E
EM_1336
Guest
This post consists of several problems that I came across while reinstalling Windows, and solutions that worked (at least for me). I took extensive notes for future reference, and figured that others might benefit from my notes. Some of these solutions have probably already been suggested in other posts. If so, this post will simply provide reinforcement.
There were once ISO files that you could download to burn your own Windows DVDs, using your existing Windows registration number. My understanding is that these downloads are on their way towards being shut down, or are already shut down. These were the English-language ISO versions that were most useful to me:
X17-24281 or X17-59186 or X15-65805 = Professional 64-bit SP1.
X17-24209 or X17-58997 or X15-65733 = Home Premium 64-bit SP1.
The X17-24-series are Win7 Pro x64 SP1, whereas X17-59-series are SP1 with an added bug fix.
I don't know how the 65-series differ from the 24-series and 59-series.
Bootability on my Sony Vaio laptop, manufactured around 2011:
I could not boot from DVDs created with the 65-series.
The 59186 and 58997 ISOs boot, but Windows Setup has driver hiccups.
The 24281 and 24209 ISOs boot fine.
You would think that you should use 59186, since it has the added bug fix, but this bug fix is unimportant in the grand scheme. Windows Update will bombard your computer with 200+ updates after installing with either ISO.
Consistently, each time I reinstall Windows 7 Professional 64-bit on my laptop, this is what occurs. Using the 59-series ISO files, the DVD-ROM boots and Windows Setup starts, but Setup always freezes in its tracks. There are two similar-sounding error messages. Sometimes I see one, sometimes I see the other, and sometimes I see both. I can't make sense of why they appear. Normally, when I see either one, I just switch to another ISO (such as 24281) and I don't bother trying to troubleshoot. This time around, I wanted to experiment and see if I could learn anything about the source of the errors. They appear after the screen that asks you for your language, time, currency, and keyboard preferences, immediately after the next screen that says Install now.
The exact words of one are:
A required CD/DVD drive device driver is missing. If you have a driver floppy disk, CD, DVD, or USB flash drive, please insert it now.
Note: If the Windows installation media is in the CD/DVD drive, you can safely remove it for this step.
The exact words of the other are:
Select the driver to be installed.
Load Driver.
No device drivers were found. Make sure that the installation media contains the correct drivers, and then click OK.
Searching online, I saw two successful outcomes:
(Solution 1 to missing driver problem)
Windows 7 has no native support for USB 3.0 chipsets. Therefore, try to temporarily disable USB3 in the BIOS if possible. See if the laptop has at least one USB2 port, and if you're installing Windows with an external USB DVD drive or USB stick, use the USB2 port, not a USB3 port.
My laptop doesn't even have a USB3 port, so I don't think this solution applies in my case.
(Solution 2 to missing driver problem)
Make the partition active on which you want to install Windows. Boot from the Windows 7 Setup DVD – Repair your computer – Recovery tools – cmd – Diskpart – list disks – select the disk on which you want to install Windows – list partitions – select the partition where you want to install Windows – make that partition active.
I didn't try this solution. Instead, I tried swapping DVDs, which turned out to be a mistake.
(Failure)
I tried swapping in a retail Windows 7 Home Premium DVD, at the point where the error message pops up about missing drivers. This took me to the next screen, saying:
Please read the license terms.
Windows 7 Home Premium Service Pack 1
At this point, I swapped DVDs again so that the Windows 7 Professional version was back in the DVD drive, hit the checkbox for "I accept the license terms", and clicked Next. I deleted the primary partiiton and selected to install Windows into the Unallocated Space.
This technique seemed promising, until I reached the point much further along, where Windows Setup asks for your registration number. My W7P64 registration number didn't work. I had to use the W7HP (retail DVD) registration number. Windows Setup then finished installing Home Premium, despite copying files from my Professional-version DVD for most of the Setup process.
(Solution 3 to missing driver problem – my customary solution)
I switched to the DVD created with ISO X17-24281. This booted without any issues. I didn't see either of the two error messages about missing drivers.
The next two problems occurred about 5 minutes later. I selected the Custom (advanced) option for installing Windows from scratch: "Install a new copy of Windows. This option does not keep your files, settings, and programs. The option to make changes to disks and partitions is available when you start your computer using the installation disc. We recommend backing up your files before you proceed." Then I came to the screen asking, "Where do you want to install Windows?"
I deleted my first partition, about 100 GB, that had been my decayed, former installation of Windows. The result was Disk 0 Unallocated Space, 102.5 GB.
My second partition, D: (Documents), about 900 GB, type Logical, remained untouched, and was now called Disk 0 Partition 1.
I wanted to try installing Windows on an NTFS-formatted primary partition C, so I selected Unallocated Space. I clicked on the New button with the yellow sunshine icon, and clicked Next.
Size 104926 MB, Apply, Next.
This message appeared:
Install Windows. To ensure that all Windows features work correctly, Windows might create additional partitions for system files.
I clicked OK. Setup created two new partitions and changed the former D partition:
Disk 0 Partition 1, System Reserved, 100.0 MB, type System.
Disk 0 Partition 2, (unnamed), 102.4 GB, type Primary.
Disk 0 Partition 3, Documents, 829.4 GB, type Logical.
I clicked Next. Setup asked me, Where do you want to install Windows?
Partition 2, the 102.4 GB Primary partition.
Setup started "Expanding Windows Files" and took about 22 minutes to finish.
Note: Windows Setup takes about 6 minutes to go from 0% to 1%. (Don't panic, this is normal.)
(Solution to Windows key included with the paperwork not working = look for the "real" key)
I encountered a problem that I'm quite familiar with. The original Windows installation on my laptop had two registration numbers. One number was printed in the papers that came in the box, and also appears in an output file when I use a key discovery utility. The other number appears on the label stuck to the bottom of my laptop. The first number doesn't work. The second one does. Apparently the second key is the "real" one.
The next problem was this error message:
The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows, click OK to restart the computer, and then restart the installation.
I rebooted from the Setup DVD, chose the Repair option, and tried to continue in Safe Mode, resulting in another error message:
Windows cannot complete installation in Safe Mode. To continue installing Windows, restart the computer.
Thinking there was something wrong with my hard drive, I rebooted from the Setup DVD again, chose the repair option again, and tried to run Chkdsk from X: Chkdsk reported that "Windows has checked the file system and found no problems," but also had a strange message:
Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log with status 50.
I figured this was simply because I was running Chkdsk from the X: drive, and it couldn't write its log to the hard drive like it normally would.
(Solution to unexpected restart or unexpected error problem)
I rebooted from the DVD and started Windows 7 Professional Setup again, but this time, instead of installing to a new partition, I chose to install into the Unallocated Space. Everything proceeded flawlessly from that point forward. I was finally able to complete the installation of Windows 7 Professional 64-bit. The only other concern were the failed updates that I saw in Windows Update, with error code 800F0902. I did some research and learned that these are OK. Windows Update error code 800F0902 simply means that a later update fixed the first update, and the first one is no longer necessary.
I'm wondering if the reason why I had the "computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error" problems could be because I created a partition but didn't format the partition before clicking Next? Maybe Windows 7 Setup doesn't know how to handle an unformatted partition?
Continue reading...
There were once ISO files that you could download to burn your own Windows DVDs, using your existing Windows registration number. My understanding is that these downloads are on their way towards being shut down, or are already shut down. These were the English-language ISO versions that were most useful to me:
X17-24281 or X17-59186 or X15-65805 = Professional 64-bit SP1.
X17-24209 or X17-58997 or X15-65733 = Home Premium 64-bit SP1.
The X17-24-series are Win7 Pro x64 SP1, whereas X17-59-series are SP1 with an added bug fix.
I don't know how the 65-series differ from the 24-series and 59-series.
Bootability on my Sony Vaio laptop, manufactured around 2011:
I could not boot from DVDs created with the 65-series.
The 59186 and 58997 ISOs boot, but Windows Setup has driver hiccups.
The 24281 and 24209 ISOs boot fine.
You would think that you should use 59186, since it has the added bug fix, but this bug fix is unimportant in the grand scheme. Windows Update will bombard your computer with 200+ updates after installing with either ISO.
Consistently, each time I reinstall Windows 7 Professional 64-bit on my laptop, this is what occurs. Using the 59-series ISO files, the DVD-ROM boots and Windows Setup starts, but Setup always freezes in its tracks. There are two similar-sounding error messages. Sometimes I see one, sometimes I see the other, and sometimes I see both. I can't make sense of why they appear. Normally, when I see either one, I just switch to another ISO (such as 24281) and I don't bother trying to troubleshoot. This time around, I wanted to experiment and see if I could learn anything about the source of the errors. They appear after the screen that asks you for your language, time, currency, and keyboard preferences, immediately after the next screen that says Install now.
The exact words of one are:
A required CD/DVD drive device driver is missing. If you have a driver floppy disk, CD, DVD, or USB flash drive, please insert it now.
Note: If the Windows installation media is in the CD/DVD drive, you can safely remove it for this step.
The exact words of the other are:
Select the driver to be installed.
Load Driver.
No device drivers were found. Make sure that the installation media contains the correct drivers, and then click OK.
Searching online, I saw two successful outcomes:
(Solution 1 to missing driver problem)
Windows 7 has no native support for USB 3.0 chipsets. Therefore, try to temporarily disable USB3 in the BIOS if possible. See if the laptop has at least one USB2 port, and if you're installing Windows with an external USB DVD drive or USB stick, use the USB2 port, not a USB3 port.
My laptop doesn't even have a USB3 port, so I don't think this solution applies in my case.
(Solution 2 to missing driver problem)
Make the partition active on which you want to install Windows. Boot from the Windows 7 Setup DVD – Repair your computer – Recovery tools – cmd – Diskpart – list disks – select the disk on which you want to install Windows – list partitions – select the partition where you want to install Windows – make that partition active.
I didn't try this solution. Instead, I tried swapping DVDs, which turned out to be a mistake.
(Failure)
I tried swapping in a retail Windows 7 Home Premium DVD, at the point where the error message pops up about missing drivers. This took me to the next screen, saying:
Please read the license terms.
Windows 7 Home Premium Service Pack 1
At this point, I swapped DVDs again so that the Windows 7 Professional version was back in the DVD drive, hit the checkbox for "I accept the license terms", and clicked Next. I deleted the primary partiiton and selected to install Windows into the Unallocated Space.
This technique seemed promising, until I reached the point much further along, where Windows Setup asks for your registration number. My W7P64 registration number didn't work. I had to use the W7HP (retail DVD) registration number. Windows Setup then finished installing Home Premium, despite copying files from my Professional-version DVD for most of the Setup process.
(Solution 3 to missing driver problem – my customary solution)
I switched to the DVD created with ISO X17-24281. This booted without any issues. I didn't see either of the two error messages about missing drivers.
The next two problems occurred about 5 minutes later. I selected the Custom (advanced) option for installing Windows from scratch: "Install a new copy of Windows. This option does not keep your files, settings, and programs. The option to make changes to disks and partitions is available when you start your computer using the installation disc. We recommend backing up your files before you proceed." Then I came to the screen asking, "Where do you want to install Windows?"
I deleted my first partition, about 100 GB, that had been my decayed, former installation of Windows. The result was Disk 0 Unallocated Space, 102.5 GB.
My second partition, D: (Documents), about 900 GB, type Logical, remained untouched, and was now called Disk 0 Partition 1.
I wanted to try installing Windows on an NTFS-formatted primary partition C, so I selected Unallocated Space. I clicked on the New button with the yellow sunshine icon, and clicked Next.
Size 104926 MB, Apply, Next.
This message appeared:
Install Windows. To ensure that all Windows features work correctly, Windows might create additional partitions for system files.
I clicked OK. Setup created two new partitions and changed the former D partition:
Disk 0 Partition 1, System Reserved, 100.0 MB, type System.
Disk 0 Partition 2, (unnamed), 102.4 GB, type Primary.
Disk 0 Partition 3, Documents, 829.4 GB, type Logical.
I clicked Next. Setup asked me, Where do you want to install Windows?
Partition 2, the 102.4 GB Primary partition.
Setup started "Expanding Windows Files" and took about 22 minutes to finish.
Note: Windows Setup takes about 6 minutes to go from 0% to 1%. (Don't panic, this is normal.)
(Solution to Windows key included with the paperwork not working = look for the "real" key)
I encountered a problem that I'm quite familiar with. The original Windows installation on my laptop had two registration numbers. One number was printed in the papers that came in the box, and also appears in an output file when I use a key discovery utility. The other number appears on the label stuck to the bottom of my laptop. The first number doesn't work. The second one does. Apparently the second key is the "real" one.
The next problem was this error message:
The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows, click OK to restart the computer, and then restart the installation.
I rebooted from the Setup DVD, chose the Repair option, and tried to continue in Safe Mode, resulting in another error message:
Windows cannot complete installation in Safe Mode. To continue installing Windows, restart the computer.
Thinking there was something wrong with my hard drive, I rebooted from the Setup DVD again, chose the repair option again, and tried to run Chkdsk from X: Chkdsk reported that "Windows has checked the file system and found no problems," but also had a strange message:
Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log with status 50.
I figured this was simply because I was running Chkdsk from the X: drive, and it couldn't write its log to the hard drive like it normally would.
(Solution to unexpected restart or unexpected error problem)
I rebooted from the DVD and started Windows 7 Professional Setup again, but this time, instead of installing to a new partition, I chose to install into the Unallocated Space. Everything proceeded flawlessly from that point forward. I was finally able to complete the installation of Windows 7 Professional 64-bit. The only other concern were the failed updates that I saw in Windows Update, with error code 800F0902. I did some research and learned that these are OK. Windows Update error code 800F0902 simply means that a later update fixed the first update, and the first one is no longer necessary.
I'm wondering if the reason why I had the "computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error" problems could be because I created a partition but didn't format the partition before clicking Next? Maybe Windows 7 Setup doesn't know how to handle an unformatted partition?
Continue reading...