India Broadband Forum

danny86

A friend of mine owns a Acer travelmate 600Ter laptop, He was using Microsoft Windows 2000 for quite a while, Laptop is really slow although it has been set for "best performance mode" in the "advanced" section of "system properties"

System Config: X86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 3 processor
AT/AT Compatible
RAM: 130,480 KB (127.42 MB)

Questions:

1) Can i install Windows XP sp2 on this config(Not sure about the minimum config required for windows XP)?

2) Will installing XP enhance performace i.e. will the boot time and execution of programs be quicker?

HELP!!

The One

1) Yes, of-course.

2) Yes. But, there will be lots of programs that won't work in it.

newprouser

Min Config for reasonable performance :

128 MB RAM
Pentium 3 , 1 Ghz or better
32 Mb on board graphics

Recommended config for XP

256/512 Mb Ram
Dual Core processor > 1.5 Ghz (Actually by itself Xp runs well on P4 3 Ghz processor, but if you install current generation of programs, its sure to slow down)


As for laptop config, I think the processor is P3, so it should give just the minimal resonable performace.

The good in Upgrading to Xp is that

• its far more stable than 2k.
• all current generation programs are supported.
• Its still updated by M$

Don't expect any increase in speed, however. Any newly installed OS is bound to be fast untill you install additional programs.

The One

You can just lookup everything in the official site itself : Windows XP Professional System Requirements

Actually, it will run smooth without any antivirus or other similar defence systems installed. I had just installed XP Pro in a desktop with a similar configuration, and it worked smoothly even after installing some necessary programs and some games (It was for a little boy ).

danny86

thanx for assuring, i was not sure if XP would run on it, as Windows 2000 is hard to find now, i thought Laptop would become useless till i could i find a copy of 2000. Now i can safely install Xp on the laptop.

The One

Go On And Rock!!!

danny86

one more thing forgot to ask earlier, as it is an old model, would i be able to find the drivers for this model on the internet?? Where should i look? Which drives are essential?

The One

If the system is old, then most probably all the required drivers would be there.

But, if you have any drivers missing for the system in XP, then :

1) If you plan to access internet with it, you can just use Microsoft's own Online Driver Update facility to update the drivers. Anyway, if you plan to use Windows Update, then there is no need to worry about it.

2) If you have not planned to give it access to the internet, just search enter the website of the hardware provider of the laptop (If you don't know it, just search with Google to find it).

danny86

Another problem poped up , BIOS settings are password protected so i am not able to change the booting order i.e. boot from CD first, i asked my friend about the password, but he doesnt know, he says this laptop was given to him by his cousin who doesnt live in india anymore and therefore he cannot contact the actual owner of the laptop. How can enter BIOS without the password, there must be a way?

The One

Do you mean that the boot order has local disk before CD media?
Usually, by default, the first is floppy, then CD/DVD drive, then Local disk, and then Network.

It would be better if you make sure what's how in the laptop if you have it with you now.

danny86

i have it with me now, but i cannot enter the BIOS setting, Laptops first preference to boot is from local drive because i restarted the lappy before putting XP setup CD in the CD-ROM tray, it didn't boot from the CD..

Normally local drive is placed before the CD-ROM cause it reduces the boot time slightly, that's why it must have been set like this on this laptop too.

The One

Do you have any OS installed in it now?
Atleast, I hope that it will be having DOS in it.

danny86

yes, windows 2000.. its working fine.. i didnt change/delelte/format anything it is as it was earlier.

What should i do?? Wail till find the BIOS pass. or is there another way to get over this problem??

The One

Please wait. I shall update this thread within minutes.

danny86

sure, take your time..

The One

Somehow, I was able to set it up. This post was not like this. I just edited this.

I was not able to set it up early and was feeling sad when it worked.

Please see this to have XP in your laptop : Step-by-Step: Upgrading Windows NT/2000 to Windows XP

newprouser

Boot device can be selected during boot if BIOS supports it.

For my system its F10...

it can be any of the function keys F1-12 or Esc or Del

The One

newprouser

U don't have to enter bios at all... It appears as soon as u enter the particular key

The One

I think you are right. I'm not much good in these things. But, the thing I told will also do for him.