Making an XP MCE cd

Hi, I just bought a new i9300 and *sadly* forgot to order the Windows XP MCE cd, so I'm stuck with the default, bloated installation. I left the USA to spend the holidays with my family so I can't try to get the discs from Dell until January.

I've noticed that my laptop came with a i386 folder that seems to be the normal i386 folder of the windows installation discs, and since I have a retail Windows XP MCE 2005 cd, I was wondering if it was possible to use this folder to burn a cd that I can use with the serial number on the CoA sticker in the back of the laptop.

Does anyone know if this is possible? I know how to make the cd bootable and all but I'm afraid to pursue this without any feedback because I want to repartition so I wont be able to use the recovery partition.

Thanks
Gaston

 

are you talking about using the folder or the retail cd to do the installation? I'm not sure what you are talking about exactly, so i'm just going to assume a couple of things. Feel free to correct e if i'm wrong.

You can use your retail CD to do the clean format, and then enter your key located on the bottom. You shouldn't need the i386 folder, since you have a retail CD that will install MCE on any computer.

I believe with MCE, you get 2 extra partitions -- 1 recovery and 1 other. Make sure you only delete the recovery one. I don't have MCE so i can't tell you which it is.

SG

 

No, he's saying he DOESN'T have the retail CD. He wants to burn a CD using the i386 folder, and use that to format his hard drive.


Unfortunately, I have no idea if that's possible. Anyone else??!

 

i don't think it's possible since the i386 folder is a just a resevoir for all the .cab files. an 'image' of that on a cdr/dvdr won't be bootable and won't have an installer.

 

No, I do have the actual retail Windows XP MCE 2005 cds (yes, they are two), however I can't use these discs with the serial number that's attached to the computer because it'll only work with Dell's OEM version (the one on the restore disc they ship to you). I tried using the serial to install MCE under VMWare on another PC and it doesn't let me install because it says the serial is invalid.

On my Dell, on the C:\ partition, there is a i386 folder (like the one on the installation discs). What I wanted to do is to make a Frankestein version of Windows XP MCE using the original (retail) discs, and the i386, so that I can install it using the serial on the CoA under the laptop.

 

Ah, I reread it and I see where I got confused. Part of me wants to say in theory this COULD be possible, but it seems like it would be a BIG hassle. I say wait till January!!

 

Messing around it seems it's very possible to recreate the cd from the files, there are only 3 files that are different in the two i386 folders (the one on my dell and the one on the original MCE disc):

MDMSSYS.IN_ , SETUPP.INI , SETUPREG.HIV

There are also 12 hotfixes slipstream on the dell folder, and 11 files that are on the dell 's i386 folder but not on the original disc.
There are a 1023 files that are on the original disc but not on dell's i386 folder.
Also the second disc is included in the Dell's i386 folder, the files that are actually different between the two discs are only 256KB in size (combined)

I believe it would be very easy to achieve what I want, but I need that someone gives me the md5 or crc32 checksums for the 'Dell Recovery Cd' thats shipped with the i9300 with Windows Media Center edition 2005.

Does anyone here have this disc? Could you please generate a checksum file for it so I can check which files are different?

Thanks a lot to everyone.

 

I don't see why the key wouldn't work. They key shouldn't be attached to OEM disk. I wonder if the key is attached to your 9300 though. If you look at the sticker, it does have dell on it, so maybe the keys are like OEM disks -- only working on dell systems? I know with XP Pro and home you can use the retail disk on your laptop and the key on the bottom, so not really sure why MCE would be different.

It sounds like it might just be easier to wait a couple of weeks. One thing i thought of is that dell is a bit picky when it comes to shipping the XP disks. Its better to do it as soon as you get your laptop, and if not, you might have a 30 day window, but i'm not 100% positive. If you have a neighbor or someone at your home that could sign for the package, you might want to order the disk now.

SG

 

Southerngirl,

I had the same problem on OEM HP's. I tried to reinstall windows XP OEM with the Windows DVD and it didn't work. I think it might be different for different manufacturers. That stinks

 

but where you trying to install it on the HP?

I'm just trying to figure this all out. I know with OEM disk, you have to stay with your manufacturer. Now i'm starting to question with the key that is located on the bottom of our laptops are OEM or retail so to speak.

I thought we could use the key on any computer as long as it matched the OS. It would make sense though that Dell has it where it the key will only work on dell systems.

Am i making any sense or just confusing everyone ?

 

That is what I am thinking too Southerngirl. Like I said, I have the OEM's and the key wouldn't work without the HP brand OEM disc, it was odd.

 

after more research it seems like the key we get with the laptop only works with OEM discs from Dell, however, the part of the discs that controls which kind of keys the cd takes is only a file SETUPP.INI.
This file is only a text file with the following contents:

Code:

[Pid]
ExtraData=786F687170637175716954806365EF
Pid=76487OEM

The part that says Pid=76487OEM makes the cd take the OEM key that's in the sticker.

In retail version of Windows XP MCE, the files contents are:

Code:

[Pid]
ExtraData=707A667567736F696F697911AE7E05
Pid=55034000

This makes the cd only accept retail keys.

I made a test using all the files from the retail version and changing that file so the disc accepts OEM keys, and it worked under VMWare, I could install a copy of MCE using my laptop's serial and the image of the retail disc using Dell's SETUPP.INI.
I however didn't test the activation part so I'm not sure if that works.

I'll try to format the laptop after creating an image to see if I can successfully install and activate Windows. I'll post here whatever happens, I believe if this works it can be very helpful for the people that have lost/damaged their installation media.

 

id just download a copy of windows xp and use my cdkey to install it instead of the pirated one but thats just me !

 

glyons, definately let us know if that technique works out for activation.

 

It worked, installed and activated over the internet with no questions asked.

So, after all it is possible to use any cd that matches the OS you have installed as long as you modify it so it accepts your cd key.

 

It's not that easy, pirated copies are almost always corporate or retail versions with a crack, you cannot use the serial that came with an Inspiron (not sure about latitudes, i heard that they have retail licenses).

Well, I guess i saved myself $10 and the nightmare of dealing with dell's support.

If anyone wants checksums for my bastard Windows XP MCE 2005 dvd, please contact me, it's a small 378KB md5.

 

Just came across this (ancient) thread whilst on the hunt for a solution to a very similar problem. I make no apologies for digging it up, indeed a big thanks and a virtual pint to glyons for putting me on the right track.

I've got an Elonex Exentia here, one of these all in one 'lifestyle' PCs, running MCE 2005. Norton go-back managed to kill it completely, necessitating a complete re-install of mce. No recovery CD, and elonex have gone mammaries perpendicular......

Firstly I did what any sane person would do; I borrowed an MCE 2005 disk and started to reinstall - no joy - serial number invalid. So I acquired one of the many cracked versions out there, installed that and attempted to change the serial number - again no joy.

Googling brought me to this forum thread and an idea popped into my head.
If all that is stopping the serial number being accepted is the PID value then it must be stored somewhere, and it is, in plain text, under PID in HKLM/System/setup/PID. To find it I did no more than check the value in SETUPP.INI on the cd then do a registry search for it.

So I changed the value to glyons' suggestion of 76487OEM and bingo! The legit key was accepted and activation was only a few mouse clicks away. No need to be extracting CDs, changing PID values then re-burning. Just install, change reg value, change key.

Many many thanks guys.

 

I just got a near perfect condition XPS M170 with Media Center 2005 on it. It was a hand-me-down (early) christmas present from my dad who just got himself a new XPS 1330...the M170 was too big for him, he had it for a bit more than a year...I think it was only used as a "portable" once...when he went on one of his rare out of town training trips. Other than that it sat on a TV table, and the graphics card has never been used heavily. If it weren't for the few scratches on the top you could mistake this for a new system.

I've been working through the weekend trying to reload MCE on it from the i386 folder on the hard drive since the system was bought through the Dell Outlet (new opened, agreement not accepted) and did not come with reinstall cds. I found this thread after much internet searching. I managed to borrow a copy of MCE 2005 from a friend to get a complete set of files to reinstall. I tried the registry hack by editing the registry through BartPE...but no joy...still said CD Key invalid. So I edited the necessary file and burned the cds. I am now looking at a freshly installed version of MCE 2005.

Thanks a lot for this thread...it saved the day.


I was convinced that the world was against me with all the crap I went through trying to get this to work.
1. I had all kinds of "file missing" errors I couldn't resolve till I got the final solution.
2. Supposedly this system is supposed to have a Dell restore Partition on it...checked using dsrfix (a utility I found through my searches)...and the restore partition doesn't exist...just the diagnostic partition and the system partition.
3. I had missing file errors that were due to some pesky file name changes forced on the cds by the ISO9660 file system...changing - to _ and ~ to _.
4. Went through trying to get the i386 folder to work only to find out dell's don't ship with a complete i386 (at least complete when it comes to reinstalling using it).
5. Before I started setup on the system I tried the same cd images on a VMWare VM and ran into some issues with detecting the IE7 files after you insert the 2nd CD. I didn't run into this issue when I installed it on my M170.

My dad kept telling me...just restore the Ghost image and use the system as it was when he gave it to me...but I knew I could get it working. (with a bit of help)

Again...thanks for doing all the legwork on this...helped a ton.

edit: Roker...even though your suggestion didn't work...thanks for digging up the thread...I probably would have never found it otherwise.

 

Just had to revisit this thread to remind myself how to do this. Customer's Philips PC, no reinstall CDs as usual. Same trick as I used last time worked again. I guess your problem was slightly different Thor. eg no IE7 in the MCE CD I used.

Another virtual pint for glyons.

 

you guys rock my socks.


got that running and activated. now the internet wont function so need to figure that out.