Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation
Moscow State University of Economics
Statistics and Informatics (MESI)
Institute of Computer Technology
Abstract on operating environments, systems and shells on the topic:
“Installing Windows XP. Configuring Windows shell XP, optimization of work "
Artist: Alexey Cherkasov
student of group DKE-102
Moscow 2002
Introduction.
Windows XP was released on October 25, 2001. It is a uniquely powerful Operating System (OS), which is based on Windows 2000. Since this is a completely new OS, I will rely on mixing from the Internet.
What is WindowsXP?
This is the new OC from Microsoft, starting with which an attempt was made to combine the two previously existing independently, the W9x and NT lines. This project was originally called Whisler, but now it has split into two lines, WindowsXP, which is positioned to replace W9x and W2kPro, and Windows.NET, which is positioned to replace NT Server of all sorts. Regardless of the name, they are all direct heirs of Windows2000, and successors of the WindowsNT line. This fact determines the main features of WindowsXP. It is a fully 32-bit OS with priority multitasking. It is based on the same principles that all NTs were based on. it
2.Portability... The system runs on a variety of Intel and AMD x86 processors. There is already a 64-bit version of WindowsXP and Windows.NET designed to run on Intel Itanium. Implementing support for other processor architectures is possible, but requires some effort.
3.Scalability... WindowsXP supports SMP technology. Windows .NET Advanced Server and Datacenter Server also support COW (Cluster Of Workstations).
4.Security system... The user-level security system familiar to NT has been implemented.
5.Distributed processing... WindowsXP has networking capabilities built into the system so that you can communicate with different types host computers thanks to a variety of transport protocols and client-server technology.
6.Reliability and robustness... The OS architecture protects applications from damage from each other and from the operating system itself. It uses fault-tolerant structured exception handling at all architectural levels, which includes recoverable NTFS and provides protection with built-in security and advanced memory management techniques.
7.Localization... The system provides opportunities for working in many countries of the world in national languages, which is achieved by using the ISO Unicode standard.
8.Extensibility... Due to the modular design of the system, it becomes possible to add new modules to various architectural levels of the OS.
The final build is 2600. You can find it out either by the winver command, or by the version of the XP kernel, for example, the ntoskrnl.exe file. It is possible to distinguish a pirated release from a real one thanks to the activation mechanism (Windows Product activation) added to the system. A pirated release must include tools to combat it, so if you see a folder called crack, or something like that, you can be sure that the release is pirated. If there is nothing like this on your disk, and the disk itself has all the signs of illegal (no hologram, no license agreement on paper, no sticker that changes color if you heat it with your finger), then you risk that your version will stop working within a month. However, there are also "broken" pirated releases that do not require registration at all. In addition, there are so-called corporate releases made by Microsoft for its largest OEM partners. Such releases do not require registration initially.
INWindows XP isWindows Product Activation. This is a new technology developed by Microsoft to combat illegal copies of their software. For the first time such a mechanism was tested on Terminal Service, from W2k Server, but now it seems that all, or many, subsequent Microsoft products will be protected in this way. The essence of the technology is as follows. After installing the system, a so-called Product ID is generated based on the serial number that is given with each copy of XP, and some features of your computer. It consists of 20 digits, and based on it (along with the correct serial number, of course), you get the Activation Code, after the introduction of which Windows is considered activated. According to Microsoft, based on these two numbers, they cannot find out anything about your computer. That is, complete anonymity. Perhaps this is true. If you do not do this, then after 30 days in XP everything will simply cease to function except the applet responsible for activation. You can find out if your version of XP is activated in the System Summary window located in the Programs -> Accessories -> System tools -> System menu. Information. If you see the line Activation Status, and opposite its inscription like Activation Pending (XX days remaining), then after XX days your XP will stop working. The applet that is responsible for activating XP is located in the Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Activate Windows menu. When you launch this applet, a simple wizard will open, which will offer to register your copy of XP over the Internet, or by phone. After the system is activated (in any way), the Activation Pending line from System Information will disappear without a trace.
There are two kinds of versionXP - Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional. In addition, there is a 64-bit version of Windows XP Professional made for 64-bit Intel Itanium. Later will be released (according to Mircosoft) Widows.NET Server, Windows.NET Advanced Server and Windows.NET Datacenter Server (x86 and 64 bit edition for each). XP Home is positioned as an OS to replace the W9x line, XP Professional, as a replacement for Windows2000 Professional. Of the significant differences between them, we can only note the lack of SMP support in XP Home. But, despite this, even XP Home is built on the NT kernel, so from October 25, 2001 (the official release date of XP), we can talk about the long-promised official death of the W9x line, and the MS-DOS ideology along with it. Windows.NET differs from XP in the presence of system services and applications inherent in the server, and support for more powerful hardware. So, if XP Pro supports SMP only on two processors, then NET Server is already on 4, NET Advanced Server on 8, and NET Datacenter Server on 32.
Microsoft claims that for a successful installation XP You need a processor of at least 233 megahertz, 64 megabytes random access memory, and 1.5 gigabytes free space on disk. However, for more or less comfortable work you will need a processor of at least 500 megahertz and at least 128 megabytes of RAM. Although, by making the interface as lightweight as possible, you can achieve that XP will require less memory than W2k, so if you sacrifice all sorts of "bells and whistles" and visual effects, you can work quite comfortably on less powerful systems. In general, if your machine is running W2k, then XP will work, no worse, if not better. Like any OS based on the NT core, XP is very fond of extra RAM, so 512 MB for such a system will not be superfluous at all, although they are not required. At 256 Mb, the system works very quickly and is very pleasant, if you do not load it with very heavy applications. If you enable all the visual effects, then XP will noticeably slow down on relatively weak processors, regardless of the amount of RAM. The same effect is observed when using a weak video card. However, if the system is powerful enough, then a properly configured XP will run much faster than any OS from Microsoft previously released.
As with W2k, the NT kernel imposes its own limitations, so you can't expect XP to be completely backward compatible with older software. However, compared to w2k, the compatibility situation has improved somewhat. Among the most notable changes can be noted the sound that appeared in old DOS games, which was very difficult to achieve in W2k. Sound Blaster 2 and General MIDI emulation is supported, so now you can without running around with a tambourine and third party utilities make such old hits as Worms, Duke Nukem 3D, Warcraft 1 and 2, Dune 2 work with sound. In addition, XP has a built-in compatibility mode with old OS. In order to use it, you need to select the Compatibility tab from the Properties of the file or the shortcut to the file. In this tab, you can specify under the guise of which OS you want to run the program, whether you need to change the resolution or color depth in this case (necessary for many old programs).
Unlike acompat.exe from the W2k distribution, XP in compatibility mode not only reports to the program that it is not it (like an old utility from MS-DOS, called setver), but also emulates the structure of the Windows registry inherent in one or another OS version. If you don't want to climb the file properties and shortcut yourself, you can use the Program Compatibility Wizard, from the Start - Programs - Accessories button. However, you should not expect a miracle from this mechanism, it was not possible to achieve 100% compatibility, so it will not be superfluous to go to the website of the manufacturer of your program and see if there is an update on it that makes it compatible with XP. How about compatibility with old software? As with W2k, the NT kernel imposes its own limitations, so you can't expect XP to be completely backward compatible with older software.
This problemDL-hell got the utmost attention... Moreover, this issue was approached more comprehensively than ever before. Firstly, no one will be allowed to simply overwrite any DLL in the system directory. In addition, the SFC mechanism, System File Protection, which is familiar to us from W2k, remains. This system monitors the main system files, and in case of replacing any of them, changes everything back. In addition, for some reason, Microsoft took care of crooked programmers who cannot write normally, and they definitely need their creation to work with their own DLLs that replace the system ones. When installing such a program, these converted DLLs will still be written to disk, but not instead of the system ones. Then, when starting such a program, in the case of a DLL call, not the system file should be called, but a previously saved file from this program.
Dynamic Disk - this is a physical disk on which dynamic partitions can be created, here, too, a lot of time was devoted to this partition. Such a disk can only be accessed from W2k or XP. Dynamic sections can be of the following types:
1.Simple... Simple sections are practically no different from those we are used to.
2. Spanned... Consists of several dynamic disks, which are presented as one disk. Data is written and read sequentially.
3. Stripped... Multiple dynamic disks that are presented as one disk. Data is written and read simultaneously to multiple disks. This, in theory, should provide twice the speed on disk operations. In practice, the increase, although significant, is less than two times. It is best to use this mode only if you already have two disks. Otherwise, it is much more profitable to buy one hard drive, twice as large, with excellent speed characteristics, than two small and slower ones, in the expectation that they will be much faster. Of course, if you take two fast disks and combine them into Stripped Volume, they will be faster than one. However, the system partition cannot be Stripped Volume. In this case, it is more reasonable to purchase a hardware IDE-RAID controller that provides the ability to work with RAID even from under DOS; this way you can make the system partition striped.
4. Mirrored... These partitions are made up of two physical disks. Data written to one of the disks is automatically duplicated on the other. This does not provide any advantages in terms of speed, but it provides twice the degree of data security.
5. RAID5... Consists of three or more discs. It is a stripped volume with error control. That is, the data is written on two disks, in two blocks, and on the third disk, and in the third block, ECC is written, an error correction code, with which, according to the information of any of the blocks, the contents of the second block can be restored. Moreover, the ECC code is written alternately on each of the disks included in the array. This technology allows for a more economical use of disk space than mirrored volumes, but is slower. Any of these partitions can be formatted for both FAT32 and NTFS. Dynamic disk is managed through the Disk Management section of the Computer Management window.
Note: All these partitions, except for simple, can be created only on dynamic disks.
A regular disk can be converted to a dynamic one from the Disk Management window, however, the reverse process (converting a dynamic disk to a simple one) is not always possible. For example, if a disk was created from the very beginning as a dynamic one, then the usual partition table is missing on it, and in order to create it, it will have to be re-partitioned with fdisk and formatted.
In addition, if you delete several partitions on a dynamic disk, then the free space is not combined and the new partition, equal in size to the deleted ones, will consist of several small partitions combined in a volume set under one letter.
Task Manager- and it is one of the most powerful and easy-to-use process management tools in NT. It is called either Ctrl + Shift + Esc, or by choosing from the menu that appears after right-clicking on the Taskbar. Task manager in XP consists of five tabs - Applications, Processes, Performance, Networking and Users... Let's start with Performance.
This tab shows information about the processor (s) load in real time (user processes in green, system processes in red), physical memory load is shown, and how much / free RAM is used, and how much system Swap is used. In addition, other additional information is given, for example Threads and Processes - the number of threads and processes currently running on the machine, Peak - the peak Swap size during the session, Nonpaged - the amount of memory allocated for the kernel. This information can be used when it will be necessary to answer the question of what factor in the system is the bottleneck that slows down the work (although it is better to use Performance Monitor for this purpose).
Second bookmark, Processes, contains a list of currently active processes.
For each process, you can find out some additional information, such as: PID (Process ID), the amount of RAM used, the number of threads generated by the process, and much more. Of the useful additions that appeared in XP, the User Name column should be noted. In it, you can find out which user or system service launched a particular process. You can add / remove displayed parameters via View -> Select Columns.
In addition, certain actions can be performed with any of these processes. To do this, you just need to click on it with the right mouse button, a context menu will appear, through which you can end, "kill" the process (End Process), you can kill the process itself, and all the others that it "spawned" (End Process Tree). You can set the priority to the process, from the highest Real-Time to the lowest, Low. If the machine has two processors and a multiprocessor core, then another item appears in this menu, Set Affinity, which allows you to transfer the process to another processor, Cpu 0, Cpu1, and so on up to Cpu31.
Bookmark - Applications, allows you to view the list of running applications, and "kill" any of them. Task Manager not only allows you to "kill" applications, it can also launch new applications. File -> New task (Run ..). This can be very helpful sometimes. For example, if for some reason the user interface freezes, then it can be easily "killed" (the explorer.exe process), and then started again. Moreover, it does not have to be explorer.exe. You can, for example, run progman.exe, and get an interface similar to the W3.1 interface, or any of the external interfaces that can be found in abundance on the Internet.
Bookmark Networking... This is one of the tabs that appeared in Task Manager only in XP. It shows the load of the local network.
Bookmark Users... On it you can see the users who are currently working on the machine. If you have sufficient rights, then you can disable this user, or simply send him a message. Such things have long been widely used in a variety of software designed to manage multi-user systems, but it was in Task Manager that this feature appeared for the first time.
After a long enough hiatus, Microsoft is significantly changing appearance their OS. The basic principles of the interface have remained the same, but there are just a huge number of small, and not so, changes and improvements. The first thing that catches your eye is the changed design of the system. Rounded lines, soft halftones and shadows have replaced strict, even lines without unnecessary "embellishments". Actually, Microsoft did not invent the "wheel", many of the trends that have found their embodiment in the new design of XP, we could see before, including on the PC. Like W2k, which used the color gamut that first appeared in KDE 1.2, XP uses the same color scheme and design of some interface elements (for example, scroll bars) similar to those used in KDE 2.0. If anyone does not like the new trends in "computer fashion", it can easily to bring the appearance of the system into a more familiar form, such as that of W2k or W98.
How do I install XP?
There are several ways. First, if your distribution CD is similar to the one released by Microsoft, then it must be bootable. To boot from it, set the "Boot sequence" parameter in BIOS-e to CD-ROM, insert the CD and reboot. After starting the computer, the installation program will start. Then just follow the instructions. This is the only method that loads directly into the installer. Microsoft believes that the CD-ROM is an essential and absolutely necessary part for the computer on which XP is installed, so the good old method of booting from four floppy disks is no longer supported.
Secondly, you can boot from the DOS system diskette with the CD-ROM driver and run the "winnt.exe" program in the i386 directory on the distribution disk.
Note: if your hard drive is connected to an external controller (SCSI or IDE), then do not forget to download the new XP (or W2k) driver for it and drop it onto a floppy disk. You will need it if the installation program cannot correctly identify and install the device. In this case, press F6 when searching for such devices.
And finally, you can run the "setup.exe" program from the root directory of the CD disk from under W9x, NT4 or W2k, or winnt32.exe from the i386 directory, and upgrade the system to XP. It does this very correctly and, before rebooting, gives out a list of programs and drivers incompatible with XP.
However, the latter method is not the most optimal one. Despite the fact that XP tries to independently determine the list of programs and drivers that will not work correctly with it, it is not able to do it correctly in all cases. Therefore, in order to avoid compatibility problems, it is better to reinstall the system.
There is an even more radical method for solving compatibility problems. When installing over an existing OS, you will have the option of choosing an OS (Dual boot).
Note: after installing XP as a separate OS, normal operation of Outlook Express and Internet Explorer in Windows 9x will be impossible. W2k will replace the latter. This is only true if both OSs are installed on the same disk partition. But, this problem can be solved by copying some DLLs from WinNT \ System32 to Windows \ System. To determine the required libraries, you can use the ShowDep program (<#"1.files/image007.jpg">
Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation
Moscow State University of Economics
Statistics and Informatics (MESI)
Institute of Computer Technology
Abstract on operating environments, systems and shells on the topic:
“Installing Windows XP. Windows XP shell configuration, optimization
Artist: Alexey Cherkasov
student of group DKE-102
Moscow 2002
| Introduction | 3 pages |
| What is Windows XP? | 4 pages |
| How to install XP? | 10 pages |
| Conclusion | 19 pages |
| List of used literature | 20 pages |
Introduction.
Operating System (OS), which is based on Windows 2000. Since it
a completely new OS, then I'll rely on mixing from the Internet.
What is WindowsXP?
This is the new OC from Microsoft, starting with which an attempt was made to combine
two previously existing independently, the W9x and NT lines. Originally this
the project was called Whisler, but now it split into two lines, WindowsXP,
positioned to replace W9x and W2kPro, and Windows.NET, positioned
to replace NT Server of all sorts. Regardless of the name, they are all
is the direct heirs of Windows2000, and the successors of the line
WindowsNT. This fact determines the main features of WindowsXP. it
fully 32-bit OS with priority multitasking. At its core
are the same principles that all NTs were based on. it
1. Compatibility. The system can have a familiar interface
OS of the Windows family, with some additions and extensions, support
file systems NTFS5, NTFS4, FAT16 and FAT32. Most applications
written under MSDOS, W9x, NT4, as well as some programs under OS / 2 and
POSIX are up and running without issue. When designing NT
the possibility of the system operation in various network environments was taken into account, therefore
the delivery includes tools for working in Unix and Novell networks.
2. Portability. The system runs on different processors
x86 families from Intel and AMD. 64 bit version already exists
WindowsXP and Windows.NET designed to run on Intel Itanium.
Implementation of support for processors of other architectures is possible, but will require
some effort.
3. Scalability. WindowsXP provides support for
SMP technologies. On Windows .NET Advanced Server and Datacenter Server except
it has support for COW (Cluster Of Workstations).
4. Security system. The system familiar to NT has been implemented
user-level security.
5. Distributed processing. WindowsXP has
network capabilities built into the system, allowing
communication with different types of host computers due to the presence
a variety of transport protocols and client-server technologies.
6. Reliability and robustness.
The OS architecture protects applications from damage to each other and itself
operating system. In this case, a fault-tolerant
structured exception handling at all architectural levels,
which includes the recoverable NTFS file system and provides
protection with built-in security and advanced
memory management methods.
7. Localization. The system provides opportunities for work
in many countries of the world in national languages, which is achieved by using
ISO Unicode standard.
8. Extensibility. Thanks to the modular design of the system
it becomes possible to add new modules to various architectural
OS levels.
The final build is 2600. You can find it out either with the winver command, or by
XP kernel versions, such as ntoskrnl.exe. Distinguish a pirated release from
the present is possible thanks to the activation mechanism (Windows Product
activation) added to the system. The pirated release must include
tools to combat it, so if you see a folder called crack, or
something like this, you can be sure that the release is pirated. If on
Your disk has nothing like it, but the disk itself has all the features
illegal (no hologram, no license agreement on paper, no
sticker that changes color if you heat it with your finger), then you risk that
that your version will stop working within a month. However, there are
"Broken" pirated releases that do not require registration at all. Besides
of this, there are so-called corporate releases made by Microsoft
for their largest OEM partners. Such releases do not require registration
initially.
Windows XP has Windows Product Activation. This is a new technology
developed by Microsoft to combat illegal copies of their software
provision. For the first time such a mechanism was tested on Terminal Service,
from W2k Server, now it seems that everything will be protected in this way,
or many subsequent Microsoft products. The essence of the technology is
next. After installing the system, based on the serial number that
provided with every copy of XP, and some of the features of your computer
the so-called Product ID is generated. It consists of 20 digits, and based on it
(along with the correct serial number of course) you get Activation
Code, after the introduction of which Windows is considered activated. how
Microsoft claims based on these two numbers they cannot find out
nothing about your computer. That is, complete anonymity. Perhaps this is
truth. If you do not do this procedure, then after 30 days in XP, simply
everything will cease to function except for the applet responsible for
activation.You can find out if your version of XP is activated in the System
Summary located in Programs -> Accessories -> System tools ->
System Information. If you see the line Activation Status, and opposite it
an inscription like Activation Pending (XX days remaining), which means in XX days
Your XP will stop working. The applet that is responsible for activating XP
located in the Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Activate menu
Windows. When you run this applet, a simple wizard will open which
will offer to register your copy of XP online, or by phone.
After the system is activated (in any way), the line
Activation Pending from System Information will disappear without a trace.
There are two flavors of XP version - Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.
In addition, there is a 64-bit version of Windows XP Professional, made by
for 64 bit Intel Itanium. Later will be released (according to
Mircosoft) Widows.NET Server, Windows.NET Advanced Server and Windows.NET
Datacenter Server (x86 and 64 bit edition for each). XP Home
positioned as an OS to replace the W9x line, XP Professional, as a replacement for
Windows2000 Professional. From the significant differences between them, you can
note only the lack of SMP support in XP Home. But despite this,
official release of XP) we can talk about the long-promised official death
line W9x, and the ideology of MS-DOS along with it. Windows.NET is different from XP
the availability of system services and applications specific to the server, and support
more powerful hardware. So, if XP Pro only supports SMP for two
processor, then NET Server is already at 4, NET Advanced Server is at 8, and NET
Datacenter Server at 32.
Microsoft claims that in order to successfully install XP, you need
processor at least 233 megahertz, 64 megabytes of RAM, and 1.5
gigabyte of free disk space. However, for a more or less comfortable
work you will need a processor of at least 500 megahertz, and at least 128
megabyte of RAM. Although, by making the interface as easy as possible, you can
make XP require less memory than W2k, so if
donate all sorts of "bells and whistles" and visual effects, then quite
it will be possible to work comfortably on less powerful systems. In general, if on
Your machine is running W2k, then XP will work, no worse, if not
it is better. Like any OS based on the NT kernel, XP is very fond of extra RAM,
therefore 512 megabytes for such a system will not be superfluous at all, although not
are required. At 256 Mb, the system is very fast and very
nice, if you do not load it with very heavy applications. If you include all
visual effects, then XP will noticeably slow down on a relatively
weak processors, regardless of the amount of RAM. Same
the effect is observed when using a weak video card. However, if
the system is powerful enough, then a normally configured XP will work
much faster than any OS from Microsoft previously released.
As with W2k, the NT kernel imposes its own limitations, so you cannot expect
from XP absolutely full compatibility with old software.
However, compared to w2k, the compatibility situation has improved somewhat.
Of the most noticeable changes, we can note the sound that appeared in the old
DOS games, which was very difficult to achieve in W2k. Supported
emulation of Sound Blaster 2 and General MIDI, so now you can without running around with
tambourine and third-party utilities to make such old hits work with sound
like Worms, Duke Nukem 3D, Warcraft 1 and 2, Dune 2. In addition, XP has a built-in
compatibility mode with old OS. In order to use it,
you must select the Compatibility tab from the Properties file or shortcut
(shortcut) to the file. In this tab, you can specify under the guise of which OS
you need to run the program, whether you need to change the resolution or color depth
at the same time (necessary for many old programs).
Unlike acompat.exe from the W2k distribution, XP in compatibility mode does not
simply tells the program that it is not it (like an old utility from
MS-DOS, called setver), but also emulates the structure of the Windows registry,
specific to this or that OS version. If there is no desire to climb by properties
files and a shortcut yourself, you can use Program
Compatibility Wizard, from Start - Programs - Accessories. However, not
we should expect a miracle from this mechanism, 100% compatibility has not been achieved
succeeded, so it will not be superfluous to go to the website of the manufacturer of your
program and see if there is an update on it making it
compatible with XP. How about compatibility with old software
security? As in W2k, the NT kernel imposes its own limitations, so
you cannot expect from XP to be absolutely fully compatible with old software
security.
This problem DL-hell has been given the utmost attention. Moreover, to
this issue has been approached more comprehensively than ever before. Firstly,
no one will be allowed to simply overwrite any DLL in the system
directories. In addition, the SFC mechanism, System
File Protection. This system monitors the main system files, and in case
replacing any of them, changes everything back. Additionally, Microsoft
for some reason they took care of crooked programmers who cannot write
ok, and they definitely need their creation to work with their own
DLL, replacing system. When installing such a program, these
the converted DLLs will still be written to disk, but not instead of
system. Then, when launching such a program, in the case of a DLL call, it must
not the system file is called, but a previously saved file from this particular
programs.
Dynamic Disk is a physical disk on which
dynamic sections, here, too, they devoted a lot of time to this section.
Such a disk can only be accessed from W2k or XP. Dynamic partitions
can be of the following types:
1. Simple. Simple sections are virtually indistinguishable from
those to which we are accustomed.
2. Spanned. Consists of several dynamic disks that
presented as one disc. Data is written and read sequentially.
3. Stripped. Multiple dynamic disks that
presented as one disc. Data is written and read simultaneously on
multiple disks. This, in theory, should provide twice the
speed on disk operations. In practice, the gain, although significant,
but less than twice. It is better to use this mode only if
in case you already have two disks. Otherwise, it is much more profitable
buy one hard drive, twice as large, with excellent speed
characteristics than two small and slower ones, based on the fact that
they will be much faster. Of course, if you take two fast drives and combine
them in Stripped Volume, then they will be faster than one. However, the systemic
section cannot be Stripped Volume. In this case, it is wiser to purchase
hardware IDE-RAID controller that provides the ability to work with
RAID even from under DOS; this way you can make the system partition
alternating.
4. Mirrored. These partitions are made up of two physical disks.
Data written to one of the disks is automatically duplicated on the other.
This does not provide any speed advantage, but it does provide
twice the degree of reliability of data safety.
5. RAID5. Consists of three or more discs. Is stripped
volume with error control. That is, data is written to two disks, two
block, and on the third disk, and in the third block ECC is written, the correction code
errors, with the help of which, according to the information of any of the blocks, you can
restore the contents of the second block. Moreover, the ECC code is written
alternately, for each of the disks included in the array. This technology
allows more economical use of disk space than mirrored
volumes, but is slower. Any of these sections can be
formatted for both FAT32 and NTFS. Dynamic disk management
through the Disk Management section of the Computer Management window.
Note: All these sections, except for simple, can only be created on
dynamic disks.
A regular disk can be converted to dynamic from the Disk window
Management, but the reverse process (convert dynamic disk to
simple) is not always possible. For example, if the disc was created from the very beginning
as dynamic, it lacks the usual partition table, and that
to create it, it will have to be partitioned again using fdisk and
format.
In addition, if you delete several partitions on a dynamic disk, then
free space is not merged and a new partition is equal in size
remote, will consist of several small partitions combined into
volume set under one letter.
Task Manager is one of the most powerful and convenient tools in NT,
designed to control processes. It is called either
Ctrl + Shift + Esc, or by choosing from the menu that appears after pressing the right
the button on the Taskbar. Task manager in XP consists of five tabs -
Applications, Processes, Performance, Networking and Users. Let's start with
This tab shows information about the load of the processor (s) in
real time (green user processes, red system
processes), the load of physical memory is shown, and how much
used / free RAM, and how much system Swap is busy.
In addition, other additional information is given, such as Threads and
Processes, - the number of threads and processes currently running on the machine,
Peak - peak Swap size during the session, Nonpaged - amount
memory allocated for the kernel. This information can be used when
it will be necessary to answer the question, which factor in the system is "bottle
throat "slowing down the work (although for this purpose it is better to use
Performance Monitor).
The second tab, Processes, contains a list of processes active in the given
For each process, you can find out some additional information, like
then: PID (Process ID), the amount of used RAM,
the number of threads generated by the process and more. Of useful
additions that appeared in XP, it should be noted that the column appeared
User Name. In it you can find out which user, or system service
launched this or that process. Add / remove displayed parameters
can be done via View -> Select Columns.
In addition, with any of these processes, certain
actions. To do this, you just need to right-click on it, it will appear
context menu through which you can end, "kill" the process (End
Process), you can kill the process itself, and all the others that it "spawned"
(End Process Tree). You can set the priority to the process, from the highest Real-
Time to the lowest, Low. If the machine has two processors and
multiprocessor kernel, then another item appears in this menu, Set
Affinity, which allows you to transfer a process to another processor, Cpu 0,
Tab - Applications, allows you to view the list of working
applications, and "kill" any of them. Task Manager allows not only
"kill" applications, it can also launch new applications. File ->
New task (Run ..). This can be very helpful sometimes. For example, if by what
or the user interface freezes for some reason, then it can be easily
"kill" (the explorer.exe process), and then start over. Moreover, it is not
must be explorer.exe. You can, for example, run
progman.exe, and get an interface similar to the W3.1 interface, or any of
external interfaces that can be found in abundance on the Internet.
Networking tab. This is one of the tabs that appeared in Task Manager
only in XP. It shows the load of the local network.
Users tab. On it you can see the users who are currently
moment work on the machine. If you have sufficient rights, then you can
disable this user, or just send him a message. Similar
things have long been widely used in a wide variety of software,
designed to manage multi-user systems, but it is
this is the first time in Task Manager.
After a long enough hiatus, Microsoft significantly changes its appearance
their OS. The basic principles of the interface remain the same, but all
small, and not so, changes and improvements are just a huge amount.
The first thing that catches your eye is the changed design of the system. On the
strict, even lines without unnecessary "embellishments" were replaced by rounded
lines, soft tones and shadows. Actually, Microsoft didn't invent
"bicycle", many trends that have found their embodiment in a new
We could see the design of XP before, including on the PC. Like W2k,
using the color gamut first introduced in KDE 1.2, XP uses
elements of the color scheme and design of some interface elements
(for example scroll bars) similar to those used in KDE 2.0 If anyone does not
like new trends in "computer fashion", it can easily lead
the appearance of the system in a more familiar form, such as that of W2k or W98.
How do I install XP?
There are several ways. First, if your distribution CD looks like
to the one produced by Microsoft, then it must be rubble
(bootable). To boot from it, you need the "Boot
sequence "set equal to CD-ROM, insert CD and reboot.
When the computer starts, the installation program will start. Further - just follow
instructions. This is the only method that will load directly into the program-
installer. Microsoft believes that CD-ROMs are essential and absolutely
a necessary part for the computer on which XP is installed, therefore
The good old way of booting from four floppy disks is no longer supported.
Second, you can boot from a DOS system diskette with a CD driver.
ROM and run the program "winnt.exe" in the i386 directory on the disk with
distribution kit.
Note: if your hard drive is connected to an external controller (SCSI or
IDE), then do not forget to download the new XP (or W2k) driver for it and throw off
it to a floppy disk. You will need it if the installation program cannot
correctly identify and install the device. In this case, it is necessary
press F6 when searching for such devices.
And finally, you can run the "setup.exe" program from under W9x, NT4 or W2k
from the root directory of the CD disk, or winnt32.exe from the i386 directory, and
upgrade the system to XP. She does it very correctly and before
reboot gives a list of programs and drivers incompatible with XP.
However, the latter method is not the most optimal one. Although
XP tries to independently determine the list of programs and drivers that
will not work with her correctly, she is not able to do it right
in all cases. Therefore, in order to avoid compatibility problems, it is better to
reinstall the system.
There is an even more radical method for solving compatibility problems. When
installation over an existing OS, you will have the option of choosing an OS (Dual
Note: after installing XP as a separate OS, it will not be possible
normal operation of Outlook Express and Internet Explorer in Windows 9x, because
W2k will replace the latter. This is only true if both OS are installed on one
and the same disk partition. But, this problem can be solved by copying
some DLLs from WinNT \ System32 to Windows \ System. To determine the required
libraries, you can use the ShowDep program
() or similar information shows Outlook
Express in the About window. In addition, many programs will have to
install twice, once for XP, and once for W9x. Sometimes, it is possible in
the same directory, for example, Office XP is already capable of
understand that it has already been worth it, and in the end installs only about 18
megabyte.
It is very important to select the correct kernel and HAL version during installation.
At the very beginning of the text phase of the XP installation when the message appears
"Setup is inspecting your computer" s hardware configuration "click and
hold down the "F5" key. In the list of library versions that appears on the screen
HAL, select the version appropriate for your computer, or select
the position "Other" in order to indicate the library file from the manufacturer
equipment. Then proceed with the Windows installation. XP delivery includes
the following versions of the HAL library:
ACPI Multiprocessor PC - for ACPI systems with multiple processors
ACPI Uniprocessor PC - used for ACPI systems with multiprocessor
system board and one installed processor.
Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC - used for
uniprocessor ACPI systems
MPS Uniprocessor PC - for systems without ACPI support, with multiprocessor
motherboard and one installed processor
MPS Multiprocessor PC - for multiprocessor systems without support
ACPI Compaq SystemPro Multiprocessor or 100% compatible - for computers
Compaq SystemPro or fully compatible with them.
Standard PC - used for any standard computer, not
multiprocessor and no ACPI support.
Standart PC with C-Step i486 - used for computers with support
this technology.
During installation, the system does not allow you to select components, and even after installation
there is almost nothing in Add / Remove programs - Windows Components. During
unfortunately, you will not be able to select anything. But after
installation, in Windows / inf find the sysoc.inf file and delete the word
hide or HIDE wherever you find it. Add / Remove Windows components will show
new items. Unfortunately, you cannot delete all of the items that appear, but
something is still possible.
It is worth asking questions, is it necessary to switch from FAT32 to NTFS? It all depends
on the purpose for which you use the computer, and how much you have
random access memory. Please note that NTFS is somewhat slower
than FAT, due to additional downloadable services and its system
security. If you are low on RAM and you decide to install
yourself XP, then you definitely cannot put yourself NTFS. If you have 128MB or
more, then you might already think about NTFS. The benefits should be weighed against
disadvantages of NTFS for the common user and decide what you need. TO
the advantages of FAT32 include the fact that it is faster and requires less
memory for work. If the system only works with FAT32, then the memory is not
the drivers and services required by NTFS are loaded. In addition, for
using FAT32, it is possible to access the disk when booting from
boot floppy W9x. The benefits of NTFS for the common user can
describe in one succinct word: indestructible. In all seriousness, kick out
NTFS is extremely difficult, if not impossible. For experience, a bunch of
various applications, disk optimizers, and at the most inopportune moments
the reset button was pressed. Repetition of this sadism a dozen times no
the system did not make an impression, it continued to work without errors.
In addition, NTFS has built-in file encryption tools that
provides a certain degree of confidence in the safety of data. Of course, with
provided that the system will not be reinstalled.
NTFS grew out of file system HPFS, jointly developed by IBM and
Microsoft for the OS / 2 project. It began to be used in conjunction with Windows NT
3.1 in 1993. Windows NT 3.1 was supposed to compete with servers
based on NetWare and Unix, so NTFS incorporated all the
technological advances. Here are the main ones:
1. Working with large disks. NTFS has a cluster size of 512 bytes, which is
in principle, it is optimal, but it can be changed up to 64K. More importantly, NTFS
can theoretically work with volumes of 16,777,216 terabytes.
In theory, because such hard drives simply do not exist yet, and
they will not appear very soon.
2. Sustainability. NTFS contains two copies of the FAT analog, which are called
MFT (Master File Table). Unlike FAT MSDOS, MFT is more like
database table. If the original MFT is damaged in the event of a hardware error
(for example, the appearance of a bad sector), then the system at the next boot
uses a copy of the MFT, and automatically creates a new original, already taking into account
damage. But this is not the most important thing. The main thing is that NTFS uses the system
transactions when writing files to disk. This system came from a DBMS where
protecting data integrity is vital. This already speaks of her
efficiency. In a simplified form, it works like this:
NTFS I / O driver initiates the write process while
telling the Log File Service to keep a log of everything that happens.
The data is written to the cache, under the control of the Cache Manager service.
Cache Manager sends data to Virtual Memory Manager (manager
virtual memory) to be written to disk in the background.
Virtual Memory Manager sends data to the disk driver, skipping it
via Fault Tolerant Driver (if you have a RAID array).
The disk driver sends them to the controller, which already writes them either to the cache,
or directly to disk.
If this operation goes without errors, the log entry is deleted.
If a failure occurs, the log record remains in the transaction table, and if
the next time you access the disk, the Log File Service detects this entry, and
just restores everything as it was before this operation.
Such a system guarantees the absolute safety of data in the event of
copying, moving and deleting files or directories. When making
changes to the file, you lose those changes that were at the time of the failure
in memory or in the controller cache, and did not have time to write to disk.
3. Security. NTFS treats files as objects. Each file
an object has properties such as its name, creation date, date
last update, archived status, and security descriptor. File
the object also contains a set of methods that allow you to work with it,
such as open, close, read and write. Users, including network users, for
file calls call these methods, and the Security Reference Monitor
determines whether the user has the necessary rights to call any
of these methods. In addition, files can be encrypted. True, with encryption
be careful. If your system crashes or you reinstall it
4. Compression of data. NTFS allows you to compress individual directories and
files, as opposed to DriveSpace, which only allowed disks to be compressed
entirely. This is very convenient for saving disk space, for example
you can compress large BMP graphics files on the fly, or
text files, and all this will be transparent to the user.
5. Support for ISO Unicode format. The Unicode format uses 16bit for
encodings of each character, as opposed to ASCII which used 8bit,
or even worse - 7bit. For a common user, this means that now
it can name files in any language, even in Chinese - the system is
will support without requiring you to change the codepage like DOS did
Dignity of the NTFS5 file system from NTFS4. The most important thing is what they scolded for
NT4, and in what it was inferior to NetWare, is the lack of quotas.
Quota is a limitation of the maximum amount of disk space
for the user that he can use. Why is this needed? Well, on
computers operating in large networks, in firms and organizations and without
The questions are clear why, because hard drives are not rubber. And at home
computer, for example, you can select the user "wife" or "younger brother"
no more than 50MB on the hard drive, so that they do not clutter up the disk with anything.
Moreover, it is not at all necessary that all user files be stored in
one place, they can be scattered across all discs. Installed
quotas through the Properties of the NTFS partition, the Quota tab. Via Quota Entries ...
you can set quotas for each individual user. Second,
quite an important difference between NTFS5 and the old version - the ability to search
file, by the name of its owner. Why is this needed? But why: for example, you
you need to find all the files created in Word, by some one user, on
disk, where there are thousands of these files. This was a problem in NT4. With Access
Control List, you can easily check which
files are available to the user, and set access rights to individual files
or directories. In addition to directly changing the structure of NTFS itself, in XP
added Microsoft Index Server, which significantly speeds up the search for files,
especially by their content, by indexing the contents of the disks.
This service is managed through the Indexing Service section of the Computer window.
Management. In this section you can see which directories
indexed, and, if desired, add new ones or remove old ones. Works
this is with any partitions, not just NTFS. NTFS5 adds this feature
as mount points or, in other words, junction points.
This function has long been familiar to users of various Unix / Linux variants, but
it appeared in Microsoft products for the first time recently (only with W2k). FROM
using this technology, you can attach any disk resource at any
file system location. For example, you can attach the hard drive D: \ to
any of the directories on the C: \ drive, for example, in C: \ games Now by going to
directory C: \ games, you can see the contents of the root directory of the disk
D: \. All changes that will be made in this directory will be
produced on the D: \ drive. After that, you can in the Computer management window ->
Disk Management remove the letter assigned to this disk (Change disk letter
and path), and the user will not even know what is on the computer
two disks installed! It will work with one C: \ drive and a directory
C: \ games for him will be no different from others. Mount disk
or a partition to a directory on an NTFS partition or disk, you can from the already familiar
us the Change disk letter and path menu, by selecting Add .. -> Mount in this
Ntfs folder -> Browse ... You can also control this function through the command
line using the mountvol command. Immediately after mounting the disk, the directory in
which it has mounted will be shown with a different icon:
But as soon as you rename it, it will take the same form as everyone else.
To unmount a disk, use Disk Management, Change disk menu
letter and path by selecting Remove. If you just delete the folder with
mounted disk in Explorer, then together with the folder you will delete ALL
the contents of the mounted disk. So be careful. Besides
mounting entire disks, you can mount separate directories, but for
you will have to use a third-party utility. You can take it here:
http://www.3dnews.ru/reviews/software/win-xp-faq/junction.zip. Go to
console, run it, and familiarize yourself with its operands.
What is a cluster? Cluster is the minimum amount of disk space that
can be allocated by the file system to store one file.
It is determined, as a rule, automatically, when formatting the hard drive,
according to the dependence shown in the table: Size of the Sectors section in the cluster
Cluster size
| Size | Sectors in | Size |
| partition | cluster | cluster |
|> 32768 MB | 128 | 64K |
A small exception for the system partition: if it is less than 2048MB, then
the cluster size, when using NTFS, is always 512 bytes. Find out the size
Clustering in XP can be done in several ways. First, you can go to
Administrative Tools -> Computer Management -> Storage -> Disk
Defragmenter. Select the required disk and click on Analyze. In a few
seconds a plate will appear where there are three buttons. Clicking on View Report
launches a window in which a sea of information about the selected disk, including
and Cluster size. There is another method that is not only suitable for XP.
Creates, or takes a ready-made, small file ranging in size from 1 byte to 500
byte. Click on it with the right mouse button, select Properties. We look
by two points, Size and Size on disk. Size should be something like 10 bytes
(or whatever size it really has), and Size on disk will, for example,
4096 bytes, which corresponds to the cluster size, i.e. 4K. Cluster size
you can choose it yourself, manually, however, only when formatting.
This is done like this: "format d: / A: size", where size is the size of the cluster in
bytes. However, there are some rules to be followed
stick: first, the cluster size must be a multiple of the size
physical sector, that is, 512 bytes in the vast majority of cases;
secondly, there are restrictions on the number of clusters per partition.
You can reduce the size of the installed XP, for example, by removing
directories:
1)% SystemRoot% \ Driver Cache \ i386 \
This can be done if all equipment is already up and running.
When adding new hardware, the system will ask for the distribution kit.
2)% SystemRoot% \ system32 \ dllcache \
This is a cache of protected system files used to automatically
recovery in case of damage. The default size of this folder is 400 MB,
and it is determined by the SFCQuota (0xFFFFFFFF) parameter in the registry key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \
You can change the size of the system file cache using the sfc command:
sfc / cachesize = 0 (you can enter another value, for example, 3 MB), and then
manually delete all files in the specified directory. If you don't ask
/ cachesize = 0, then at the next check of protected system files the system
will refill its cache to the specified size.
3) Turn off System Restore. You can hand it over here: System Properties ->
System Restore -> Turn off System Restore for all drives. This will erase
all information recorded by System Restore and stored in the System folder
Volume Informatiоn.
If you have a system on FAT32, then you can convert the disk to NTFS
no data loss. 1. Use the command CONVERT volume: / FS: NTFS
The conversion will happen on the next reboot. No information loss
this will not happen, but it must be borne in mind that the cluster size after
conversion will be 512 bytes, which is not very good on large partitions,
besides, the disk after conversion will be highly fragmented. The reverse
conversion (NTFS -> FAT) without data loss by means of XP is impossible,
you will need to reformat the partition again.
2. Partition Magic will also be able to convert. With NTFS 5
works fine starting from version 6.0, but if you only use
boot floppy, version 5.01 will do. This program also
allows you to perform the reverse conversion without losing data and can even
change the cluster size (unfortunately, only on FAT16 and FAT32). Partition
Magic does not work with dynamic disks, only with primary ones.
You can customize the download process "for yourself", for this you can change
parameters in boot.ini? boot.ini is responsible for the OS boot order
installed on the system, and allows you to set some boot parameters
these systems. This file begins with a section In this section
only two parameters:
Timeout, defines the time in seconds that the system waits before
start loading the OS by default, if the system is installed
multiple OS.
Default, defines the system that is loaded by default.
The second section, which contains a list of possible
loading the OS. For each OS, its location is indicated using
ARC (Advanced RISC Computer) names.
scsi (*) or multi (*) - the scsi (*) element is used in the controller case
SCSI with BIOS disabled. The multi (*) element is used for all drives.
other types including IDE, EIDE, ESDI and SCSI with BIOS enabled. (*) -
the number of the adapter from which the download is carried out. Adapters are numbered from
zero, starting with the controller located closer to slot 0 on the mat. board.
disk (*) - if (1) = scsi (*), then it is equal to the logical device number
(LUN) set for the disk. If (1) = multi (*), then it is always zero.
rdisk (*) - if (1) = multi (*), then equal to the number of the disk in the chain, count
disks starts from 0. If (1) = multi (*), then it is always zero
partition (*) - Identifies the disk partition containing the OS files. Unlike
from all other elements of ARC names, section numbering starts from 1,
those. the first partition is designated partition (1), the second partition (2), and so on.
\ path - defines the directory (or subdirectory) of the section in which the
OS files. The default path in XP is \ windows.
In addition, the quotes contain the text that will be visible in the paragraph
selection of this OS in the start menu. There may be keys after this text
which affect OS boot. For XP, the following keys are possible:
/ basevideo - with this key, the system will only use the standard
VGA driver. This parameter can be useful if you are for a short time
put another video card, and you do not want to suffer with rearrangement
drivers.
/ fastdetect - usually installed automatically during system installation. When
installing this key, the system does not detect all Plug and Play devices in
loading process.
/ maxmem - defines the maximum RAM size that can be used
system. Theoretically, it can help if you have a buggy RAM.
/ noguiboot - When using this switch, no color will be drawn
splash screen when loading. Can be used by those who do not want to look at
this picture in 60 hertz. But we must take into account that apart from this there will not be
draw BSOD at boot. But the system hangs if something is not in
order, of course, will not stop.
/ noserialmice = - when using this parameter there will be no
determine the mouse connected to the COM port for the ports listed in
brackets. If you do not specify port numbers, then the mouse will not be detected on
all ports. / bootlog - when this parameter is set, the system will write
boot log in% SystemRoot% \ Nbtlog.txt This parameter can be used to
find the reason why the system can only boot in safe mode.
/ safeboot - when you install it, the system will boot into Safe mode. Same
can be done by pressing F8 at the beginning of the system boot. You can use a colon
set several options for / safeboot. Minimal - minimum
configuration. Network - with network support. Dsrepair - only available on NET
Server and allows you to restore Active Directory in advance
the backup made. Alternateshell - allows you to use
alternative graphical shells. By default, the system is set
only Explorer (standard shell) and Progman (inherited from
Windows3.11 and NT 3.5).
/ sos - displays a list of loaded drivers on the screen. May I help
find out where the system stumbles upon loading.
/ baudrate - this parameter specifies the speed at which COM will work
port for system debugging. If you do not specify a specific speed, then there will be
9600 for modem and 19200 for null modem cable. When enabled this
the parameter is automatically set to the / debug parameter
/ crashdebug - with this flag the debugger is loaded, but remains inactive
state until a kernel error occurs. Can be used
software developers.
/ debugport = com * - indicates the COM port number (* must be the port number)
used with the debugger. Automatically enables the / debug switch
/ debug - loads a debugger that can be invoked by others
computer through the connected COM port. Can be used
software developers.
/ nodebug - no debug information is displayed on the screen.
/ hal - specifies the name of the file to be used as hal.dll
after loading.
/ kernel - specifies the name of the file to be used as
ntoskrnl.dll after loading.
My default is:
default = multi (0) disk (0) rdisk (0) partition (3) \ WINXP
multi (0) disk (0) rdisk (0) partition (3) \ WINXP = " Microsoft Windows XP
Professional RU "/ fastdetect
C: \ = "Microsoft Windows 98"
If you need to install Win9x with XP already installed, then you can
do as follows. Win9x overwrites the boot
XP sector. Whatever this happens, before installing Win9x you need
configure its installer correctly.
To do this, in the MSBATCH.INF file (if there is no such file in your distribution,
create it) you need to register the following lines:
After installation, Win9x installs the default boot on itself, but this
easy to change. If the Win9x distribution is on CD (as usual and
happens), then the corrected or newly created MSBATCH.INF can be used,
by running the Win9x installer with the parameter:
setup.exe drive: \ path \ MSBATCH.INF
In this case, the file can be named whatever you want, not just MSBATCH.INF.
It is possible to change the letter of the system / boot drive in XP. It may
required if a mirrored volume breaks down or changes
disk subsystem configuration. See below how to swap
letters for C and D drives. If you don't need to swap letters, just
change the value \ DosDevice \ [letter]: to any unused letter. But with
changing the drive letter on a normally working system will stop working
programs that use an absolute addressing method will have to
reinstall them or manually change any incorrect paths in the registry.
Log in as an administrator and run Regedt.exe.
Open the key HKLM \ SYSTEM \ MountedDevices and allow the administrator
full access to it (Security menu -> Permissions
In HKLM \ SYSTEM \ MountedDevices find the drive letter you want
edit, in our case it is "\ DosDevices \ C:".
Change the letter to any unused letter, for example, "\ DosDevices \ Z:".
Select the second drive letter to change, i.e. "\ DosDevices \ D:",
change
Its required, in our case it will be "\ DosDevices \ C:"
Select the \ DosDevices \ Z: value and rename it to
"\ DosDevices \ D:".
Reboot your computer.
It is possible to rename the Administrator account folder. Go to
system under an administrator account, create a folder with the desired name in
the Documents and Settings directory. Then - right click on the icon "My
computer "-> Properties -> Advanced -> User Profiles, click the Copy button
To ... and copy the administrator profile to the created folder. Launch
regedit and find the key:
HKLM \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ ProfileList
In this key, we find the branch corresponding to the administrator profile by
the value of the ProfileImagePath key and in it we correct this parameter to the required one.
We log in, if everything went well, you can delete the old folder - it
will no longer be needed.
Conclusion
Having worked with XP, few people want to move to the old 9x, 2k and
especially to ME, because XP combines all the best aspects of these
Windows'ov. XP is a new tool in the hands of humanity and to use
it is necessary for its intended purpose.
List of used literature
1.www.3dnews.ru
2.www.microsoft.com/rus
3.www.expocrocus.ru
4. + Windows XP Help and Support Center
All sections of the site site
How to install Windows XP on Vista
Installing XP on Vista
If you have already installed Windows XP and now need to repair the Vista boot loader, these utilities can also be used under Windows XP. The procedure in this case will be as follows:
1. Download both utilities - bcdedit and bootsect and place them in a separate directory, for example, on the D: \ bootfix \ drive
2. Start the command line (Start - Run - cmd) and go to the D: \ bootfix \ folder in it (using the "d:" commands, then "cd bootfix")
3. Run the following commands in sequence:
D: \ bootfix \ bootsect.exe / NT60 All
command restores Windows Vista bootloader
D: \ bootfix \ bcdedit.exe / create (ntldr) / d "Microsoft Windows XP"
the command adds an entry to the Vista bootloader for Windows boot XP
D: \ bootfix \ bcdedit.exe / set (ntldr) device partition = C:
the command determines the location of the Windows XP bootloader (ntldr file on drive C)
D: \ bootfix \ bcdedit.exe / set (ntldr) path \ ntldr
D: \ bootfix \ bcdedit.exe / displayorder (ntldr) -addlast
the command determines the position of the Windows XP boot record in the OS selection window for booting (at the end of the list)
D: \ bootfix \ bcdedit.exe / timeout 10
If you are just going to install Windows XP, then a dual boot configuration can be created in advance, still running Windows Vista, for this, follow these recommendations:
1. Run Command Prompt (cmd) as administrator. To do this, follow these steps.
a) Click Start and in the search field enter cmd
b) On the found file, right-click and select "Run as administrator
2. Run the following commands in sequence
Bcdedit / create (ntldr) / d "Microsoft Windows XP"
the command adds an entry to the Vista bootloader to boot Windows XP
bcdedit / set (ntldr) device partition = C:
the command determines the location of the Windows XP bootloader
(ntldr file on C drive)
bcdedit / set (ntldr) path \ ntldr
the command specifies the name of the Windoiws XP bootloader
bcdedit / displayorder (ntldr) -addlast
command determines the position of the Windows XP boot record
in the OS selection window for loading (at the end of the list)
bcdedit / timeout 10
the command defines the timeout for selecting the OS to boot in seconds (optional)
You can also use third-party programs that provide a graphical interface to the bcdedit.exe utility to create a dual boot configuration under Windows Vista.
In this case, after installing and booting Windows XP, you can restore the Windows Vista boot loader, and the dual boot configuration will already be available, it is not "overwritten" by the XP installation and the Vista boot loader considers it in the form in which you created it before installing XP.
To restore the Windows Vista boot loader, you can use the bcdedit.exe utility (250 Kb) by following these steps
a) Download the utility - bcdedit and place it in a separate directory, for example, on the D: \ bootfix \ drive
b) Run the command line (Start - Run - cmd) and go to the D: \ bootfix \ folder in it (using the "d:" commands, then "cd bootfix")
c) Run the following command
D: \ bootfix \ bootsect.exe / NT60 All
command restores Windows Vista bootloader
You can use the utility FixBootFull, which will create a dual boot configuration. Download the archive attached to the first post of this forum thread (registration on the forum is required to download).
In the program, uncheck the option "Restore Windows Vista bootloader" and adjust the rest of the options depending on your preferences.
Using third-party programs You can also use third-party programs that provide a graphical interface for the utility. command line Bcdedit.exe such as VistaBootPRO or EasyBCD
Figure 7 - VistaBootPRO
Figure 8 - EasyBCD
Conclusion
Even if the sequence of installing operating systems is not entirely correct, it is easy to organize their correct loading without resorting to complex manipulations or third-party programs.
Using the installation Windows disk You can restore Vista's bootability to that operating system, and use the bcdedit utility to configure the two operating systems to boot.
By the way, the official transition (autumn 2008)
from Windows Vista to XP has tripled in price!
Dell has offered buyers of its new computers downgrade operating system from Windows Vista to Windows XP for $ 150. This service used to cost $ 50.
Reported by Computerworld. Microsoft stopped selling Windows XP on June 30, 2008. However, Microsoft's licensing agreement allows you to legally downgrade your operating system from Windows Vista Business and Vista Ultimate to Windows XP Professional.
Microsoft has allowed computer builders to downgrade their operating systems from Windows Vista Ultimate or Business to Windows XP Professional by the end of July next year. Microsoft previously planned to stop shipping XP under this program in early 2009.
According to various estimates, a third of new computers are currently downgraded to Windows XP.
To a greater extent, this applies to corporate machines. One of the reasons for abandoning Vista is the increased requirements of this OS to the computer hardware.
How Microsoft pushed HUGE budgets into Vista advertising!
Windows XP vs Vista - is it worth switching from XP to Vista
Secrets and subtleties of working on a computer
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If you decide to install Windows XP on your computer, then first of all do the following.
Copy all the information you need from your hard drive to floppy disks or CDs. Otherwise, you may lose it irretrievably.
Check for drivers for sound card, modem and printer.
Remember or write down the Windows XP activation key.
Check your computer for viruses.
Disable your antivirus software, or Windows XP installation may crash.
If you are installing Windows XP on an older computer, find out if a BIOS update is available. If not, then you must abandon the installation.
Then insert the installation CD into the drive. The startup wizard will offer you a choice: install Windows XP or check the system for compatibility (Fig. 2.1).
Fig. 2.1. Beginning the installation of Windows XP.
Note.
Currently, there are many CD-ROMs with different installation options for Windows XP Home Edition and Professional. Some CDs run the installation program, in which you need to press one button - and all operations for formatting, installing updates, checking the computer components for compatibility with the operating system, presetting, choosing a file system (only FAT32) will be performed automatically.
After installation, you need to adjust the time and install the missing drivers - and the computer is ready to work. Despite all this, I strongly recommend that you carefully read this book, since in most cases you will have to choose the sequence of actions yourself (Fig. 2.1). And if suddenly there is a failure during the installation, then you will know what to do.
So, in the one shown in Fig. 2.1 in the window, select Check system compatibility. Windows XP supports a fairly extensive set of hardware, but it will not be superfluous to examine your computer's hardware before installing. After checking, you will see on the screen the whole truth about your computer.
If the check is successful, you can install the operating system. But it may happen that the processor, video card or modem is hopelessly outdated, or there are simply no suitable drivers for them on the installation CD.
If the checking program does not like the processor, video card or any other device vital for your computer, then you should refuse to install Windows XP. True, the program may offer to connect to the Internet and show the path to the manufacturer's website, where, possibly, new drivers are located. I certainly don't know how reliable yours is. phone line and stable internet connection - so see for yourself. In general, if any failure occurs during the installation process, which is highly undesirable, then you can continue the installation after turning off the power of the computer (for example, the next day or after a week). However, there is a small chance that your computer will not start at all.
If the checking program does not like your modem, printer, or some other not essential device (of course, these devices are important, but the computer can work without them, but, for example, without a processor it cannot), then you can do one of the following actions:
Abort the installation;
Continue the installation by connecting to the Internet to download drivers and updates;
Proceed with the installation by dropping the internet connection.
You can install the drivers yourself later (see the section "Installing video card drivers").
The next step in the installation is to select a file system. I talked about the file system above, since at the time of installation you should clearly understand whether you will format the hard disk in FAT32 or NTFS.
Installing Windows XP as an update
You can not format the hard drive, but install Windows XP as an update to Windows 98, 98SE, Me, NT or 2000. But remember that a lot of "garbage" from old and deleted programs will remain on the hard disk, and, most likely, some errors of the previously installed operating system, there will be many duplicate files that take up disk space. At the same time, do not forget that updating the operating system is the safest way to install new version Windows.
And if you are doing this exciting business for the first time, then choose the update.
In addition, if you have enough free hard disk space and Windows XP does not have Service Pack 2 (SP2), then after updating the operating system, if it fails, you can uninstall Windows XP and return to the original operating system from which the update was made. Most of the programs installed before the Windows update will be retained.
If you upgraded from Windows 98, 98SE, or Me, you can still rollback if you have a second service pack (SP2).
Follow these steps to uninstall Windows XP.
1. Start restarting your computer. Press and release the F8 key during the boot process. This will load the operating system into safe mode- not all drivers will be loaded.
2. Log in with an administrator account. On Windows XP Account the administrator is assigned by default.
3. Run the Start command? Control Panel, and then double-click the Add / Remove Programs icon.
4. In the list installed programs locate Uninstall Windows XP and click Uninstall. The screen will ask: Are you sure you want to uninstall Windows XP? In response, click the Yes button.
The Windows XP operating system will be removed from the computer, and after restarting you will be able to work with the previous system. If you do not find Uninstall Windows XP in the list of installed programs, you will have to return to your favorite version of Windows by running the installer from the command line.
Note.
The update is possible using Windows 98, 98SE, Me, or NT Workstation 4 (SP6). Windows 2000 Professional can only be upgraded to Windows XP Professional.
Further installation of Windows XP is so easy that it takes away the pleasure of clicking Yes. You just have to get comfortable in the chair and watch commercials about the merits of the operating room. Windows systems XP.
Attention!
Do not worry if your computer periodically does not show signs of life for 10-15 minutes during installation, maybe even more if the components are old. He didn't "hang up", he just thought.
The installation program is designed in such a way that no errors occur during writing to the hard disk. If, for example, you have an old hard drive, then the installation speed will be reduced to the point at which the hard drive is able to save information normally. And where do you rush, sit and train willpower.
Some impatient users bring computers to the workshop with half installed Windows... On average, installing Windows XP takes 1.5 hours, but it can take significantly longer.
When updating the operating system, when there is a lot of free space on the hard drive, it is useful to copy the installation files to the C: drive or any other drive if you have several of them. Then the installation will go faster and there will be no errors during installation due to possible malfunctions of the old CD-ROM drive, and when adding any components there will be no need to insert the CD with the operating system, since the installation files packed by the archiver are always are on the hard drive.
If you want to participate in the installation process (and not just watch it) and the distribution kit allows you to select components manually (regardless of whether it is a complete installation or an update), then choose Manual selection Windows components XP. Then you can safely disable Special abilities, Games on the Internet and in general everything that you do not need for work. If you have a copy on the C: drive or a Windows XP installation CD, you can install any program later.
Single OS Installation - Windows XP
Installing a new operating system is more difficult than updating, so let's dwell on this option in more detail.
Installation processLet me remind you that you need to check your computer for viruses, disable antivirus software, find out if a BIOS update is available, copy all the information you need from your hard drive to floppy or CD disks, check for drivers and remember the Windows XP activation key.
1. Insert the Windows XP CD into the drive. Do one of the following depending on your CD configuration.
Reboot your computer. The boot program will go as far as testing the Boot from CD drive, and something similar to DOS will appear on the screen.
Use the cursor keys (? And?) And Enter to select the desired action: Emergency Boot (useful if the computer cannot boot from the hard drive), Boot from C: drive (choose this option if you change your mind about installing Windows XP), or Installing Microsoft Windows XP.
The installation process will begin. Try not to miss the corresponding message, otherwise you will have to restart your computer again. 30 seconds are given for reflection. This is quite enough, especially since if you press any key, then the further time is not limited. The interval of 30 seconds is the control time. (For example, if you or your child mistakenly rebooted the computer with the Windows installation CD in the drive.) If you do not take any action within 30 seconds, the computer will boot normally.
Attention!
Some computers may not be able to boot from CD automatically. In this case, you need to reconfigure the computer BIOS.
Run the automatic installation of Windows XP (see Fig. 2.1).
Some CDs support both. If you choose the first option, the installation is controlled by programs built into your computer's processor. If there were serious problems with the previous operating system, then choose the first option.
The installation process with the support of the Startup Wizard is controlled using the operating system instead of which you want to install Windows XP. The initial steps with the startup program are easier.
Further actions are no different for the first and second options.
2. In the shown in fig. In the 2.1 window, select the System Compatibility Check. Three options for further actions will be available in the new window (Fig. 2.2).
Fig. 2.2. The second step of installing Windows XP.
We choose Automatic check systems. You should click on Compatibility Web site if you have a reliable Internet connection. It should be noted that this procedure will not take much time.
3. The More about the installation process section (see Figure 2.1) provides reference material and recommendations for installing Windows XP. All installation instructions should be carefully read prior to installation. This item may not appear in the installation window.
4. The item Installing additional Windows components (see Fig. 2.1) is convenient if you have Windows XP installed and you have saved the CD from which the installation was made. In the process, for example, the Spider Solitaire game or the Outlook Express email program was uninstalled by mistake. Do not reinstall the system because of this! Select Install additional Windows components, select the necessary checkboxes and click the Next button (Fig. 2.3). You can, of course, install the missing components from another Windows XP CD, but I would not advise taking risks.
Fig. 2.3. Installing additional Windows components.
Note.
There are more reliable way repair additional Windows XP components. Open the Add / Remove Programs window from the Control Panel, click on the Add Windows Components button on the left, check the box for the program that you accidentally uninstalled, and click Next. If the operating system does not like your CD, a warning will appear stating that this component cannot be installed. If everything is ok, the program will be installed.
The Windows Components Wizard window will look the same no matter how you invoke it.
5. The item Performing other tasks (see Fig. 2.1) is needed only for experienced users: it allows you to install remote control Desktop, home or small network, etc. (Figure 2.4).
Fig. 2.4. Performing other tasks.
Let's skip it. By the way, this item may be missing.
6. Click in the window shown in fig. 2.1, on the item Installing Windows XP. The Windows XP Setup Wizard window will open (Fig. 2.5).
Fig. 2.5. Selecting the type of installation.
From the Installation Type drop-down list, you can select one of the following options.
Repair Windows XP. Choose this option if Windows XP is installed but does not work well. The recovery must be performed from the same CD from which the installation took place. Computer settings and your data, except for drivers and video card settings, should be saved, but it will not be superfluous to copy all personal files to floppy disks before restoring. Some programs will need to be reinstalled.
7. If you selected the New installation type and clicked Next, the license agreement will appear on the screen. Read it and accept or reject the terms of the agreement. To proceed with the installation, you must accept the terms of the agreement. We accept them.
8. The next window displays the conditions for re-creating partitions on the hard disk. Repartitioning is useful when combining several small partitions into one larger one, or when installing multiple operating systems (in which case you should create multiple partitions, since each version of Windows is installed on a separate volume). If you need to break into sections, follow the instructions. This procedure is described in more detail in Sec. "Installing two OS".
9. Select the file system and the desired formatting method (fast or slow), and then press the Enter key. If you select the Format disk option, all information from the hard drive will be deleted. No "old sores" will be inherited.
Attention!
Formatting the volume deletes files and checks the hard drive for bad sectors. Most of the time is spent checking the hard drive. If the quick format mode is selected, the files are deleted from the section, and check hard disk for bad sectors is not performed. This mode should be used only if you are sure that the hard disk is working properly, since writing system files to damaged areas of the hard disk will make the operating system unusable.
Disconnecting the computer from the network while formatting the disk can cause serious malfunctions.
10. The program will format the hard drive, copy the original installation files and restart the computer. After that, the installation of Windows XP will continue.
11. In the Configure software ownership field, enter your name.
12. The installation program may ask you to enter a key, but in some versions, registration will be required at the first Windows startup XP.
Attention!
The 25-character code is written down on paper prior to installing Windows. The code can be on the box of the installation CD or in a file on that CD. Often such documents are marked with # or called Read Me, Readme, Serial.
13. Enter and remember (or better write down somewhere) the administrator password.
14. Set the date and time.
15. In the Workgroup or Domain window, click Next.
16. The Windows XP installation process will continue. When the installation is complete, the computer will restart and you can start working.
Certain items may be missing on some installation CDs. Sometimes only the Windows XP Installation item is present. The fewer the choices, the easier it is to install Windows. However, some experienced users like to configure everything on their own, especially since the default settings are not always suitable for work and you still have to change them. However, if you accidentally confuse the current year out of excitement, then nothing terrible will happen. You can change it to the desired year at any time convenient for you after installing the operating system, since most of the parameters can be changed and adjusted. The main thing is not to confuse the file system.
If you have problems with your CD-ROM drive, you can also install using six floppy disks. Bootable floppy disks must first be downloaded from the Microsoft website (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310994). Be sure to sign or remember the floppy disk numbers when copying. When all the disks are ready, insert the first one into the floppy drive and restart your computer. The Windows XP installation process will begin. After finishing work with the first disc, a message will appear on the screen that you need to insert the second disc. Insert the second floppy disk, etc.
Formatting, partitioning, file system selection, and other settings are the same as when installing from CD.
Service PackSome distribution CDs allow you to install service packs without reinstalling or updating Windows XP. The Service Pack can also be downloaded for free from the Internet.
Operating systems are created by people, and people, as you know, can make mistakes. During the operation of the system, errors appear, and programmers find ways to eliminate them. To eliminate possible errors, service packs appeared: Service Pack 1 and 2.
If you already have Windows XP operating system installed on your computer, which works without failures, then you should not change the system because of the new package that has appeared. You can install the Service Pack on an existing Windows XP. All service packs are installed in the order of their numbering. Installation of SP2 is allowed without prior installation of SP1.
Consider the merits of the second package Windows updates XP (Service Pack 2).
Improving the search and exchange of information on the Internet thanks to new technologies.
- You can block most of the pages that open without your permission, which gives you more control and improves your web performance.
- Outlook Express uses a new Attachment Manager that isolates files from the contents on the hard drive when they are opened. This prevents the possibility of infecting the system with a virus or other dangerous code.
- The new built-in Windows Firewall is enabled by default and helps protect your computer from viruses and attacks from the Internet.
Simplify and accelerate the management of security settings and updates with the Security Center Windows security designed specifically for Windows XP.
The latest software and hardware developments from Microsoft: new drivers and updates - will help you work more efficiently and safely with the Player Windows Media, with DirectX, etc.
SP2 requires a computer with Windows XP, a CD-ROM drive (if you are installing from a CD-ROM), a processor with a frequency of at least 233 MHz, 64 MB or more of RAM, and 900 MB of free hard disk space.
Attention!
Service packs for different versions of Windows have been released before. They were called the same: SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4. If you have Windows XP installed on your computer, then the service packs must be specifically for Windows XP. Look, don't be confused.
Installing two OS
Before installing two operating systems, you must understand that each operating system takes up valuable disk space and file system compatibility issues may arise. Each operating system is an independent world that lives by its own laws and requires its own software.
For example, you have installed and configured a driver for a video card in Windows XP Professional. Start the second operating system (assume Windows 95) and install the driver for the video card compatible with Windows 95. You have installed Microsoft Word in Windows XP, run Windows 95 and install Word compatible with Windows 95. All optimization settings and preventive maintenance for each operating system are carried out separately, according to their own rules.
Attention!
Drivers and programs must be compatible with the version of Windows on which you are installing them.
Not all older programs work in Windows XP Professional. Some members of your family may have a preference for a particular version of Windows. Perhaps these are the only reasons why it is worth installing two operating systems.
Installing two or more operating systems with the FAT file system must proceed in the following order: MS-DOS, Windows 95 or 98, and then Windows XP. You understand that it is not necessary to install all Windows modifications, but the versions that were released earlier are installed first.
Installation of two or more operating systems with the NTFS file system occurs according to the same criteria as with FAT - first, the versions that were released earlier are installed.
But before installing two or more operating systems, you need to create multiple volumes. Of course, your computer's hard drive may have been partitioned long before you decided to install Windows XP, and you just want to replace one of your installed operating systems with Windows XP. Then the installation proceeds in exactly the same way as described in Sec. "Installing one OS - Windows XP", taking into account all that has been said about file systems. But we'll look at how you can split one hard drive into two or more partitions and how to merge existing partitions using the partitioning and disk formatting tools built into Windows XP Setup.
Once again, read Sec. "Installing one OS - Windows XP" to the eighth point.
The creation of new sections is a very important operation, therefore all actions are commented in detail and explained on the screen during its implementation.
Using the cursor keys (? And?), You can select a section or free area. Press the D key to delete the existing partition, and then the L key to confirm the deletion of the partition (or press the Enter key followed by L if it is a system partition). Repeat the above steps as many times as you want to delete sections.
Press the C key to create a new partition based on the free space and enter the required size of the new partition (for example, 8 MB). Press Enter to create the maximum partition. If you need to create additional partitions, then repeat this procedure as many times as you want to create.
Use the arrow keys (? And?) To select the partition where you want to install Windows XP. Then you need to press the Enter key and select a formatting method.
Leave the current file system.
Formatting a partition using the FAT "Fast" file system.
Formatting a partition using the FAT file system.
Formatting the partition using the NTFS "Fast" file system.
Formatting a partition using the NTFS file system.
Note.
Not every installation disc supports all five formatting options.
Press Enter.
If several operating systems are installed on the computer, then you can select one of them to be loaded by default. To do this, after installing all operating systems and restarting the computer, find the My Computer icon on the Desktop, right-click on it and select Properties from the context menu. In the window that opens, go to the Advanced tab and in the Startup and Recovery area, click the Options button. The Startup and Recovery window will open (Fig. 2.6).
In the Operating system loading area of the window that opens, from the Operating system loaded by default list, select the required system, and then press the OK button at the bottom of the window. Now, when you turn on or restart your computer, the selected operating system will load.
To manually edit the order and set the operating system to be loaded by default, we remain in the Startup and Recovery window. In the Boot operating system area, to the right of the Manually edit the boot list, click the Edit button and make the necessary changes in the window that opens. But be careful when manually editing the boot parameters - the computer may not start at all. If you do not quite understand how to edit the boot parameters manually, then remember this setting and never change it (or even open it).
or manually enter the desired time during which it will be possible to select any system installed on your computer. After this time, the default Windows system will start to boot.
Installing video card drivers
After installing Windows XP, it is advisable to install the video card drivers. The graphics card drivers that come with Windows are not the best option.
Take the CD that you purchased with your graphics card and insert it into your drive. Find the required driver and install it. You can also download the driver from the Internet, extract it from the archive into separate folder and install on a computer.
Note.
A device driver is a small piece of software that allows the operating system to interact with specific components on your computer (modem, printer, video card, etc.). Drivers are a very important part of your computer. Windows XP includes advanced driver checkers to ensure maximum system stability. Like any program, drivers are outdated and need to be replaced with newer ones. It is advisable to change the video card drivers once a year, and for the mouse you can always use the driver installed with the operating system.
If you are not exactly sure of the correctness of your choice, you can prompt the computer to select the required driver located on your CD, floppy or hard disk.
Executing the Start command? Control panel and in the window that opens, double-click on the System icon. The System Properties window will open (Fig. 2.7).
Fig. 2.7. Properties of the system.
Go to the Hardware tab and click the Device Manager button. In the window of the same name, click on the "+" sign to the left of the Video adapters item, and then right-click on the name of the video card (for example, NVIDIA GeForce2 MX / MX 400). In the context menu that appears, select the Update driver item.
In the opened window of the hardware update wizard, you can set the switch to the Automatic installation or Install from a specified location position. If the driver is on a floppy disk, then select Automatic installation. If the driver is on a CD or hard drive, then set the switch to the position Install from a specified location. Click the Next button.
If the driver is on the CD, then you can select Search on adjacent media, and if on the hard disk, select Include this search location. Click the Browse button, specify the folder with the drivers and click OK.
The computer will choose the best driver and install it. It may happen that all the offered drivers for one reason or another will not work. In this case, you need to find others. You can, of course, install the drivers forcibly, but I do not advise you to experiment - Windows knows what it is doing.
Drivers in Windows XP are checked before installation for compatibility with the operating system and for reliability during operation. Verified device drivers provide the most reliable performance for maximum system stability.
Drivers of all devices are installed and updated in a similar way.
Attention!
If your computer encounters any problems (suddenly there is no sound, the printer does not want to print files, etc.), open Device Manager. Devices with incorrect installed drivers will be marked. In this case, you need to reinstall the drivers.
You should understand that the cause of the malfunction can be anything: you mute the sound on the taskbar or forgot to refuel the printer cartridge. But before taking your computer for repair, check the device drivers.
Windows XP remains one of the most popular operating systems today. Users appreciate its reliability and ability to run on weak old hardware. The step-by-step installation of Windows XP is quick and easy. Below is a detailed description of it.
Preparing the computer for installing a new OS
The easiest way to install Windows XP is from the installation disc. If, instead of reading data from it, the system started loading the old OS or a black screen appeared that did not respond to button presses, then you just need to go into the BIOS and make the appropriate settings:
- Open the section Advansed BIOS Features or BIOS / Boot Device Priority;
- Select the First Boot Devise item;
- In the list that opens, select the CDROM value or the name of your drive;
- Save the result by pressing the F10 key and restart your PC.
Note that there are a lot of BIOS versions for laptops today, so the described steps in the case of installing the OS on a laptop may be somewhat different.
Go directly to the installation
The first window is blue screen... It is at this stage that you step-by-step installation of the software for installing Windows XP on a SCSI (high-speed disk) or RAID array. To do this, you need to press F6, after which the installation of the corresponding drivers will begin. But in most cases, users install the system on a regular hard disk, for which no intervention in the installation process is required at this stage, you just need to wait for the next welcome screen.
- Install Windows XP. The standard choice in most cases is to install the system "from scratch" or restore the old one. A convenient graphical interface is used.
- System recovery using the console. This is the choice of professional users and wizards - recovery is performed from the command line using DOS commands. In this case, a complete reinstallation of the system is not performed.
Then the system proceeds to search for the previously installed OS versions. If any were found, the list will be displayed on this screen below, the menu will offer options for subsequent actions:
- restore old Windows XP;
- install a new copy of the OS.
In the first case, you will be able to use earlier installed applications... Only system files will be replaced, and the installation will be complete. The second option involves a complete rearrangement of the system.
No list will appear not only if Windows XP is installed on an "empty" computer, but also if the previously installed system has a different edition or service pack.
The most crucial moment of installation
The next point of installation is perhaps the most important, and it should be done thoughtfully and carefully. You will need to define the system partition and allocate disk space in such a way that there is enough space on the virtual disk allocated for the system for its functioning.
Of course, both the system and your personal data can use the same partition equal to the entire space hard disk, but such an organization is guaranteed to create many problems in the future.
Divide the disk into partitions
If you are installing Windows XP on a completely new disk, then you will have to distribute the sections yourself, since this step-by-step procedure has never been done before. In the window that appears, the size of the unallocated area will be indicated - it will match the size of the entire hard disk. 
Here you need to create a so-called. the system partition is the one where the OS will be installed. To do this, you need to specify its size in megabytes (1 GB is equal to 1024 MB) and press "Enter" on the keyboard. After that, you will again return to the window in which the partition of the hard disk is carried out. The created section will already be displayed on a separate line with the assignment of a Latin letter (usually C) to it. 
You should not save on the size of the system partition - the stability of the system will depend on it. The minimum space for installing Windows XP is 20 GB, but it is better to allocate it not 20, but 40, or even all of 60 GB.
In a similar way, we create other sections for personal data from the remaining unallocated area, however, you should not get carried away with the quantity - in this case, large files and folders will be distributed less efficiently, and navigation through the sections will become more confusing.
Formatting the system partition
Next, you will need to select a partition for installing the system (in our case, drive C) and press the "Enter" key. A window will open prompting you to format the partition. 
Choose fast formatting in NFTS system (FAT is obsolete). After completing the formatting, the process of installing the system files will start. 
The most difficult stage of the installation has been completed.
By the way, if the disk that you partitioned is not formatted, then you can carry out this procedure with each of the created partitions for personal data even after the installation of Windows XP is completed using standard means.
If you are rearranging the system and the disk is already partitioned, then you just need to select the partition with the system to be reinstalled, format it and start the installation process. If you decide to format the rest of the sections, then all information on them will be lost.
Finishing installation
After the system files have been copied, the computer will restart and the installation will continue.
Determine the initial parameters:
