" I have windows XP"
I see the root of your problem.
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I tired switching to a HDD with windows 7 on it. My keyboard and mouse didnt work.
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Is that a Hard Drive you installed windows on while it was hooked up to your computer, or to a different computer?
Mouse/keyboard a USB wireless device?
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The HDD with windows 7? It was a laptop HDD in my PC.
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You can't just take a hard drive from a different computer and plug it into another computer and have it boot up and work like that. Unless you use the tool inside of windows 7 to transfer to a new computer. You have to use the System Preparation Tool to be able to do that.
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So thats why my mouse works on the laptop but not when the laptops HDD is in my PC?
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Okay thanks. Is there any way to find a Windows 7 activation key on a current installation?
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It should be in the paperwork for your laptop or you may have to call the support line depending on your OEM license to get it. I believe there is a way to find it out from the registry, but I would not recommend digging around that unless you absolutely know what you are doing.
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well my laptop is from 2010 so i doubt there is any paperwork left. But i will try the OEM license thing and google if i can find it in the registry.
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Usually there is a shiny hologram type sticker on your laptop or manual that will have it, or there is a Microsoft manual.
Do you see the error at any other time? Do you have any DRM free games that you can launch?
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Worked just fine. And i found a sticking on the back of my laptop. It has two numbers a shorter one and a longer one which is it?
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Try them both, longer one first. It should say which one it is unless you can't read the sticker anymore.
With Halo 1 working just fine it's more than likely a problem with steam.
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Well i just got my pc to work by installing XP SP3 sp i'll wait for a bit.
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I would highly recommend upgrading your Operating System as soon as you are able and always make sure you keep your system up to date, especially one that has had support discontinued for it.
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There would be a sticker underneath your laptop with the key, but it wouldn't transfer properly to your PC without phone support. Depending on their mood they probably won't allow the transfer.
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Hopefully to further clarify; as far as I remember, with SysPrep you just migrate your user configuration from one installation to the other.
You still need a fresh install if you are using a different hardware as is OP case. Windows needs to install the appropriate HAL for the hardware in use.
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The whole point of using this tool is if you upgrade your motherboard or CPU and don't want a huge headache.
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Yup it will run through like you are installing Windows 7 again, but without having to format and do a fresh install. The guide I posted above has a pretty decent walkthrough on how to do it.
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You're welcome, I stumbled on this 2 upgrades ago and wish I had known about it since Windows 7 came out. Would have saved me a little bit of work when I upgrade piece by piece haha.
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Was the Windows 7 installation from the laptop or installed while in the PC? Windows is plug-n-play so unless your keyboard and mouse aren't USB they should be discovered.
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7 was on the HDD before i put it in my pc. And my system bios detects my stuff but when windows takes over it all shuts off.
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That's because when Windows was installed on the laptop by the vendor it configured itself to work with the laptop's BIOS and devices. Your PC uses a different BIOS and devices so Windows won't work properly. You would need a retail Win7 disk to reinstall Windows to work with your PC,
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Yeah thats what i figured. I dont have one of those.
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You can usually find ISO images of Win7 on the net. If you can burn DVDs with your XP install they should work for you. Win7 will install without the activation key and you'll have 30 days to get a key for it. Just know that you risk losing anything that is on the drive already.
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If you're blue screening, this problem goes way past the Steam program.
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It only happens when steam is opened. It runs 100% fine until then.
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A BSOD is always bad drivers or bad hardware, at least on Windows 7. I remember Windows XP as being easier to mess up.
You can't just swap in a HDD with Windows 7 from another computer btw. Windows needs to be installed from scratch on each computer... otherwise don't be surprised it doesn't work.
Some general BSOD advice: Uninstall any program (especially installed near the time the problems appeared) that add low-level drivers, such as Daemon Tools.
Get some program to test your RAM and let it run overnight, same with your hard drive.
You can try disabling your antivirus (avoid browsing the web or launching unknown programs when you do) or using a different one.
Scan your whole computer for viruses/trojans/rootkits with an online antivirus such as Eset's.
You can try downloading and booting with an Ubuntu Linux LiveCD (not guaranteed to work out of the box on your hardware though), the boot menu includes a tool to test your RAM and it can help to do basic stuff such as going online safely if your Windows installs are messed up or your antivirus disabled.
Remember that the cause can be any piece of hardware: motherboard, HD, graphics card, power supply, memory... Steam can trigger a favorable condition for the problem to happen, but definitely can't cause it (again, true on Windows 7, more murky on Windows XP).
You can also try to look up the error code online to try and narrow the cause down, but most advice you find online about that is clueless people spewing bullshit.
Good luck.
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Thanks The only part of my machine i havent tested is my CPU. but it seems to be working fine.
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Im on a installation of windows that is 3 hours old. Just got the error 15 minutes ago. And i would update if i could.
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Steam might be expecting the service packs to be installed for WinXP. Have you completely patched XP before installing Steam?
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No. It is still SP2. I have not found a stand alone installer for SP3. Thats what i thought it could be.
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Some day when I am incredibly board I plan on installing DOS (I still have the old floppies) on a modern computer, and see what's the best game I'd be able to run.
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Nice off-topic :P. You might have better luck with FreeDOS than with the old DOS.
Also, when you give up, remember there is the DOSBOX emulator.
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I still have star trek on 8 floppies from '91. I'm a hoarder for sure.
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Nah, a collector.
That's what I tell myself when I look at my NES, SNES, Sega Master System, Sega Gensis, Sega Saturn (non working Idk why I dont toss it) and all the games I still have...including my ps1 and ps2 games even though I do not own a ps2 anymore, although I am told you can download something on the ps3 to play them there...I should log on to that again one of these days...
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I am getting an error with steam and it is pissing me off. The error for steam im getting is when i open it i get a bsod with the error code C00021A. Here is what ive done so far. I have windows XP
Done a system restore
Switched to my old GPU (Then switched back)
Switched my old Ram out (Then switched back)
Reinstalled Windows
On a separate Drive (thought it was a HDD error)
Installed a different version of XP.
Cried
Does the fact i have the original drive i had problems with in could be a potential error?
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