Problem Installing Windows Vista onto New Internal Hard Drive

Reignman4

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Aug 16, 2013
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Hello,

The hard drive on my computer (Dell XPS 420) recently failed, so I went out and bought a Seagate SATA 3.5" 1 TB HDD to replace it. I got the drive in fine, but problems began when I tried to install Vista (x32, the same that was on my previous hard drive) from the Windows Vista disc that came with my computer. I booted from the CD, and the installation went smoothly at first- I chose the language, accepted the agreement, selected my new hard drive as the location for install, and it began. It got all the way to the final stage of the install (after the restart, "Completing Installation..."), when I got a pop-up that said "Windows Setup could not configure Windows on this computer’s hardware."

I have tried everything I could think of to get this to work but I am at a loss. I tried restarting the installation and clearing the hard drive, partitioning it, and formatting it, but that didn't work. I made sure nothing extra was plugged into my computer. The Windows Vista CD is clean (I just got it out of the package). I cleaned the dust out of my computer.

Any help is appreciated, as I am pulling my hair out at this point trying to get this working.

Thank you
 

Reignman4

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Aug 16, 2013
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I'm assuming you are referring to the Vista disk? I looked and I couldn't find OEM on it anywhere. Where would I look for OEM? It is the original disc that came with the PC, though.
 

Reignman4

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Aug 16, 2013
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Here are my specs if this will help at all:

Dell XPS 420
Vista x32 (Previously on my computer, trying to install the same version)
Intel Core 2 Quad CPU Q6600 @2.4GHz
3326 MB RAM

ATI Radeon HD 5700 Series

I'm starting to think that this is a problem with my new drive. Should I try returning it and getting a new one?
 

Reignman4

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Aug 16, 2013
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I see, so does that mean I will have to buy a new Vista CD in order to get it installed? Sorry for the late response, I've been away from the house for a couple days.
 

popatim

Titan
Moderator
have you tried booting into safe mode, let it sit until drive activity slows way down. Then run error checking on the drive selecting both options, and reboot to actually run it. This will take a few hrs, its ok to just leave it and do something else.
 

Reignman4

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Aug 16, 2013
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Sorry for getting back so late to you guys, I was gone from home for about a week. I ended up getting a new disc and it worked, despite the fact that my original Vista disc was not scratched or dirty. Thank you guys for all the help!