After having to re-install my O/S using the Dell suppied OEM version of Windows XP MCE 2005 w/Update Rollup 2, when starting up my PC ,it would go to a page that offered me two versions of WinXP to chose from ,one was WinXP Pro ,and the other WinXP MCE,when I peformed the re-install I followed diections sent to me by Dell support ,in those directions was a section on reformatting and creating a partition to install the fresh O/S install on ! On my H.D.(a 250 G.B. Samsung 7200rpm) there is the main drive or partition C and then another partition drive D (5.88G.B) as I stated when I bootup I was offered two options ,I always picked the MCE becasue I use the Media Center with my TV Wonder Elite. Not wanting to have to pick this O/S everytime the system booted up I was told to delete a line from the boot.ini file (multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect) Also when Iam navigating my way thru Windows explorerr it list both drive C and drive D ,they mostly list the same items my documents and settings, program files etc .I also was told by another memvber here at computing.net that in order for me to recieve that ioption of two O/S at bootup that means I did not perform a fresh install and that I have two O/S installed on drive C ? This would not be something I desire and Iam wondering if there is anty freewre app that would allow me to see exactly whats on my H.D. and how to go about removing items that are either double entries or unwanted ? Also since the Dell factory rerstore option is no longer a option for me how do I go about removing that from either partition drive D ,or a hidden partition it may be iinstalled on .When I first had to perform a re-install of my O/S what I really wanted to perorm was a factory restore ,however becasue of a misplaced and forgotten administrator password,I could not access the factory restore option ,this probaly was a blessing in disguise,becasue the re-install did not install alot of un-needed bloatware that comes with most OEM PC's ! Any opinions or suggestions reguarding the way my H.D. is configured would be greatly apreciated , I want to thank all of you with the patience to actually read my entire post, that in itself is a task ! Thank You Sincerely Nick

I agree with the other "memvber here at computing.net"...it sounds like you inadvertantly created a dual boot setup? Your 2nd install is actually a fresh install, but your 1st installation is still there. If your system came with XP MCE, where did XP Pro come from? You have a real mess on your hands. If you were having a problem with the original installation, why didn't you just run a "repair" install? If the password was the problem, there are ways around that...& bloatware is easily removed. Why do you have an admin password anyway - are there numerous people using the same machine?

Is this a followup to what we thought you told us was a "Successful fresh install of O/S" earlier this month (October 8th)? http://www.computing.net/windowsxp/... i_Xp/VistaUser

XpUser, Yes it is the same thread. The OP is trying a different approach it seems. Nick Ritchie, You could try using Ranish Partition Manager (RPM) which is free or Partition Magic which is not, to graphically examine your hard disk to see and confirm your partition layout. If you want to use the free RPM them go to my website (Homepage link) and look up that section. You will find links for where to download it from and some user guide / information on how to use it. I find RPM quite usefull as a tool for examining partition layouts and saving boot record information. It is also quite useful for easily deleting unwanted partitions. I do NOT use it for creating or modifying partitions. It is quite powerfull so proceed with care before you commit your changes. You may have additional questions after you have checked your disk geometry. When you do please post your partitioning details to help us help you. You may also want to post the contents of your boot.ini file so we can see what your current options are pointing to. ___________________________________________ ☺ When everything else fails, read the instructions.

I marked your web site and added it to My Favorites ! Iam very interested in the section on how to translate the boot.ini file so I know exactly what options Iam being offered at bootup ! I believe the reason Iam given the choices B/4 I deleted the Window Pro line in the boot.ini is becasue WindowsXP MCE ,is WinXP Pro with the Media Center intergrated into it ! If I was to highlight and chose the WinXP Pro option Iam willing to bet that I would recieve a error prompt saying that a full version of WinP Pro is not installed and there for I cannot boot to that option ? However Iam the first to admit it very possible I have no idea what Iam talking about ,however I do plan on finding out thru infromation and asking ?'s Thank You ,Nick

This is my current understanding of your setup. Your original boot.ini ====================== [boot loader] timeout=3 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS [operating systems] multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Media Center Edition" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect Your current boot.ini ===================== [boot loader] timeout=3 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS [operating systems] multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Media Center Edition" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect Timeout: is the amount of time you have to make a selection if you have more than one OS installed default: is the OS selected if you do not make a selection within the time set in timeout (seconds) The operating system entries point to the optional OSes you have and where they are located on your hard disk/s. multi(x)disk(x)rdisk(x)partition(x)\WINDOWS: specifies where exactly on the disk the OS is located and WINDOWS is the name of the OS directory. The bit afer the = sign is text for displaying the options on boot up. The entry multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(3)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect which you deleted from your boot.ini does not mean you have removed partition(3). The question is if partition(3) does not exist then how did that entry get added to your boot.ini? If partition(3) does exist then it would now be wasted space as you are not using it. NOTE : My website (Homepage link) has a section on boot.ini files. Read it and it will help you understand better. Now the questions: ================== Use Ranish Partition Manager (RPM) to confirm the partition layout when you give us the answers. Details of RPM can be found on my website. You have only one Hdd = 250 GB with the following partition layout. F = 5.88 GB = Is this Partition 1 ? - Dell ? Can you see the contents of this partition ? what does RPM show ? C = 227 GB = This must be Partition 2 ? - XP OS I guess - boot.ini entry rdisk(0)partition(2) ? what does RPM show ? ? = ??? GB = Is there a Partition 3 ? - where is it ? - boot.ini entry rdisk(0)partition(3) ? what does RPM show ? What types of partitions are these. RPM will show you all this information. For EACH of these partitions, tell us if they are: 1. Primary / Logical / Other ? - Indicated by the letters Pri / Log in RPM graphical view 2. Bootable / Not Bootable ? - Bootable is indicated by the character ">" in RPM graphical view 3. NTFS / FAT32 / FAT / Other ? - As indicated in the File System Type column in RPM 4. Hidden / Not Hidden ? - Also indicated in the File System Type column in RPM Tell us which drive/s does your boot files (boot.ini, Ntldr, Ntdetect.com reside on? This will be your boot drive. This is important to know as without these your system cannot / will not boot. As an aside ----------- D = ? What is using this drive letter? - Is it a hard drive partition of CD/DVD? E = ? What is using this drive letter? - Is it a hard drive partition of CD/DVD? After you answer these questions, we may be able to help you better. ___________________________________________ ☺ When everything else fails, read the instructions.

Hi Mosaddique, I want to thank you for explaining things to me in laymans terms and for taking the time to read my post and offer your help ,it all very kind of you and also very much appreciated ! I went into My Computer and this is how the drives on my sustem are listed > Local Drive (C:) Local Drive (D:) Local Drive (E:) (removable disk) DVD Drive (F:) DVD-RW Drive(G:) Local Drive C: is 227 G.B.capacity Free Space available,217 G.B.and used space 9.68 G.B.'s. Local Drive D 5.22 G.B.'s capacity ,2.14 G.B.'s used space ,and 3.07 G.B.'s in free space. Both list file system as NTFS Also 2 folders listed one Shared Documents the other Nicholas Documents (me)both folders are listed as being in the root of drive C ! Any help this info can be in helping you help me would be grealty appreciated ,my fear is having two O/S installed on Dive C,as I stated it shows the O/S in system information on my system as being WindowsXP Pro ,yet in My Computer on the General Tab it list it as WindowsXP MCE ? Again than you very much and you have a nice weekend ,I will do more reading up on ther RPM information you recomnded ,my neighbor who is a programmer suggested I simply right click on drive D and click on format ,however Iam waiting B/4 I use any of his advice ,he is the one who did the first re-install attempt and I believe he clicked on WinXP pro instead of WinXP MCE and also he skipped many steps DEll suppport had me perform the next time I did what I thought would be a fresh install of OS ,formatting and re-partitioning drive C etc. I will patiently await any reply from you ! Take Care Nick P.S.