Can't install Windows XP on Parallels Desktop 5

Hello, I'm going nuts here.
Setup:
Brand new MacBook Pro, 15" 2.53GHz, fully updated, nothing else installed.
New full edition of Parallels 5, installed using auto internet update.
Genuine XP Home installation disc, no service packs.

The first time I did this, it got through the whole installation, then wouldn't take SP2. So I deleted it and started again.
Now it won't fully install, hangs normally at "setup will complete in approximately 36 minutes" or thereabouts. 33-39.

Try restarting it, nothing better.

I've now tried 10 times, and I'm getting mighty bored of it. I've tried two separate (good) XP keys. No improvement.

I've even tried an XP Pro disc with the appropriate key, got it all loaded but couldn't do much else.

Can anyone offer any suggestions as to what I should be doing?
Thanks!

 

I've now tried reducing the memory on the VM to 768MB, turning off graphics acceleration, then trying yet another fresh install - number 11. Hung again at 36 minutes remaining "installing devices".
I didn't have this trouble when installing on Desktop for Mac 4. Is that the problem?

 

When you get to the dialog box and enter the activation code, go to "advanced" screen. Lower the RAM from 1 G. one division back to 768. Re-install XP and when the icons appear at the bottom of the window, disconnect the shared "spiderweb" icon until installation is complete. You can reconnect it to activate, but disconnect it to install Service Pack 2. After Service Pack 2 success, reset the network icon to shared and install SP3. I hope that helps. No guarantees. It's Windows after all.

 

Hi,

First of all you need ensure your Windows XP disk is OK. If the disk is scratched or your Mac drive can't read it successfully you can see a such issue. Windows is hangs on the installation. The easiest way to ensure what your disk is OK that make a disk image from it. To make a disk image you need use Mac OS X Disk Utility application. Moreover, later you can install Windows from it. It will be faster and reliable.

Alexander

 

If your XP isn't SP2, why not use nLite http://www.nliteos.com/guide/ and incorporate it into your installation disk.

Salamat

 

Thank you! I don't know exactly what it was, but a combination of making an image on the HD of the install disk, reducing the RAM to 768MB at the enter Windows key stage, and taking off networking has got it working. On attempt 16 - count 'em!

Quite why it should take such a peculiar concoction of steps, I don't know, but well done for knowing them...

Many thanks for the help, from a sunny London.

 

Installing XP> SP2> SP3

It's possible to install XP and SP2, then SP3 successfully and in that sequence. It is not easy but it is possible. The hang at around 36-39 minutes during device installation is a common problem with XP installed in this sequence. It would probably be better to also have SP1, but Microsoft no longer has it for downloads because SP2 incorporates all the changes. SP2 is a real big bite during install. I had success when I disconnected the icon at the bottom of the screen during installation that is the (spider web) "network adapter". It is possible to reconnect it later, after successful install and airport cards then work fine from XP. It just seems to be an installation glitch along with the too high RAM setting that happens if one has a large amount of RAM, like 8 Gigs.

 

For the first several days take manual snapshots, as you install security updates from Microsoft, just a few each day and as you do updates in Parallels Internet Security. You might need to go back. I've found them most useful.

 

After a similar "nutty" experience of a number of attempts to load XP under Parallels on my new iMac, I searched this forum and your suggestions sorted me out and am now up and running with XP SP3 plus updates, thanks all. Here's a summary of the steps I took that worked for me.

1) Install XP
My initial attempts at installing XP would hang part way through or, if it did install, the installation appeared flaky (ie. on boot up, it decided there was something wrong with the 'drive' and ran the chkdsk process automatically)
I deleted the VM and followed Silversorcerer's suggestion - On creating a VM, when you get to the dialog box and enter the activation code, go to "advanced" screen. Lower the RAM from 1 G back to 768 Mb. Re-install XP and it all worked fine. Take a snapshot to save the VM at this state.

2) Install SP2
I ran Windows Update to install this but, even though the download is large, it seemed to me to take far to long and I felt the process had hung. So I went to this site using Safari and downloaded and saved the full SP2 distribution (handy in case you have issues with later steps and need to install SP2 again without having to re-download it):
http://www.softwarepatch.com/windows/xpsp2.html
(Note: do not click the big "Start Download" button - that's to run some free scanner software - the actual link is below that in small text that reads "[Click here to Download]")
Initially, on executing the download, I had issues installing SP2 (I got a pop-up that said something like "bad memory reference" or "memory out of bound error", either way it was bad). Again I followed Silversorcerer's suggestion - when the icons appear at the bottom of the window, disconnect the shared "spiderweb" (network) icon until installation is complete. Take a snapshot to save the VM at this state.

2) Run Windows Update
I re-connected the network ("spiderweb" icon) and ran Windows update which found something like 74 updates. Many were SP2 fixes that appeared to be necessary to be installed before continuing on to install SP3. Windows Update ran fine this time and did not hang. Take a snapshot to save the VM at this state.

3) Install SP3
Like SP2, I didn't bother using Windows Update to get SP3. Using Safari, I downloaded and saved the full SP3 distribution (handy in case you have issues with later steps and need to install SP3 again without having to re-download it):
http://www.softwarepatch.com/windows/windows-xp-service-pack-3.html
(Note: do not click the big "Start Download" button - that's to run some free scanner software - the actual link is below that in small text that reads "[Click here to Download]").
I executed the download, with the network ("spiderweb" icon) connected this time, and it all installed fine. Take a snapshot to save the VM at this state.

4) Run Windows Update
I ran Windows update which found something like 12 updates. Windows Update ran fine this time and did not hang. You should now have a complete install of XP SP3 plus latest updates.Take a snapshot to save the VM at this state (you'll want to keep this snapshot long term) and you can probably go back and delete any snapshots prior to this one.

I hope others find these steps helpful and again thanks to those would made the suggestions above.

Cheers.

 

usul, I am trying to convert from WIN 2000 Pro to WIN XP Pro. The disk is so old (bought it on E-Bay) that I had to go back and download SP1a and SP3. I initially wanted to do an upgrade to preserve apps but had so many problems I went to New Install. The 1st install of SP1a using a download in Mozilla Firefox went through one time in about 30 minutes. When I decided on a new install Firefox wasn't yet installed so I used MS Internet Explorer. What a dog! It seemed to hang after 3.5 hours in finishing up so I killed it. IE was eating the cpu in my iMac. So I did the SP3 download in Firefox and it completed in 30 minutes or so.

My conclusion is that the XP disk IE SUCKS! I will always install and use Firefox for SP downloads in the future.