Problem installing Windows 2000

[spiccato]

I am using an original diskette (2 discs) Windows 2000 Professional with product key and COA. I have downloaded and installed VMware Fusion on as iMac with 2GB RAM, running Mac OSX Leopard. When I inserted the installation diskette into the iMac, I could see the win2000 CD on the desktop. However, once I started the installation from Fusion the win2000 CD icon disappeared, and I kept getting the error message that I don't have a bootable disc in the drive. I have tried to specifiy the CD drive instead of auto-detect but I still get no response. Can anyone help? Thanks.

[etu444]

Thanks but since I'm not a developer I don't have that utility/option.

[rcardona2k]

Sigh. Every Mac system has Apple Disk Utility (look in Applications > Utilities) and you should use it regularly to repair file permissions and verify the integrity of your disk. This is like running chkdsk or scandisk in Windows. Apple Disk Utility does a lot more than its Windows counterparts, it can burn CDs, rip floppies and ISOs, format and partitions disks, etc.

If you want to buy XP OEM, don't let me stop you, it's definitely the easier way to go plus you'll end up with a more modern Windows in XP than 2000.

For others, the steps to being successful in installing Windows 2000 with floppies on a Mac are:

1. You need disk images of your floppies so VMware Fusion can boot off a virtual floppy disk. You can do this on a Mac with Apple Disk Utility (make new image from usb floppy), or if you're versed in Linux with dd on the command line (if=/dev/fd, of=~/floppy.flp)

2. Go through the Fusion New Machine Wizard (File > New), but at the end UNcheck "Start virtual machine and install operating system now"

3. When the Settings are displayed, add a virtual floppy drive to the machine using the + symbol and "Add floppy...", when the drive is added, choose "Use floppy image..." and select the first bootable floppy in your series. Now start your virtual machine with the play button.

4. When Windows asks you to "insert" the next floppy, choose Virtual Machine > Floppy > Disconnect Floppy, followed by Choose Floppy image... selecting Disk 2, 3, etc., finally Virtual Machine > Floppy > Connect Floppy. These are basically the steps for pushing eject, replacing a floppy and inserting a new floppy into a Fusion virtual machine. If your OS says to press a key or OK to continue you can do that after the "Connect Floppy" step.

If everything goes right and your media is still good or converted from physical disks correctly, it all should work. It looks like some work but you only have to do it once and if you make a mistake you can start over.

[etu444]

Thanks for the tip. I'm trying to avoid spending money I don't have to. I think my main problem is I don't understand how to get VMFusion to access the DATA on the resources. VMWare Fusion sees both my USB Floppy and my USB Disk just fine. However, I am not sure how to tell it what to execute. Thats where I'm slipping up. Can you walk me through that part?

[spiccato]

When I used my Win2KProf disc, VMware Fusion gave me the message that the disc was not bootable. When I used the new WinXP, VMware Fusion had no problem at all installing it. The installation went through smoothly. There may be propreietary copyright material in the Win2K disc that prevent it from being used on a computer other than the one it was originally installed in. The guy at the local Apple Store here told me that Win2K will not work on the iMac and that I have to use WinXP or Vista, though he probably was not referring to VMware Fusion, but to BootCamp or Parallel. I am rather curious as to whether anyone has been able to install win2K using VMware Fusion. I hope you manage to find some way to get it to work.

[etu444]

Thanks for your response. Several people have indicated in these posts that they have gotten W2K to work. But I agree with you it probably would be easier to just get XP. I have a fully licensed W2K that I was trying to use instead of plunking down $300 for the XP. I figured if I got W2K loaded I could get away with purchasing the UPGRADE version and save some $$$. I'll just do that at this point. I've wasted enough time and caused myself enough frustration.

[rcardona2k]

You seem to be stuck on the point that Fusion acts like a physical PC in that it needs some bootable source like a floppy, cd or hard disk. A Fusion VM has a BIOS, runs through a POST cycle and boots like a 1990s PC. There is no 'special' execution for OS installation except that "Windows Easy Install" creates a script for unattended installations, but the OS must bootstrap itself to use this.

Unlike a physical PC, your resources (aka "data") generally have to be files in OS X. While there is good emulation of a Mac's physical CD/DVD drive, the emulation for floppies is not good because a USB drive can not be bootable (maybe on a "hackintosh"?) because the VMware BIOS does not support booting off of a USB drive. AFAIK, the "Use Physical disk drive" option does not map a host's USB device as a bootable A: drive. This is from the last time I tried it.

Have you tried to use Apple Disk Utility to make disk image files from your Windows 2000 floppies using the USB drive? Have you tried to attach the first disk image as a bootable virtual floppy to a new virtual machine? This is how you will get started! Please help me understand exactly where you are stuck.

I will add a screen shot of the first Windows 2000 floppy booted into Fusion showing this is possible.

[rcardona2k]

Your quotes for XP retail pricing is one data point. XP comes in Home and Pro editions, full retail for each are $199, $299 respectively. So I understand your "$300" statement For upgrades, you don't have to have Windows 2000 installed. If you purchase the upgrade packages they are $99 and $199, respectively. If you don't have OS installed when you run the bootable upgrade CD, Windows will ask you to insert any qualifying CD for an older Windows including 9x/ME/NT and 2000. Admittedly some people have gotten stuck here because they don't know how to swap out virtual media for physical media or virtual-to-virtual media and back. Sigh.

Other XP license types are available which may fall into a gray area like the "OEM edition" meant for system builders (aka manufacturers), did you see the price online listed above?

How much you are willing to try or to learn is up to you. If you really can't get this, go ahead and buy the version of XP at the price you are most comfortable with.

[rcardona2k]

These series of screen shots are the picture versions of the steps above.

In Apple Disk Utility, making a disk image from an MS floppy: choose New > Disk image from ... > then, read-only and no encryption (repeat for four floppies).

In VMware Fusion, after creating a new virtual machine, adding a virtual floppy device, attach the first floppy you created through disk utility, what the menu looks like after booting (the blue screen is disk 1's setup):

Then when the installer asks for disks 2, 3, 4, you have to use ctrl-cmd to release the input, use Virtual Machine > Disconnect Floppy, followed by changing the disk image, and Connect Floppy:

Finally, when you are at the setup screen (or anytime before this), attach the virtual CD-ROM or insert the physical disc, this is what the CD/DVD menu should look like (for a virtual CD ISO):

After this go through the OS installation, install the VMware Tools and you should have a working Windows 2000. Finally, I want to repeat, you don't need to install 2000 to buy/use an Windows XP upgrade CD.

Good luck

[etu444]

Good Evening:

Thanks for your response and suggestions. You explanation was clear and precise. I appreciate the pictures. Unfortunately, while my MacBook Pro sees my USB floppy and the files on it both in Finder and in the disk utility, I do not get the option that you have selected to light up. Meaning I cannot say File, New, and then get it to make an image from Disk 1 of the W2K disc.

I appreciate your clarification on the licensing. That being said I'll purchase the full retail version of the XP SP2 CD and go from there. I was only loading the W2K because I thought I had to but it's proving to be much more of a hassle than it should be. Others have conferred that I'd be happier with the XP and it installs in a breeze.

Thanks again!

[etu444]

You are correct. That is exactly where I was getting stuck. I like to think I'm pretty good with computers. It may not seem like it but I'm actually a support professional in the PC world. I've only been on the Mac side for 7 days now. Still somewhat intimidated but jumped in the water because I really want to learn. This has been a bit cumbersome but I think I'll be happy with my decision once this is all setup and running.

Thanks for your help!

[rcardona2k]

Thanks for letting me help out. I figured installing Windows 2000 off four floppies was a worthy gig - bootable CD is too easy Going XP is the way to go for VM production - a full copy just saves hassle. Once you're all setup, backed up, etc. you can always come back to running 2000 on Fusion. You can run the makeboot batch file above in XP and make all your floppies using virtual floppy blanks, no USB drive necessary. You can do this if want to you build up your VM collection. I have over twenty machines on a LaCie drive now - just added an openbsd one today.

Welcome to the Mac your computing fun is just beginning.

[etu444]

Thanks!!