one spot only.

Check the settings for your hard drive and be sure that the access method being used is LBA and not something else. Mine somehow got reset to CHS (cylenders, heads, sectors) and this same problem occured. I tried everything I could think of before I discovered this problem. I don't know how it happens, but all I can think of is that the Windows hardware detection somehow misreads the drive when GRUB is installed and borks the BIOS, but I have no proof. You are the only other one I have heard of with this same problem.

So, before you do something drastic, try checking what the settings are for your hard drive in the BIOS first. This may save you a real headache.

edit: someday, I'll start using the spell checker