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Differences between Windows 2000 and XP, and previous versions of Windows
Creating the boot floppies (don't - boot from the CD if you can)
Alternative Boot Disks
Partitioning the Hard Disk
FAT16 vs FAT32 vs NTFS
Security Issues
Default Installation
Alternative Installation
Installation Details
If you have problems...
Differences between Windows 2000 and XP, and previous versions of Windows
From the point of view of the average user, the differences between Windows 2000 and Windows XP are minimal - mostly cosmetic (what it looks like). The default appearance of XP I have heard called the "Windows Romper Room Edition" - looks like it was designed for children. But there are notable differences between these two and the older Windows 9x, ME, and NT:
Sometimes I think the only reason they change things is in order to make new questions for the A+ exams. After all, going through exactly the same steps to get to your network properties in all versions of Windows would just be too easy. Be warned: If you are already quite accustomed to Windows 9x, or ME, or NT, prepare for some frustration - you're going to waste a lot of time searching for once-familiar items.
Back to TopCreating the boot floppies - Windows 2000
If you cannot boot from the CD or DVD. You will need four blank, formatted floppy disks. This utility will not (or cannot) erase existing files, nor format disks.
NOTE: The CD is bootable - use this feature if you can, it's much faster. Otherwise you need to create the set of boot floppies. Or, if you have a Windows 98 boot floppy, see The Installation, below, and save yourself some grief.
1. There is a folder on the CD called bootdisk, within which you will see (among other files) two programs, makeboot.exe and makebt32.exe
2. Run makeboot.exe if you are at a command prompt; you will be prompted for each floppy in turn. Label them.
OR
3. Run makebt32.exe from within any version of Windows 9x or higher; you will be prompted for each floppy in turn. Label them.
4. Insert disk 1 and reboot.
Creating the boot floppies - Windows XP
Don't bother. Don't even think about it. You need six floppies(!), and the utility to create them doesn't even come on the XP CD. You have to go to www.microsoft.com and download it. See below, on Partitioning and The Installation.
Back to TopAlternative boot disks: www.bootdisk.com
If you have Internet access, you can get various boot floppies from www.bootdisk.com. I would suggest you get Windows 98 SE Custom, no RAM disk; it will boot faster than the one with the RAM disk (which you don't really need). What you download is a program called boot98sc.exe; run that program to create the boot floppy. Do not simply copy the file boot98sc.exe to the floppy (a common mistake); that will not make it bootable. Run the program boot98sc.exe.
These disk images can also be used to create bootable CDs or DVDs.
To learn more about boot floppies and how to make your own, click here.
Partitioning the hard drive(s)
This can be done with any DOS or Windows boot floppy, and FDISK.EXE. Be aware of a few things, however:
For more detailed information about partitioning and formatting drives, see Tips Parts 9 and 10
Back to TopDilemma: To use FAT16, FAT32, or NTFS?
There are advantages and disadvantages to each:
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
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| FAT32 | |
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| NTFS | |
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* FAT32 partition sizes: I have seen contradictory information about this. The upper limit is, however, beyond 320Gb, because I bought a 320Gb USB drive and it came pre-formatted as a single FAT32 partition.Theoretically FAT32 should be able to handle partitions up to 2 terabytes, but other factors may intervene before that size. For one thing, Windows 2000 and XP will not make a FAT32 partition bigger than 32Gb, or so I've heard (they want everyone to use NTFS), but third-party utilities are available. The maximum file size with FAT32 is 2Gb. With today's multimedia applications, it is quite easy to have files larger than 2Gb (movies on DVD, for example). This could be a problem if you expect to be working with big files. Bottom line: you should be fine up to at least 132Gb, but remember it's not the most efficient file system.
Clusters
A cluster is the smallest unit of data the OS will read or write, so there is potentially much wasted space. Any file will use whole clusters; for example, with 32k clusters, a 33Kb file will use two clusters, wasting 31Kb of the second cluster. A single 1Kb file will use one cluster, also wasting 31Kb. If you are mostly dealing with large files - much larger than the cluster size, that is - this isn't really an issue.
File Fragmentation
Your files are not necessarily stored on disk in continuous blocks of data. A file can become fragmented, meaning it is actually broken into several sections (perhaps dozens) and scattered all over the disk. This is more likely to happen with greater disk usage, that is, constant creation of new files and deletion or modification of old ones. Deleting files creates gaps which the system will fill with other files. If that file grows too big for the gap, it gets split. File systems that do not fragment (Linux and Unix, for example) have been around for a long time now, but apparently Microsoft hasn't figured out how to do this yet.
FAT16
Almost any OS can access a FAT16 drive, including Unix and Linux, and FAT16 drives are easy to get at by booting from a floppy disk or CD. Suppose Windows won't start up and you must retrieve some data from the disk? No problem with FAT16. Boot from any DOS or Windows floppy or CD (or even Unix/Linux), and copy your files. On the down side, you can't create a partition (=drive) larger than 2Gb, although it can see drives up to 8Gb. Also, the cluster size reaches 32Kb on a 1Gb drive. FAT32, incidentally, is almost as easily accessible as FAT16 (DOS and NT can't see it, but almost any other OS can).
FAT32
About the only common OSes that can't read FAT32 are NT and DOS (although they are all products of Microsoft; go figure). Accessing FAT32 partitions from a boot floppy or CD in an emergency is easy, making data retrieval possible. Managing huge drives is theoretically possible, up to 2 terabytes.
Be warned, though, cluster size reaches 8Kb above 8.4Gb partitions, and that bigger partitions mean bigger clusters, meaning potentially wasted space. Considerably better than FAT16, yes, but... Also, FAT32 doesn't have the most robust security.
Back to TopNTFS
With NTFS (NT File System), the maximum drive size is 2 terabytes, and clusters can be whatever size you wish. NTFS can also have user permissions. This allows the administrator to dictate who is allowed to access what, and to what extent. For example, users may have read-only (=they can only look at it) or read-write (=they can also change it) permissions for a file or folder. There are ways to circumvent such security measures, but NTFS is still a big improvement over FAT16 and FAT32. Be sure to apply all appropriate patches and updates if security is an issue for you.
NTFS partitions will be invisible to any installations of DOS or Win9x/ME on the same machine. Such partitions can be shared over a network, no problem.
On the other hand, accessing an NTFS partition in an emergency can be really frustrating. The utilities to do so aren't entirely reliable. You might be locked out of part or all of your own system if the login and password function doesn't work, which can happen. Your files might be perfectly fine, but you can't get to them. It's preposterous, really.
Security Issues with FAT16 and FAT32
For a machine running Windows 2000 or XP, user permissions can be applied to FAT16 and FAT32 drives, but you don't have as many options as with NTFS. Also, those permissions only apply over the network: if someone has physical access to that machine, the permissions are irrelevant. Anyone can access a FAT16 or FAT32 partition if they are sitting logged in at the machine. With NTFS, permissions are always in effect, regardless of the access method (local or remote).
The Installation - the default
If you can boot from the CD or (with 2000) the boot floppies, the installation program will start automatically. As with NT, setup is initiated by one of two files in the i386 folder, WINNT.EXE, or WINNT32.EXE; If you boot from the CD or the boot floppies, WINNT.EXE will start automatically. The other file, WINNT32.EXE, can only be run from within an existing installation of Windows. It will give you a choice of doing an upgrade or a fresh install.
If you have Internet access, you can get various boot floppies from www.bootdisk.com. To learn more about boot floppies and how to make your own, click here.
As with Windows 9x and NT, the default installation routine will probably work fine, but it may also do things you don't want it to, like make your hard disk all one huge drive (not a good idea - see Tips Part 11 to see why). That is simply a matter of partitioning the drive before starting the install, then telling Windows not to change the partition sizes. You can also copy the installation files to the hard disk before starting the installation, much like with Windows 9x and Windows NT. This is the preferred method of many techs, using a Windows 98 boot floppy.
Back to TopAlternative Installation - a little more complicated, but you have more control
1. Create a drive C: of a decent size, but I would suggest at least 1.5Gb
2. Create a drive D: of at least 600Mb, and make it FAT32, and do not let Windows convert it to NTFS (when you get to that point); you will have a hard time accessing it in future from a boot floppy. Any partition over about 530Mb which is created with a Windows 98 boot floppy will be FAT32 by default.
3. Create a folder on D: called i386.
4. Copy everything from the i386 folder on the CD to D:\I386.
5. Boot from a floppy disk, and navigate to D:\I386 (switch to drive D: by typing D:, then switch to the folder by typing cd i386).
6. Type winnt at the command prompt; the installation begins.
The Installation - Details
For the first while you see white text on a blue background, much like the ancient DOS/Windows 3.x installation. Or the dreaded Blue Screen of Death. During this stage you must make some basic decisions, such as partitioning and formatting the hard disk - or leaving the existing partitions, which you created already, and which partition to install the OS on. It will then copy a whole lot of files to the hard drive. You will see a yellow progress bar as files are copied. At length it will reboot, and you see a GUI.
After this point, I would just let it do what it wants, if you are new to Windows 2000 / XP. Choose to customize things if you want - no harm in experimenting. Eventually you will get to know what you want.
Other matters come up besides what additional applications and programs to install, not necessarily in this order. At various points you are asked to make decisions regarding:
Remember, no matter what choices you make during installation, 99% of them can be changed after installation. Failing that, you can always wipe the hard disk and start over. See Tips Part 9.
If several attempts to install Windows fail, you may have a hardware problem: a defective device or one that Windows really doesn't like or understand. It's also possible that the Windows CD is bad. Seek help from the place where you bought the hardware, or your local guru, or the internet, or the device's manufacturer (if you know which device is the culprit). There are plenty of people out there able and willing to help.
Good luck.
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