Member Avatar for JANINE

this might seem as if im beating about the bush a little bit but i'll try to keep it as short as i can:D

i have just brought a copy of windows xp professional (OEM) today and have taken it home to install on a machine of which i have just built. I dont usually have problems with installing operating systems so i cant understand whats gone wrong here.

ok spose it might help if i gave you some system information.

AMD sempron 2GHz processor
256 MB RAM
40Gig excel stor hard drive

heres the problem i have been having.

i have made attempts to install the software from the disc (as you do) but it is only getting as far as a black screen with 'setup is inspecting your hardware configuration. i have tried this 3 times and to no avail.

i have also checked the boot priorities and they look ok
boot priorities are
1 cdrom
2 hdd 0
3 floppy

i have also checked the internal cabling etc. pls help im baffled again...:eek:

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Dani AI

Generated

Good troubleshooting by and useful diagnostic angle from — this thread highlights how to turn a setup hang into a short, practical test plan. When "Setup is inspecting your hardware" stalls, treat it as a cue to methodically eliminate media, controllers, and extra hardware before assuming a software problem.

Try these steps in order:

  • Verify the CD: try the XP disc in another PC, or burn a new copy at the slowest speed and check for visible damage.
  • Swap the optical drive and cable: a flaky drive or IDE/SATA cable often freezes setup.
  • Strip to bare minimum: disconnect every nonessential drive, remove PCI/AGP cards, unplug USB devices and front-panel headers.
  • Test RAM and disk: run Memtest86 (bootable) to check RAM; try a known-good hard drive or boot a small live CD to confirm disk/IDE controller access.
  • BIOS basics: load BIOS defaults, disable unused onboard devices (sound, LAN, RAID/SATA controllers), and set SATA to compatibility/IDE mode if available.
  • XP-specific drivers: if the machine uses newer SATA/AHCI controllers, either set the controller to IDE mode or supply drivers via F6 (floppy) or slipstream them into the install CD.
  • Power and PSU: swap with a known-good PSU or disconnect nonessential fans/drives to rule out power instability.
  • Last-resort firmware: update BIOS only if a vendor note mentions installer issues and you can do it reliably.

Handle boards and sockets with care (power off, ground yourself) when you inspect connectors. Use the point where setup stops, as suggested, to focus tests (media, drive controller, or added hardware). If the minimal-system tests still fail, the fault is likely physical and replacement or vendor RMA is reasonable.

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Member Avatar for JANINE

I have solved the problem relating to the above thread.. i reduced the system down to barebones and discovered a pin had got bent on the motherboard and also there was a bent transistor cap near the power supply connector.

Replaced the motherboard and it seems to be all ok now.;)

heres the updated specs of the machine for those who are interested.

Winfast K7S741MG Motherboard with onboard 5.1 surround sound
Jeantech butterfly case
500 watt Jeantech PSU
AMD sempron 2.2 Ghz processor
Turbo cooling system and fan speed controller
lite on games cd rom drive
Phillips DVD-RW 16x speed
running windows xp professional and office 2003.

it's a nice machine baby.:D

Member Avatar for kc0arf

Hello,

Just for next time... as you saw that

Setup is inspecting your hardware....

message, this tells you the following immediately:

* Your boot order was fine
* Your IDE / ATA subsystem is fine
* Your startup disk loaded correctly
* Your RAM was counted and initialized properly

Lots of things can be determined by just noting where your system is at in the installation process.

Christian

Member Avatar for JANINE

Hello,

Just for next time... as you saw that

Setup is inspecting your hardware....

message, this tells you the following immediately:

* Your boot order was fine
* Your IDE / ATA subsystem is fine
* Your startup disk loaded correctly
* Your RAM was counted and initialized properly

Lots of things can be determined by just noting where your system is at in the installation process.

Christian

least i discovered the problem and i'll know 4 next time what to look for:)

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