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Windows XP Clean Installation Procedure

IBM SurePOS 300 with SATA Drive

Before you start:


• First you should locate the Windows XP product key, a 25-digit alphanumeric code unique to
your copy of Windows XP. This information is usually found on a COA (certificate of
authenticity) sticker on the terminal if it was preloaded with XP or on the Windows Authentic
CD/DVD packaging you are installing XP from.
The sticker may look like one of the following

• You will have to obtain the SATA driver from the IBM Clearlake website (link provided below)
for the hard drive used with your SurePOS 300 system. You will be prompted to install this
driver during the Windows XP installation procedure. If you do not install the SATA driver
the hard drive will not be recognized and the installation will fail.
o The SATA driver may be obtained here: Windows 2000/XP Sata Driver v1.3.61
ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/software/retail/poseng/surepos300/surepos300-33x-
sata2kxp01030061.exe

o You are expected to extract the compressed .exe file to an external USB floppy drive.

• The most important thing to realize before performing a clean installation of Windows XP is
that if there is any information on that drive, all of the information will be destroyed
during this process. That means that if there's anything you want to keep you should back it
up to a CD or another drive prior to beginning this process. This is not a problem when
installing on a new drive however if you want to retain any information from an old drive with
XP or another OS currently on it you may want to back the drive up.

• When you're absolutely sure that everything from your computer that you want to keep is
backed up, proceed to the next step. Keep in mind that once you delete all of the information
from this drive (as we'll do in a future step), the action is not reversible!

Note: The steps and screen shots shown in these steps refer specifically to Windows XP
Professional.
Enter BIOS Setup
To configure BIOS setup, complete the following steps:

Power on the system and enter BIOS setup by pressing the <DEL> key during POST. You may
need to press the delete key several times for the system to acknowledge the keystroke. You will
see the following BIOS Screen
Set the Boot Priority

Enter the Advanced BIOS Features menu.

Under the Boot Device selections, make the following changes:


o First Boot Device = USB-CDROM or CD-ROM (for systems with the IDE CD-ROM
option)
o Second Boot Device = HDD-0

Restart the Terminal with XP CD/DVD in drive


Boot from the Windows XP CD

To begin the Windows XP clean install process, you will need to boot from the Windows XP CD.

1. Locate your Windows XP CD and insert it in your primary CD, CD/DVD drive, or external
USB IBM approved drive.

2. Turn your PC on or restart your PC if it's already running.

3. You should see a message similar to Press any key to boot from CD, as in the screen shot
above.

4. Press any key to allow the computer to boot from the CD. If you do not press a key, your PC
will attempt to boot to Windows XP that's currently installed on your hard drive. If this
happens, simply reboot and try to boot to the Windows XP CD again.
Press F6 to Install a Third Party Driver

The Windows Setup screen will appear and a number of files and drivers necessary for the setup
process will load.

Toward the beginning of this process, a message will appear that says Press F6 if you need to
install a third party SCSI or RAID driver. Since you have an SATA hard drive, you will need to
press F6 here to load any necessary drivers. You may need to press F6 several times for the
system to accept the keystroke.

Insert the floppy disk that contains the latest Serial ATA controller driver and wait for Windows to
finish loading its generic drivers.
Specify additional device

You must press "S" in order to load the appropriate controller driver. Once "S" has been
pressed, you will be prompted to insert the floppy disk with the drivers for their controller. This
prompt is given even if you have already inserted the floppy.
Continue with 3rd party driver installation

After pressing ENTER, the floppy disk will be read and a selection screen will be displayed. You
can then select which controller driver should be loaded. Make the appropriate selection at this
time and press "Enter". Select your device and follow the prompts. This will install the SATA
driver. After driver installation you will then resume with XP setup and installation.
Press ENTER to Setup Windows XP

After the necessary files and drivers are loaded, the Windows XP Professional Setup screen will
appear.

Since this will be a clean installation of Windows XP, press Enter to setup Windows XP now.
Read and Accept the Windows XP Licensing Agreement

The next screen that appears is the Windows XP Licensing Agreement screen. Read through the
agreement and press F8 to confirm that you agree with the terms.

Tip: Press the Page Down key to advance through the licensing agreement faster. This is not to
suggest that you should skip reading the agreement though! You should always read "small
print".
Select the Windows XP Installation

On the next screen, Windows XP Setup needs to know which Windows installation you want to
either repair or install a fresh copy over.

The single installation of Windows on your PC should already be highlighted. If you have multiple
installations, use the arrow keys on your keyboard to select the installation that you are wanting
to reinstall.

Press the Esc key to continue.


Delete the Existing Windows XP Partition

In this step, you will delete the main partition on your computer if it exists. This is the space on
the hard drive that your current Windows XP installation has been using.

Using the arrow keys on your keyboard, highlight the line for the C: drive. It probably says
Partition1 or System though yours may be different. Press D to delete this partition.

Warning Note: This will remove all of the information on the drive that Windows XP is currently
on (your C: drive). Everything on that drive will be destroyed during this process.
Confirm Knowledge of the System Partition

In this step, Windows XP Setup warns that the partition you are trying to delete is a system
partition that may contain Windows XP. Of course we know this because that is exactly what
we're trying to do.

Confirm your knowledge that this is a system partition by pressing Enter to continue.
Confirm Partition Deletion Request

WARNING: This is your last chance to back out of the reinstallation process by pressing the Esc
key. If you back out now and restart your PC, your previous Windows XP installation will boot
normally with no loss of data, assuming it was working before you started this process!

If you're sure you're ready to proceed, confirm that you wish to delete this partition by pressing
the L key.
Create a Partition

Now that the previous partition is removed, all of the space on the hard drive is unpartitioned. In
this step, you will create a new partition for Windows XP to use.

Using the arrow keys on your keyboard, highlight the line that says Unpartitioned space. Press C
to create a partition on this unpartitioned space.

Warning Note: You may have other partitions on this drive and on other drives that may be
installed in your PC. If so, you may have a number of entries here. Be careful not to remove
partitions that you may be using as this will remove all data from those partitions permanently.
Choose a Partition Size

Here you need to choose a size for the new partition. This will become the size of the C drive, the
main drive on your PC that Windows XP will install to. This is also the drive that all of your
software and data will probably reside on unless you have additional partitions set aside for those
purposes.

Unless you are planning on creating additional partitions from within Windows XP after the clean
installation process (for any number of reasons), it's usually wise to create a partition at the
maximum size possible.

For most users, the default number provided will be the maximum space available and the best
choice. Press Enter to confirm the partition size.
Choose a Partition to Install Windows XP On

Highlight the line with the newly created partition and press Enter to set up Windows XP on the
selected partition.

Note: Even if you created a partition at the maximum size available, there will always be a
relatively small amount of space left over that will not be included in the partitioned space. This
will be labeled as Unpartitioned space in the list of partitions, as shown in the screen shot above.
Choose a File System to Format the Partition

For Windows XP to install on a partition on a hard drive it has to be formatted to use a particular
file system - either the FAT file system format or the NTFS file system format. NTFS is more
stable and secure than FAT and is always the recommended choice for a new Windows XP
installation.

Using the arrow keys on your keyboard, highlight the line that says Format the partition using
the NTFS file system and press Enter.
Wait for the New Partition to Format

Depending on the size of the partition that you are formatting and the speed of your computer,
formatting the partition could take anywhere from a few minutes to several minutes or hours.
Wait for the Windows XP Installation Files to Copy

Windows XP Setup will now copy the necessary installation files from the Windows XP installation
CD to the newly formatted partition - the C drive. This step usually only takes a few minutes and
no user intervention is necessary.
Windows XP Installation Begins

Windows XP will now begin installing. No user intervention is necessary.

Note: The Setup will complete in approximately: time estimation on the left is based on the
number of tasks that the Windows XP setup process has left to complete, not on a true estimation
of the time it will take to complete them. Usually the time here is an exaggeration. Windows XP
will probably be setup sooner than this.
Choose Regional and Language Options

During installation, the Regional and Language Options window will appear.

The first section allows you to change the default Windows XP language and the default location.
If the options listed match your preferences, no changes are necessary. If you wish to make
changes, click on the Customize... button and follow the directions given to install new languages
or change locations.

The second section allows you to change the default Windows XP input language and device. If
the options listed match your preferences, no changes are necessary. If you wish to make
changes, click on the Details... button and follow the directions given to install new input
languages or change input methods.

After you've made any changes, or if you've determined no changes are necessary, click Next .
Enter Your Name and Organization

In the Name: text box, enter your full name. In the Organization text box, enter your organization
or business name. Click Next  when complete.
Enter Product Key

Enter the Windows XP product key. This key should have come with your Windows XP purchase.
Click Next  when complete.
Enter a Computer Name and Administrator Password

The Computer Name and Administrator Password window will appear next.

In the Computer name: text box, Windows XP Setup has suggested a unique computer name for
you. If your computer will be on a network, this is how it will be identified to other computers. Feel
free to change the computer name to anything you wish.

In the Administrator password: text box, enter a password for the local administrator account.
This field can be left blank but it's not recommended to do so for security purposes. Confirm this
password in the Confirm password: text box.

Click Next  when complete.


Set the Date and Time

In the Date and Time Settings window, set the correct date, time and time zone settings.

Click Next  when complete.


Choose the Networking Settings

The Networking Settings window will appear next with two options for you to choose from -
Typical settings or Custom settings.

If you're installing Windows XP in on a single computer or a computer on a home network,


chances are the correct option to choose is Typical settings.

If you're installing Windows XP in a corporate environment, you may need to choose the Custom
settings option but check with your system administrator first. Even in this case, the Typical
settings option is probably the right one.

If you're not sure, choose Typical settings.

Click Next .
Enter a Workgroup or Domain Name

The Workgroup or Computer Domain window will appear next with two options for you to choose
from - No, this computer is not on a network, or is on a network without a domain... or Yes, make
this computer a member of the following domain:.

If you're installing Windows XP on a single computer or a computer on a home network, chances


are the correct option to choose is No, this computer is not on a network, or is on a network
without a domain.... If you're on a network, enter the workgroup name of that network here.
Otherwise, feel free to leave the default workgroup name and continue.

If you're installing Windows XP in a corporate environment, you may need to choose the Yes,
make this computer a member of the following domain: option and enter a domain name but
check with your system administrator first.

If you're not sure, choose No, this computer is not on a network, or is on a network without a
domain....

Click Next .
Wait for the Windows XP Installation to Finalize

The Windows XP installation will now finalize. No user intervention is necessary.


Wait for Restart and First Windows XP Boot

Your PC will automatically restart and proceed to load Windows XP for the first time.
Accept Automatic Display Settings Adjustment

After the Windows XP start up splash screen appeared in the last step, a window titled Display
Settings will appear.

Click OK to allow Windows XP to automatically adjust the screen resolution.


Confirm Automatic Display Settings Adjustment

The next window is titled Monitor Settings and is asking for confirmation that you can read the
text on the screen. This will tell Windows XP that the automatic resolution changes it made in the
previous step were successful.

If you can clearly read the text in the window, click OK.

If you can not read the text on the screen, the screen is garbled or not clear, click Cancel if you
are able. If you can't see the Cancel button don't worry. The screen will automatically revert to the
previous setting in 20 seconds.
Begin Final Set Up of Windows XP

The Welcome to Microsoft Windows screen appears next, informing you that the next few
minutes will be spent setting up your computer.

Click Next .
Wait for Internet Connectivity Check

The Checking your Internet connectivity screen appears next, informing you that Windows is
checking to see if your computer is connected to the Internet.

If you'd like to skip this step, click Skip .


Choose an Internet Connection Method

In this step, Windows XP wants to know whether your computer connects to the Internet through
a network or if it connects to the Internet directly.

If you have high speed internet like DSL or Cable Internet and are using a router or if you're on a
home or business network, choose Yes, this computer will connect through a local area
network or home network.

If you are connecting directly to the Internet via a modem (dial-up or broadband like DSL or
Cable), choose No, this computer will connect directly to the Internet.

Windows XP will see most modern Internet connection setups, even those involving only a single
PC, as on a network so the first option is probably the most likely choice for most users. If you're
really not sure though, choose No, this computer will connect directly to the Internet or click
Skip .

After making a choice, click Next .


Optionally Register Windows XP with Microsoft

Registration with Microsoft is optional, but if you'd like to do that now, choose Yes, I'd like to
register with Microsoft now, click Next  and follow the instructions to register.

Otherwise, choose No, not at this time and click Next .


Create Initial User Accounts

In this step, setup wants to know the names of the users who will use Windows XP so it can
setup individual accounts for each user. You must enter at least one name but can enter up to 5
here. More users can be entered from within Windows XP after installation is complete.

After entering the account name(s), click Next  to continue.


Finish Final Setup of Windows XP

We're almost there! All of the necessary files are installed and all of the necessary settings are
configured.

Click Finish  to proceed to Windows XP.


Wait for Windows XP to Start

Windows XP is now loading for the first time. This may take a minute or two depending on your
computer's speed.
Windows XP Clean Installation is Complete!

This completes the final step of the Windows XP clean installation! Congratulations!

The first step after a clean install of Windows XP is to proceed to Windows Update to install all of
the latest updates and fixes from Microsoft. This is a very important step to ensure that your new
installation of Windows XP is secure and up to date.

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