Thinkpads Forum

Hello there, first post here

I've been browsing threads with similar topics on this forum re: HDD, Windows fresh install etc, but while they've given me some insight into the matter, I still can't be quite sure about what to do in my case. I do understand the basic concepts of things and I'm willing to read the docs when need be, but otherwise I'm a complete newbie tech-wise. Hence this thread, which I believe might be useful to other newbies undergoing similar problem.

I own a T40p 2373 G1M which I bought off a fellow two years ago, who purchased it in 2005 and no longer had the Recovery CD. It worked really, really great until last week, when the default 40GB HDD suddenly broke down. I panicked a wee bit, read a lot, and saved all my data using Hiren's BootCD. Fortunately, only drive C was corrupted all over; the other two partitions on the HDD were okay.

Then I tried running HDD Regenerator from HBCD, but failed to repair all of the errors because there were so many bad sectors, delays etc. Tried "Restore Factory Settings" option, but it gave lots of errors extracting files and didn't work. Tried low level formatting and creating new partitions all over again-- didn't work either, as I always failed to install WinXP in a different drive. Long story short, I decided to buy a new HDD. I chose Samsung 160GB HM160HC (link) after browsing through this forum.

On to the questions..

About the HDD:

• I've read about supported / non-supported HDD, but I've also seen several posts stating their T4x work fine with Samsung 160GB HDD-- so I guess that's not a serious issue here.
  I understand that the original HDD has the 5GB secret partition thingie to store the Factory Settings etc in the Access IBM Interrupt Startup menu, so replacing the original HDD with a new one would mean losing that 5GB partition. Would I have to do something about it, or can the machine run alright without that partition?

About the Operating System:

• Should I buy/obtain T40p Recovery CD files somewhere in order to install Windows? My sister has a copy of Win XP Home (used on our desktop comp); can I use the CD to install Win XP on the new HDD rather than waiting to buy/get a Recovery CD from Lenovo?
• Anything else should I know about installing a fresh copy of Win XP on this HDD? (This is with regard to performance, not cloning image/system/old partitions.)

About Drivers:

• Off the 120 listed here, which Thinkpad drivers are essential for me to install so that things function normally (audio, wireless network, LAN, Bluetooth, removable devices, power/battery, etc)?
• OR, is there perhaps any program that can automatically detect and download the necessary drivers? (beg your pardon if there's no such thing )

Sorry for being a complete n00b, but this is the first time I replace something on a laptop, and it's pretty different from replacing stuff on a desktop PC!!

Thanks.

Any PATA drive should work on your T40p. It's only the T43/R52 that need a supported drive because of the SATA to PATA bridge they employed to use PATA drives.

You might want to post in the marketplace forum to see if anyone's got a set of discs they can sell you. That's probably the cheapest option. There's also <an online site>, which is a bit cheaper than getting them from Lenovo. You can still install XP Home, but you'd still need to activate it and your key won't work. To do a clean install you'd need an OEM XP Pro disc, which should accept your key. You can also use a retail disc and use the key that came with the disc. The Windows Activation program allows you can change the key, at which point you can change the key to your COA key and activate it.

Everyone is going to define essential differently. What you and I deem essential could vary widely. If you're unsure of whether you think a particular driver/app is warranted, google it to find out if you want it. You can download and install the drivers/apps manually or use system update, but system update generally does everything, which can dampen performance as all of it's running in the background. Good Luck.

Admin edit: Removed link to online source of recovery disks. Lenovo has gone on record to state that that particular site is NOT "a designated provider" of such media and as a courtesy to Lenovo this forum will abide by that ruling.

Thanks a lot for the info!

A question, though..

FredGarvin wrote:To do a clean install you'd need an OEM XP Pro disc, which should accept your key. You can also use a retail disc and use the key that came with the disc. The Windows Activation program allows you can change the key, at which point you can change the key to your COA key and activate it.

Where do I get the OEM XP Pro disc? (the person that I bought the machine from didn't have any of the CDs.) Do I need to buy it separately from the Thinkpad Recovery CD?

Retail discs sound better to me, since I live in Indonesia and I reckon the shipping would take a while should I order the Recovery CD online. Again, thanks!

I don't think you can buy an OEM CD. Perhaps ebay or if you know someone with one. <They> will only sell you recovery CDs, which will restore your machine to the factory state. I don't know if they'll ship to Indonesia, but you certainly can ask.

Admin edit: Again, edited out the site

Thanks everyone for the advice.

FYI, for other (newbie) users experiencing the same thing: Driver-wise, I found valuable info here >> http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=78842

I'm still installing the drivers and haven't checked if everything works alright, but I'll let you know. Ta