Cant boot from hard drive. blinking cursor/verticle line

Discussion in 'Windows XP Installation and Setup' started by realflow100, Mar 28, 2018.

  1. realflow100

    realflow100

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    blinking command-prompt like cursor
    Nothing else happens. cant do ctrl+alt+delete to restart. have to press power button.

    what is SUPPOSED to happen is it boots into windows xp. I just attempted to install windows xp to it. and it wont boot from it!
    Even when its the only hard drive enabled on the computer.
    i know its already formatted as NTFS. with ntldr boot manager on it. correctly set as active. AND it still wont work!
    the MBR is also set correctly to windows 5.x
    I'm stumped! why wont it boot??
    Ive installed windows xp onto the exact same hard drive once before but this time it just doesnt even try to boot!
     
    realflow100, Mar 28, 2018
    #1
  2. realflow100

    realflow100

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    Help?? Anyone??
    It even happens with the hard drive completely wiped. empty.
    it doesnt even say ntldr missing like it normally would. what the heck is going on??
     
    realflow100, Mar 28, 2018
    #2
  3. realflow100

    Elizabeth23

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    Elizabeth23, Mar 28, 2018
    #3
  4. realflow100

    j896

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    Is your CD/DVD drive set to first boot? Is the xp disc spinning as it trying to boot off it? On one of my old P4 computers it wont boot if i have a external hard drive plugged in to it . it just hangs with a blinking command-prompt like cursor i think it trying to boot off my external drive. Do you have one of them plugged in and powered up as it booting?
     
    j896, Mar 28, 2018
    #4
  5. realflow100

    WindowsXP-User

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    Try entering the boot menu and boot to the HDD there
     
    WindowsXP-User, May 21, 2020
    #5
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