Dell Vostro 1400- Invalid Partition Table

ramudu · 01-15-2009, 09:42 PM

hi,
I have a Dell Vostro 1400 that came with Windows Vista. I reached out to Dell and Microsoft tech support during the warranty period to switch to Windows XP.
They stored Windows Vista in D drive and XP in C drive.
Last week, while my laptop was booting I inadvertently pressed some key that started installing "Dell Direct". Then I switched off the power button.

Now when I power on my laptop shows the error message: Invalid Partition table.
I borrowed "Ultimate boot" CD from work to backup my data. Also the "File management" feature of Ultimate Boot showed the following information about the drives:

My Computer
+ RAMDisk (B:)
+ MEDIADIRECT (C:)
+ Recovery (D:) "with windows vista"
+ Local Disk (E:) "with all my original C:/ files in it"
+ BartPE(X:)

Now that I've a back up of my data, I want to restore my laptop with windows XP and completely remove vista from my laptop (have only one OS).

Can someone please help me how to do this?

Thanks in advance.
R :-)

~~Laptoper~~ · 01-16-2009, 08:30 AM

Use Dell PC Restore only as the last method to restore your operating system. These options restore your hard drive to the operating state it was in when you purchased the computer. Any programs or files added since you received your computer—including data files—are permanently deleted from the hard drive. Data files include documents, spreadsheets, e-mail messages, digital photos, music files, and so on. If possible, back up all data before using PC Restore.

To use PC Restore:

Turn on the computer.

During the boot process, a blue bar with www.dell.com appears at the top of the screen.

Immediately upon seeing the blue bar, press <Ctrl><F11>.

If you do not press <Ctrl><F11> in time, let the computer finish booting (starting), and then restart the computer again.

NOTICE: If you do not want to proceed with PC Restore, click Reboot.

Click Restore and click Confirm.

The restore process takes approximately 6 to 10 minutes to complete.

When prompted, click Finish to reboot the computer.

NOTE: Do not manually shut down the computer. Click Finish and let the computer completely reboot.

When prompted, click Yes.

The computer restarts. Because the computer is restored to its original operating state, the screens that appear, such as the End User License Agreement, are the same ones that appeared the first time the computer was turned on.

Click Next.

The System Restore screen appears and the computer restarts.

After the computer restarts, click OK.

http://support.dell.com/support/edoc....htm#wp1082299

01-15-2009, 09:42 PM	#1 (permalink)
ramudu Registered User Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1 OS: Windows XP SP2	Dell Vostro 1400- Invalid Partition Table hi, I have a Dell Vostro 1400 that came with Windows Vista. I reached out to Dell and Microsoft tech support during the warranty period to switch to Windows XP. They stored Windows Vista in D drive and XP in C drive. Last week, while my laptop was booting I inadvertently pressed some key that started installing "Dell Direct". Then I switched off the power button. Now when I power on my laptop shows the error message: Invalid Partition table. I borrowed "Ultimate boot" CD from work to backup my data. Also the "File management" feature of Ultimate Boot showed the following information about the drives: My Computer + RAMDisk (B:) + MEDIADIRECT (C:) + Recovery (D:) "with windows vista" + Local Disk (E:) "with all my original C:/ files in it" + BartPE(X:) Now that I've a back up of my data, I want to restore my laptop with windows XP and completely remove vista from my laptop (have only one OS). Can someone please help me how to do this? Thanks in advance. R :-)

01-16-2009, 08:30 AM	#2 (permalink)
~~Laptoper~~ Troubled Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 450 OS: Vista 32bit My System	Re: Dell Vostro 1400- Invalid Partition Table Use Dell PC Restore only as the last method to restore your operating system. These options restore your hard drive to the operating state it was in when you purchased the computer. Any programs or files added since you received your computer—including data files—are permanently deleted from the hard drive. Data files include documents, spreadsheets, e-mail messages, digital photos, music files, and so on. If possible, back up all data before using PC Restore. To use PC Restore: Turn on the computer. During the boot process, a blue bar with www.dell.com appears at the top of the screen. Immediately upon seeing the blue bar, press <Ctrl><F11>. If you do not press <Ctrl><F11> in time, let the computer finish booting (starting), and then restart the computer again. NOTICE: If you do not want to proceed with PC Restore, click Reboot. Click Restore and click Confirm. The restore process takes approximately 6 to 10 minutes to complete. When prompted, click Finish to reboot the computer. NOTE: Do not manually shut down the computer. Click Finish and let the computer completely reboot. When prompted, click Yes. The computer restarts. Because the computer is restored to its original operating state, the screens that appear, such as the End User License Agreement, are the same ones that appeared the first time the computer was turned on. Click Next. The System Restore screen appears and the computer restarts. After the computer restarts, click OK. http://support.dell.com/support/edoc....htm#wp1082299