Member Avatar for TJ229ER

I am trying to reinstall xp. I have an OEM XP disc. I boot into the disc and get a blue screen with white text that simply says Windows Setup. I left the computer on this screen for an hour and nothing happened. What should I do?

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The plain blue screen that just says "Windows Setup" is the text-mode installer prompt; it does not advance by itself. It waits for a keypress (ENTER = set up Windows XP now, R = Recovery Console, F3 = quit). That prompt can look like a freeze if no keypress is seen, so it is worth confirming the installer actually received a keystroke.

If the prompt ignores the keypress, keyboard support at BIOS time is a common culprit. USB keyboards can be inactive during text-mode setup unless the motherboard BIOS has "USB Legacy" or "USB Keyboard Support" enabled. A PS/2 keyboard (if available) will bypass that issue. Also try removing non-essential USB devices while booting to rule out USB enumeration problems.

Modern storage controllers can also stop XP setup early. Many newer motherboards ship SATA controllers in AHCI/RAID mode; stock XP installers lack drivers for those controllers and the setup can appear to hang. Two practical options: switch the SATA mode to IDE/Compatibility/Legacy in BIOS so XP can see the disk, or prepare install media that includes the controller driver (F6 floppy-driver method or slipstreaming the driver into the ISO with tools like nLite/WinSetupFromUSB).

This advice complements the hardware point raised by and without replacing parts immediately. It also addresses the specific prompt seen by . Before swapping components, try the keyboard/BIOs/storage-driver checks above and, if possible, test the CD in another PC or a virtual machine to confirm whether the media itself progresses past the initial prompt.

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Member Avatar for Member #127113

Hello and Welcome to Daniweb !

It hangs while loading of files ?
Check the RAM if it covered by dust clean it and restore it and then back on.

Member Avatar for TJ229ER

My computer is working ok I am just trying to do a reinstall. When booting from the disc it hangs on just saying windows setup before I choose any options at all.

Member Avatar for Member #127113

May be disc got corrupted or possible hardware problem.

Member Avatar for gerbil

"My computer is working ok"... oh no, it's not. Either your CD is dirty.... or your RAM is unhappy.. replug/swap it, try again.

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