New
#1
Can't get installation past "Starting Windows"
Hey guys,
Pulling my hair out with this one, so figured I'd post here to see if anyone has any suggestions.
First, my setup:
Mobo: Asus A8R-MVP (BIOS 0503, last stable release)
Video: nVidia GeForce GT220
RAM: 3 GB DDR2
Main HD: 160GB IDE, with 3 partitions: [XP on #1 (20GB), Windows 7 aimed for #2 (50GB), and free space for the rest]
Other HDs: 2 x 1TB RAID1 (general storage)
If I launch the setup from a DVD, it gets past "Windows is loading files", then immediately freezes at "Starting Windows" (right before any of the coloured balloons show up...in fact, it hangs the instant the first orange pixel is displayed).
So, I tried launching the setup from Windows XP. Pointed it to the proper partition, it extracts the files, reboots, and the exact same thing happens. Can't get past the first orange pixel.
For both cases, I've tried pressing F8 on boot and selecting "safe mode" or "low resolution mode", but no dice. Safe mode seems to always get stuck on disk.sys, for what it's worth, but I understand that could even mean it's hanging on whatever the next driver is.
Other things I've tried:
-replaced nVidia video card with ATI x850, no difference
-removed all sticks of RAM except one, no difference
-removed all unused peripheral devices, no difference
-disabled all unused on-board devices, no difference
If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, I'm all ears. I've installed Windows 7 successfully so many times on different hardware, so I'm finding this completely mind-boggling.
Thanks for reading.
Bash