What do you have to do before re-installing Windows XP?

Answer by  Edfire (120)

first you need to go to your system in the control panel. Towards the bottom of the menu you need to erase all your windows partitions and then turn your computer off and in your bios boot your computer from your disk. Then there should be no problems reinstalling windows xp

Answer by  KLR (606)

Reformatting the hard drive is optional during the install. The best installation is to reformat the drive, ensuring that no information is left remaining. You must have a legal copy of the microsoft XP disk along with a valid license key which has not been previously used, or has only been used on the same computer.

Answer by  rhelt (461)

You do not need to manually erase your hard drive. During the initial setup steps, you will pick a partition on which to install your new operating system and the install program will prompt you to format the partition. You will lose any data on this partition, so backup any important documents or photos.

Answer by  ComputerWizard (29)

You can either reformat(erase) your hard drive, or you can create a partition. If the former, I would suggest backing up all you critical information on a separate hard drive, and restoring it later. If the latter, just make sure that you have created a partition with enough room to install windows.

Answer by  James1290 (86)

Re-installing XP will most likely remove everything from your hard drive. Before doing any major work always back up all your important files, as they will be lost in the re-install. Other than that, be sure to make note of any settings you want to keep. That's about it. Good luck.

Answer by  Amber40 (24961)

If you have had issue with stability or the old partition no longer works you should just reformat it. You can repair an install sometimes though if you need to.

Answer by  fishy (1085)

As part of the reinstall process, the CD will ask you if you want to reformat the drive which will erase anything on it, so save your data first offline.

Answer by  kevincai96 (669)

When you reinstall Windows XP, it will automatically wipe your hard drive. Don't worry about anything; just pop in the disc (making sure you have the correct BIOS settings), and boot up.

Answer by  nickl2000 (540)

You are not required to erase the hard drive to re-insall windows XP. However, if you want to solve problems you are best off doing it.

Answer by  puckettgw (118)

The Windows XP set-up utility will automatically erase ("format") your hard drive. Alternatively, you can choose to leave your files intact and just reinstall windows, from within setup. Generally, it is best to back up your data and let setup format the drive, especially if you have adware/malware/virus infections.

Answer by  richard91 (107)

It is possible, but not recommended to install windows over a previous install. If needed, you have to back up your data on the system partition.