My computer is a Dell laptop, Inspiron 7500 with 256 mb ram, I was using win 2K, then tried to put in a clean install and the installation froze. I turned it off and retried, same thing it froze in the same spot. Please help

In what exact part of the installation did it freeze?

Can you verify that the install CD isn't damaged?

When you say a "clean install", does that mean you reformatted the drive?

On the screen now it is installing devices and is froze about 25% through that installation procedure. I can turn it off and back on and it will freeze there in that exact spot every time. I am installing the full version of Win 2K, and yes it does format my hard drive. I am pretty sure the cd is clean, no scratches.

If it's always stalling in the same place, it could be a bad spot on the disk, but it could also be having trouble with a certain device in your system.

What are specs for the hardware in the machine (vid card, network card, etc.)?

Yes, it was a bad spot on the disk. I had to reload win98 on the computer.
Thanks all.

Hi,
I have the exact same problem above, updating Win98 to 2000. The installation ran through to completion (100%), and the system rebooted to apply new settings, only when it rebooted it froze in one of the initial screens (BIOS?). I am non-techie and am looking more for help in recovering the data on the PC. Any help you can provide me will be much appreciated. Thanks.