i get this message when trying to boot up my custom pc for the first time. Disk Boot Failure, Insert System Disk & Press Enter

i've entered windows xp professional and nothing happens. the cd-rom reads and then asks to hit enter again.

does anyone have any ideas how to fix this problem???

 

Perhaps one of your system files has become corrupted. I'm no techno-wizard by any means, but here's what I propose.

Start up the PC with the boot-up CD in the drive. When prompted to make a selection from the DOS-esque menu that appears, run Windows XP in safe mode. Once Windows starts up (safe mode), go into

Programs ---> Accessories----> System Tools----> System Restore.

Restore Windows back to a date in the recent past when your PC was working just fine. Restart the PC without the boot-up disk, and with any luck, the corrupt system file wil be repaired. If this works, run a good virus check, and eliminate any worms that may have found their way onto your PC.

Failing that, it might mean reinstalling XP, or at the very worst, a clean slate format.

Good luck!
Asif

 

to make it more clear, i have to OS. this is the first time the PC is being booted. brand new HDD, motherboard, etc.

 

Take your case door off and check your cables. Ensure that the IDE cable is firmly in place on both the hard drive and the mother board. Also check the power cable to the hard drive. The error you're getting means that the system does not detect a hard drive/operating system. This usually means a corrupt boot sector or bad system drive.

If the cables are fine, did you notice your drive making any ususual noises? Like a knocking sound or a beeping noise? If so, you have a bad hard drive and will need to get a new one and reload your system. Any noise other than normal access noise coming from a hard drive = bad news.

You may be able to fix it if you have Norton Disk Doctor or some other disk scan tool that can be run in DOS mode. This will require some computer knowledge to do.

Anyway, hope this helps.

 

Hmmm...ok so if I understand you correctly, this is a new system that needs to have the O/S installed?????


If this is the case, just put in the Windows XP CD and boot your system. At some point the system will do one of three things:

1. Boot from the CDRom and start the install process.
2. Ask you to press any key to boot from the CDRom.
3. Bypass the CDRom and give you the "Disk Boot Failure" you experienced.

If number 3 happens, then you will need to go into your CMOS and set your boot priority to Floppy, CDRom, Hard Drive. If number 3 happens then most likely your system default is setup as Floppy, Hard Drive, CDRom. If this is the case, it will never get to the CDRom to boot from a disk.

To get to your CMOS, on boot you will at "Some Point" see a message that says something like "To enter setup, press delete" or some other key (f1, f2, whatever, delete is the most common). Just hit that key when prompted to enter your CMOS. Once in the CMOS look for your boot priority and make the change above.

Now, this all depends on if your computer needs the O/S installed like I took from your statement above. If this is NOT the case, the look at my previous post

 

hard drive is not making any weird noises what so ever. everything seems to be hooked up correctly.

i've entered CMOS and changed boot priority to CDrom first then HDD, since i have to Floppy.

i know the cdrom works because its reading certain disks in place into it. i know the HDD wroks because it is detected in CMOS.

i'm very worried right now

 

Have you installed Windows yet? If not, this error sounds normal. Put in your system CD and boot from that and it will format your hard drive for you during installation. If you have formatted it could be a number of issues.

PM me or post if you need more help. I've built many dozens of PCs from scratch...

 

It sounds like either the machine is not setup properly to boot from CD, or something is wrong with your XP install cd that is preventing it from being bootable.

I am unsure if you are saying that you CAN boot from other CD's? If so, then that rules out a problem with your CDROM or BIOS setup for bootable CD's.

Does anyone know if the XP Install CD has a utility for creating boot floppies for the install? I know that previous version of Windows provided for creating boot floppies, and if XP does then perhaps you can use another PC to create the floppies and go from there.

Matt

 

Just so I understand your experience level, have you built computers before, or is this your first one?

Is the BIOS able to see the hard drive at all? Confirm that first.

If not, you may have contention between the hard drive(s) and your CD drive(s) for master/slave lines on the IDE channel. Are they connected to the same IDE channel or are they on separate channels? Some drives are more finicky than others about the jumper selections (master/slave/cable select) with which they'll run for a certain IDE configuration. For example, I've seen some that don't like to be picked as master if they are on the IDE channel by themselves. Double check the jumper settings and compare to what the manual recommends.

Once you have the drives fully recognized by the bios, you may want to boot with whatever utility disk (be sure to change the BIOS drive boot order) you received (or download it) from the hard drive manufacturer, and let it format the hard drive as a boot/system disk (it will ask for an OS CD to pull the system files). This probably needs to be done before you can install the OS. Most of these hard drive utilities will also help you detect a bad drive, if that is in fact, the problem.

Then change the boot order back to CD and proceed with the OS install.

 

Another quick question.....

Is this a standard IDE drive (40/80 pin connector with flat ribbon cable), or a newer serial ATA (thin 5-wire cable)?