can t boot xp cd ntldr missing

Hi, I made the mistake of installing vista first then xp, and so i formatted both drive and tried to install xp clean first but it would not boot the cd, i just get a blank screen. I tried to boot from the floppy drive and I get a "ntldr is missing" message. I can on the other hand boot the vista dvd and install vista. I have formatted both drives so there's nothing on them but it still doesn't boot the xp cd. Help!

"Acher" wrote in message

Hi, I made the mistake of installing vista first then xp, and so i formatted both drive and tried to install xp clean first but it would not boot the cd, i just get a blank screen. I tried to boot from the floppy drive and I get a "ntldr is missing" message. I can on the other hand boot the vista dvd and install vista. I have formatted both drives so there's nothing on them but it still doesn't boot the xp cd. Help!

Acher--
By definition if you have a retail XP CD--it's bootable. I can't see how ntldr is missin' from that puppie unless it's damaged; if it is call MSFT and they'll replace with proof purchase in a 30 day Window. (No puns). If longer, they'll make one available at some discount with proof purchase.
Could what you're calling an XP CD be something else otherwise?
The NTLDR error is best repaired when XP is on the box (you formatted) by doing a repair install booting from the CD--and in the case of a "repair install" you would need to go to the bios setup and put CD #1. But you can't repair what's been formatted without special recovery tools that few people would have asin forensic or perhaps something that Sysinternals/Winternals now MSFT (isn't just about everything?) that much I know.
But in this case you formatted. So are you dealing with a retail CD or something much less in code that OEM sends? A recovery CD perhaps from OEM named partner?
I also would add that one of the worst KBs to ever come from Redmond IMHO is the one on ntldr which recommends futzing in the recovery console when 10/10 times you can fix with a repair install booting from a genuine XP CD in 35 minutes of setup provided no situation like systemic partitions damaged or a multiboot where a Linux Lilo or Grub bootlader gets in the way of getting into a repair setup for XP.
Good luck and let us know if this is a retail XP CD and you're still getting that error. I'd suspect damage to it if so.
CH
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Nice goin' USA--you have forged a solid Shiite Fanatic Fundamentalist Crescent from Damascus to Gaza and as usual while "All hat no Cattle lil George sits in the corner drooling, Israel has the Kohonas to clean up part of the Axis of Terrorist Evil that you can't.
"Propotional response" LOL--Gee I wonder how "proportional" it's be if those Katyushas were sailin' into D.C., NYC, Miami, Seattle, and Houston. I know most Americans don't read newspapers but those missles have been sailing into Israel every day for 4 years. The CNN barbie dolls think they just got there 2 weeks ago.
Great job on the embryonic stems Georgie--you never run out of ways to kill Americans in droves. Nothing like quintissential and complete medical stupidity to energize a base with mush in their brains and the scientific/medical insight of a pith brained squirrel.
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"Acher" wrote in message

Hi, I made the mistake of installing vista first then xp, and so i formatted both drive and tried to install xp clean first but it would not boot the cd, i just get a blank screen. I tried to boot from the floppy drive and I get a "ntldr is missing" message. I can on the other hand boot the vista dvd and install vista. I have formatted both drives so there's nothing on them but it still doesn't boot the xp cd. Help!

Hi CH, thanks for your reply!
Yes the CD is a retail XP cd and it has always been bootable.
But eventually I just installed Vista, and used VistaBootPro and uninstalled the Vista bootloader, and I got a message like "NTLDR is restored" or something liek that, and I got all happy, and sure enough it booted the XP floppy (I can't remember but I think the CD still didn't boot).. so I went along and formatted the drive Vista was on, and installed XP on it.
It was all fine as it copied the setup files but after the computer restarted, I just got a blank screen with the underdash symbol going down the screen, I tried to repair the setup but it was still the same. After a few attempts I had enough, and just installed Vista, but it had troubles of its own for some reason and I had to try twice.
But finally when it installed, there's that dualboot screen with "older version of windows" and then "ms windows" and also had "older version of windows (repaired)" or something liek that, even though Vista is the only OS on the computer (I guess it still had the old setup record even though it never finished?)
So now I just have Vista installed because I can't seem to get XP on it even after formatting....

Hi CH, thanks for your reply!
Yes the CD is a retail XP cd and it has always been bootable.
But eventually I just installed Vista, and used VistaBootPro and uninstalled the Vista bootloader, and I got a message like "NTLDR is restored" or something liek that, and I got all happy, and sure enough it booted the XP floppy (I can't remember but I think the CD still didn't boot).. so I went along and formatted the drive Vista was on, and installed XP on it.
It was all fine as it copied the setup files but after the computer restarted, I just got a blank screen with the underdash symbol going down the screen, I tried to repair the setup but it was still the same. After a few attempts I had enough, and just installed Vista, but it had troubles of its own for some reason and I had to try twice.
But finally when it installed, there's that dualboot screen with "older version of windows" and then "ms windows" and also had "older version of windows (repaired)" or something liek that, even though Vista is the only OS on the computer (I guess it still had the old setup record even though it never finished?)
So now I just have Vista installed because I can't seem to get XP on it even after formatting....