TI9 - New computer won't boot after recovery

Hi all -- I imaged my 40gb hard drive from a Dell Dimension and placed the image on a new (about 1.5 yrs newer) Dell Dimension with a 80 gb hd. I followed the instructions, deleted the partition on destination machine (as TI suggested) and it said it successfully restored the image to the new machine.

However, the new machine will not boot. It goes to the "Windows did not start properly" screen that offers Safe Mode, etc., but it will not boot in Safe Mode or any other mode (the Dell Screen pops up and the "Windows did not start properly") shows up again, and so forth. Source machine was running XP Service Pack 2 and the latest TI9 (I bought and downloaded it last night). Both machines are P4.

Any suggestions?

 

Generally speaking, you cannot move an operating system like Windows from one machine to another. You have a plethora of incompatable device drivers for things like video, sound, chipset and CPU, etc. etc. Your Dimention systems are probably very different inside.

 

Just a logical guess, but I would think that the copy you made matches the BIOS or chipset of the computer it came installed on and will not install on another computer. No matter how similar the motherboard, BIOS, and chipsets may be, and even if it is from the same manufacturer, it is a different and separate machine that came loaded with it's own OEM copy of Windows. Each OEM copy of Windows is keyed to the particular machine it came installed on from the manufacturer, in this case Dell.

Allen

 

Many thanks -- so from what I understand from your posts, TI9 will only work if I restore an image to a new hard drive but all on the *same* machine? (e.g., image from same machine to new hard drive but on same machine).

 

Thats not necessarily true. I have done this several times without issue.
WinXP should automatically adjust and install drivers for the new hardware. Its no different than installing new hardware on an existing setup. The Bios , as far as I understand it , primarily provides the instructions to load the operating system in addition to providing a set of low-level routines that the operating system uses to interface to different hardware devices . Again WinXP should have no problem with this issue.
Try it again and make sure that the image is designated as the C partition and is active.

While I have not had problems in the past it is possible that I was lucky and my assumptions are off and the prior posters are right. No offense meant to anyone.

 

Pretty well true.

http://ghost.radified.com/ghost_3.htm

See "Restoring an Image from different PC" towards the bottom of the page.

 

There is alot of useful information on moving a Windows XP installation to a new system/motherboard HERE.

 

You have nothing to lose so try a Repair Installation.


http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

http://www.dougknox.com/xp/tips/xp_repair_install.htm

 

The issue here is Dell is no longer sending a 'restore disk' with computers. (They use a hidden partition for re-install, and if a hard disk failure occurs, you get a new hard disk by mail) And previous Dell's restore disks were keyed by code to the motherboard BIOS of the computer it is installed on. This 'restore' disk of WinXP will not perform as a stand alone copy that you purchase retail, and could be used on more than one machine, but legally *not* at the same time, and you will have to re-activate with M$.

If it were *this* easy, we could just clone away and install XP on any very similar build of a machine, which of course you can't get by with as activation will 'snag' you. In this case you could use Dell small business and order a machine with no operating system installed and clone the copy from a similar machine you have purchased and be running the same copy on both machines. Trust me, it will not work without some major tweaks and 'beating' the validation with M$.

...Allen