I ran across a related problem when my motherboard failed, and I replaced it.  Turns 
out that the "Recovery DVD" won't load on a system unless that system's BIOS has 
a code branded into it.  HP calls this "tattooing" the board.

So, being out of warranty, HP was no help.  They told me to take it to a service 
center to have my new board "tattooed" or to buy a replacement mainboard from HP 
(at 250% retail).

According to them, even though I paid for and legally have rights to a legitimate 
software liscence for the OS and apps, I'll have to pay them more money to load any 
of it.

Here's how I fixed it without paying HP to load software I've already paid for:
- Make a BartPE CD:
http://flyakite.msfnhosting.com/BartPE.htm

- Copy the entire file structure of the DVD to a folder on your hard drive.
- Download the standard XP/2K boot image, which DOESN'T check for the BIOS "tattoo", 
or rip it from a standard XP or 2K install disk.
- Burn a new DVD with the file system of the original DVD, but the standard boot 
image.
- Boot from the newly created DVD, and let it copy all the preload files.  When it 
is ready to reboot, boot from the BartPE CD.
- In BartPE, open a command prompt and locate this file:
C:\hp\bin\CheckConfig\cfgchk.bat
- Edit the batch file to be empty.  You could just remove the line that calls "run.py", 
but it's just as easy to empty the whole batch file.  It doesn't do anything useful.
- Reboot from the PC's hard drive.

Your OS will install fine.  As a final step, you should vow to NEVER spend another 
dime on HP/Compaq products.






On Thursday, November 15, 2001 at 1:01 am, Vince Sorensen wrote:

>

>More info... after looking at the files in a PRELOAD folder I've come to the conclusion 

>that the recovery partition was created using a tool from www.softthinks.com.  

>

>To make a boot CD, use the info at http://www.nu2.nu/bootcd/ 

>

>... Tons of work that could have been avoided if HP had simply sent the CDs that 

>users expect to receive.
 

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