Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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|  [Notebooks] My new Dell 600m
From the other topic I thought that since I just got my new Dell Inspiron 600M that some would be interested in hearing about it. I don't have too much time to write right now because I am on the phone with tech support  so I will write more later but I did want to throw out the first issue. No freaking OS CD!!!
So I tried to create one using Dell OS Recover CD creation tool that supposedly creates a OS CD using your CD burner. It failed. No matter what I do it won't burn an OS CD. It keeps giving me an error. I don't really care about that much because I think that utility creates a system restore disk with an image type thing which I don't want anyway. I want a regular OEM OS CD.
Right now I am on the phone with tech support and I am going to demand a OS CD. I'll let you know how it goes. |
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fire100
Premium,MVM
join:2001-11-21
Twin Lake, MI
clubs:
| See my post »My New Dell 700m review
Do not call them, you will get better luck with the email form, plus it will save you one hour on hold.
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Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| Yeah, I posted in that other thread which is why I started this one  so as not to hijack yours.
I just got off the phone with them and they are sending me the OS CD. I don't know yet if it is a generic OEM CD that will work with any legitimate OEM serial number OR a Dell OEM CD that has only the addition of Dell logos but is otherwise a regular OEM CD OR if it is a Dell only CD OR if it is a system restore CD that has an image on it and when used will bring your system back to the way it was shipped to you complete with drivers and applications already installed.
I hope it anything but the last one. The whole reason I want the OS CD is so that I can wipe the drive and start fresh doing it my own way. Sending me an image kind of defeats that purpose. I don't mind any of the other three possibilities as I will only use the CD for this machine and the Dell logos don't bother me although I would rather they were not there. |
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Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| reply to Sentinel
OK so now on to the rest of the info about the PC. It is much faster than my old P3-700MHz that's for sure. It's a lot quieter too and doesn't get anywhere near as hot. It's also smaller and lighter than my old Inspiron 8000 too yet the screen is the same size.
Differences I see are that it has no firewire and only one PCMCIA slot. Other than that it seems to have everything the old one has. I never used the firewire anyway so I don't think it will be missed.
It comes with an Intel wireless card which I have not tried to use yet. More on that later when I get around to using it.
One odd thing I notice is that there are three partitions on the drive. One is the C: drive and has the remaining bulk of the disk space. But there are 2 other partitions with no drive letters. one is 47 MB and the other is 3,601 MB. My guess is that these are used by the Dell restore feature that supposedly can return your system to original configuration in the event of a melt down. I'm guessing that this partition has an image of the disk complete with all drivers and apps.
If so then it will be safe for me to delete these partitions when I do a clean install after I get the CDs from Dell. I will have to investigate further though as once I had a Compaq that had the BIOS on a small partition on the HD and when I wiped the HD the system would not boot. I had to get a special floppy from Compaq in order to recreate that partition and fix the system. I don't think Dell is doing that here but more investigation is needed. |
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT
| I just got a new 600m last week too... I'm not really sure what those partitions are for - but I went ahead and reclaimed that space anyway. Actually the first thing I did was format it and reinstall xp. Have fun with it!
»/r0/down···0001.JPG
MDColson
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PhoenixAZ
Joshua
Premium
join:2004-01-04
Phoenix, AZ
·Cox HSI
| reply to Sentinel
Pictures  I would love to see pics of your laptop, even though i know what a 600m looks like 
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Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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|  I got the disks today and they look to be pretty much regular disks except that they have a few dell files on them. I am hoping this is just badging. If it turns out to be more (software?) then I am going to try to edit them and burn my own regular OEM disk and see if it works.
So far so good. I am off to download the latest drivers and burn them to a disk and then I will spend the night formatting and installing. If all goes well I will see you on the other side. |
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT
| Did the cd's end up being an image, or an actual copy of XP? How did you get them, did you just email support and ask - or did you sit on hold and do it over the phone?
MDColson
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Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| I did it over the phone but someone else here said that they did it via email or chat.
The CDs came and they are an actual copy of XP home but it does have a few extra files called "dellXXX". I have been so busy that I have not had a chance to use them yet and wipe the drive of this thing but I have checked the files and except for a few Dell files it is identical to a regular OEM disk so my assumption is that it is regular OEM XP CD except added Dell images and logos and perhaps a little routine to check and see if it is being installed on a Dell PC or not. If that is all it ends up being then I will be happy.
The second CD was applications that cam on my PC and the third CD was a system restore CD that has my drivers but it is an image restoring kind of thing so I am not going to use it. Instead I went to the web site and down loaded all the drivers for my PC and burned then to my own disk.
I will post back when I have had the chance to wipe and install XP and make sure about the CD. |
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Sentinel
Premium
join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| reply to Sentinel
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Here is a graphic of the extra partitions on the new Dell 600m that I spoke of. Does anyone know what these are for or what they contain? I am guessing that they are related to the Dell OS Restore feature but I would like to make sure before I get rid of them completely.
My guess is that one is used to store an image of the HD as it comes from Dell with OS and all drivers and applications. The other is probably the software that accomplishes this task.
What do you guys think? Anyone know for sure? |
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT
| I can tell you that this computer (600m) and 3 other dell laptops my family has purchased (2x5150 1x8600) all had them, and I deleted the partitions on all of them. That's just my experience...
MDColson
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT | Also, I just emailed product support to see if they will ship me the OS cd's for this computer. I'll let everyone know what they say...
MDColson
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT
| Here is the explination of what is on those partitions. I got a default auto-reply from dell just after I requested the OS cd's. If you read on it tells you that the 3gb is the factory restore point, and the other partition is a digital version of the product manuals...
Dear Dell Customer,
If Dell's e-mail software has interpreted your message correctly you have asked about the location of the Windows CD and utility CD's for your new Dell computer. This response covers the topics listed below in the Table of Contents.
Each entry in the Table of Contents is identical to the title at the beginning of its corresponding document section. You can navigate back and forth by copying these labels into the Search function of your e-mail reader application. Click [Find] on the top menu bar or press [Ctrl]-[F] within the body of the text itself to open a Search.
=================
Table of Contents
=================
1. General Information
2. No Microsoft Windows CD
3. How to Make Your Microsoft Windows CD
4. No Manuals, Driver CD's or Diagnostic Tools CD
5. Dell System Restore
6. Dell System Restore Does Not Work
1. General Information
===========================
Operating System CD's, utility CD's and hard copy owner's manuals are no longer sent with most Dimension and Inspiron systems. Dell is replacing the information electronically on the system hard drive. With this change,Dell is reducing waste and making our technology easier to use. Plus, we are continually looking for ways to pass savings and value on to our customers.
2. No Microsoft Windows CD
=============================
A Dell program on your hard drive will allow you to make a Windows reinstall CD from a CD-R blank.
3. How to Make Your Microsoft Windows CD
=============================
NOTE: Power must not be interrupted while you are making this CD, so if you have a notebook system, run your notebook computer with the AC adapter instead of the battery.
* Click [Start] | All Programs | Dell Accessories | Dell OS Recovery CD.
* Read the license agreement and click [Yes, I accept] | [Next] to start the program.
* Load a blank CD-R when you are prompted and click [Next].
The program will begin to create your backup OS Recovery CD. NOTE: The creation process can take up to 30 minutes; do NOT turn the computer off until the "Congratulations!" message appears.
* Click [ Finish], remove the CD-R, and use a Sharpie marker to label it Windows Operating System Backup CD.
Store the CD safely in a sleeve or case designed for the purpose; for copyright reasons the program only allows you to make one copy.
When the Windows reinstall prompts you for a 25-character COA code, use the one on the side of your desktop or the bottom of your notebook.
4. No Manuals, Driver CD's or Diagnostic Tools CD
=============================
You can find all of your system's drivers and utilities at www.dell.com. There will also be a printable version of your System User's Guide and copies of component User's Guides. There is also an icon on your desktop to access the System Users Guide.
5. Dell System Restore
=============================
This is not to be confused with Windows System Restore, a utility that partially restores Windows files. Dell System Restore wipes your hard drive clean and restores the computer to its factory configuration.
NOTE: Dell System Restore erases everything on the hard drive. Be sure that you make copies of all your important personal files before you invoke it. Dell System Restore is found in the Dell folder under C:\.
6. Dell System Restore Does Not Work
=============================
The factory image used by System Restore is stored in a hidden 3 GB partition. If you use a partitioning utility to reorganize your hard drive or you overwrite its location it will be corrupted or lost. If you have this problem contact Dell Customer Care by clicking [Reply] to this document or by chatting with Order Support at:
»support.dell.com/support/topics/···en&s=dhs
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Sentinel
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join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| That is what I figured. Thanks for that info.
And I tried to create the OS CD using their utility and it didn't work. Doesn't matter anyway as I wanted the real one from Dell but never let it be said that I did not try to do it their way first.
It gave me an error that it could not read the "image". I don't know why because that was with the PC right out of the box. I had not modified anything at that point yet. Doesn't matter. I have the correct CDs now and I will do it the old fashioned way. See you on the other side. |
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MDColson
join:2002-12-20
West Hartford, CT | I emailed them back and told them I trashed the partitions already - they said they'll ship me the cd's...
MDColson
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Sentinel
Premium
join:2001-02-07
Florida
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| reply to Sentinel
OK, just wiped my HD and installed WinXP clean. So far so good running great.
I deleted all three partitions that Dell created and created one large partition. Then I formatted the entire drive in NTFS and installed WinXP using the disk I got from Dell.
I am happy to say that it is just a regular XP disk other than it did not prompt me for the license key at all. It just installed. There was no software or drivers installed or any Dell software either. The only thing I noticed so far is a folder called "Dell" and in it is a dell logo icon file. Thats it! I deleted that and this now looks like a generic system.
I downloaded all the latest drivers from Dells site and burned them to a disk before hand so I didn't use Dells drivers disk.
I am now in the process of installing all my junk and getting this thing to a usable state. The saga continues... |
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ilikeme
I live in a van down by the river.
Premium
join:2002-08-27
Houston, TX
clubs:  | reply to Sentinel
Re: [Notebooks] My new Dell 600m
I have had my 600m since last July and have been very satisfied with it. |
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