Fast way to install XP

Willis · 23 Apr 2007 at 09:10

Is there a fast way to install XP onto a hard drive apart from using the XP disk eg from a another drive, clone etc as a friend was telling me he seen someone doing it though dos once :confused:

Minstadave · 23 Apr 2007 at 10:02

You could use Norton ghost/ Acronis trueimage to image an XP install.

FatRakoon · 25 Apr 2007 at 10:43

Installing through DOS will be a milllion times lower than through the CD.

Ghosting the drive would be a very quick option.

or me however, I just use a custom CD... I have a CD for each PC, all ready setup with my Login user name, the PCs Drivers, and a few apps ready to install, and it takes about 10 minutes to go from a blank HD to a setup PC ready to rumble.

Of course, there is only so far, you can take that to... Ghosting the Disk can be preferable as you can have it fully activated and have as many apps etc as you like all readily installed.

slinxy · 25 Apr 2007 at 11:07

I use external hdd, with windows updates slipsteamed into the install and installing SP2 takes ages. All drivers (apart from SATA drivers; those are streamed into windows) are just in folders, as by the time I need to recover the drivers will be so out of date, but they stored in a manner where update drivers method will find them. All programs are iso-ed up on the hdd, as I can never find the disc when needed.

I do have a few machines and the hdd has all the drivers for them, and I perfer this method as ghosting systems in any form just gives you an out of date system - unless your system messes up often.

The only other method I would consider is remote installation via server which takes a lot of time to setup, worth playing with but not if you are never planning to admin a large network.

iCraig · 25 Apr 2007 at 11:15

The fastest way I've ever installed a group of XP machines was using Norton Ghost and Sysprep.

Did 10 in about an hour.

gareth170 · 25 Apr 2007 at 11:46

use Acronis True Image Home.. only takes 5-10mins to recover

J.T · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:00

gareth170 said:
use Acronis True Image Home.. only takes 5-10mins to recover

Seconded..

gareth170 · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:21

J.T said:
Seconded..

depends if you have a lot of software installed when you backed it up

optimus · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:23

gareth170 said:
depends if you have a lot of software installed when you backed it up

Its doesm but Acronis is a lot faster (and easier to use than Ghost anyway).

J.T · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:24

gareth170 said:
depends if you have a lot of software installed when you backed it up

True although I assumed because he said "fast way to install XP" that it would be an Acronis Image of a windows install only

gareth170 · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:31

i do two image's. 1 at the start without software and drivers , and 1 when everything is installed...

IAmATeaf · 25 Apr 2007 at 14:37

We use Ghost Console and then a bastardised version of Ghostprep to dump an image to a workstation and then auto-execute scripts on first start do all the additional joining to the domain etc..