Hi all-

I'm looking for some advice, please.

I'm trying to update my housemate's old pc and thought I could get it running a decent OS- dumping Win98 for Win2k.
The machine in question is a Sony Vaio PCV-L640

My plan was to swap in a blank HD ($0), drop in the max RAM (256MB, $0), and feed it Win2k Pro (developer, $0).
As it happens, though, the CD drive is dead and I can't boot from it.
"Swap in another CD drive!" I hear you cry. But, alas, the drive is a slim-line style and not easy or cheap to find.
The dang machine is so compact and dense that it's hard even to see the motherboard. If I could- I could judge whether I could (somehow) hook in a standard CD drive in order to perform the OS install with the cover off and drives hanging all over the floor.
It might be possible, for example, to install a typical IDE cable (with plugs for two devices) and run a standard 3.5 CD and the blank HD that way. I haven't dissected the machine far enough to know what I can do with the HD cable.
Maybe slim-line CD drives are more easily swapped than I think? At this point I can only imagine them to be less universal than the full-size versions.

I know, I know... I should bin the whole thing and start from scratch with another donor machine that's easier to work with.
All he needs is something to do the basics- chat, surf, email, funny videos.

But I have to ask- does anyone have any ideas for performing an OS install on this machine? It's too old to boot from USB, but the BIOS will allow booting from LAN... never done anything like that before, though.

I thought I might try doing the install while the HD were mounted in my own (ancient) HP and then transferring the drive to the Sony and trying to fix it with drivers passed via ethernet or floppy... but I'm afraid this is fantasy.

Any options that I've missed?
Thanks for reading and any comment or commiseration that you have to offer.

-Stew

I think you should be able to do it this way. Just make sure you uninstall any chip-specific IDE driver and just leave the standard IDE driver. Otherwise it will bluescreen when you try to boot. I know I used this method one time when I didn't want to reinstall Windows and I had to change mainboard. If you do it this way, why not also copy all the needed drivers onto the HD before you put it back into the Sony?

Stig

The reference manual, available from your link, says that the primary IDE connector is standard 40-pin. So as long as you can find the primary IDE connector, that should work.
I think there's only two ways in which they vary: PATA vs SATA at the back (yours is PATA), and slot vs tray at the front.
Booting Linux from a LAN is not a job for the faint-hearted; I can only imagine Windows is worse.

Peter

Pull out the hard drive, and use another computer to install bootable Ubuntu onto it. Re-install it in the notebook, and be happy.

If this sounds completely foreign to you (since MS software wouldn't be happy with a full swap like that), then don't worry: Ubuntu is fine with it.

Cheers

I think this is the way I'll try first. I can borrow the IDE cable, power cable, and 3.5 drive.

That's good news- perhaps the machine will end up with a functional CD drive later.

Thanks, Peter!

Thanks, Stig!
I'll tear apart my HP and try that route as a second option. For now, having one machine strewn across the floor is enough! lol

Thanks, Mark!
If it were me, I'd try it. But I'm not familiar with the Linux way of life, so if I'm to do any hand-holding with my friend I'm better off with what I know my way around in. In this case Windows is good enough. Eventually I'll have my chance to get Linux in the back seat.

A proprietary PIII with 256MB of ram max? I'm sorry to deliver the bad news, but it's time to head to dell.com/hp.com/lenovo.com/best buy/frys and pick up the cheapest thing you can find. You're far too kind attempting to help with anything other than a ride to the computer recycling center.

Did you follow the links? The thing is a work of art. And PIII/256MB is all my laptop has, which is (just about) enough for web browsing, email, and light use of Visual C++ with XP. As long as nobody's trying to run Gimp or Photoshop (or modern blockbuster games) it should be fine.

Peter

There is another difference and that is whether it is a master or slave device if its a PATA drive. The actual drives don't normally have a jumper to select and it is hardcoded into the firmware. You need to find the appropriate firmware for that drive if it isn't the correct type already.

Really? I tend to like Sony industrial design, and that one does nothing for me at all.

And if design really is a consideration, these are pretty sweet.

Regarding slim-line drives-

Should I be looking to the used-laptop parts market?
Here's a Teac DW-224E CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Drive - $25

A possibility for replacement?

Awesome.
Awesome.
Awesome.

$25 invested and Win2k is happily loading.

Thanks very much, guys!

Unusually, these days, it's not. The Windows Vista variant of Windows PE will happily boot from the network with minimal jiggery-pokery. It's fairly easy if you have a Linux host, and it's even easier if you have a Windows 2003 or 2008 server with Windows Deployment Services installed.

Once you've got it network booted into Windows PE, you can lay down a pre-install image of pretty much any version of Windows, and off you go.

It's fairly well-documented on TechNet.

Dear Mark-

I had some trouble with the Win2k install, after all. I couldn't get past the first 5 seconds of setup.
Disheartened and disenchanted by the failure, I thought I'd take your advice and see how well Ubuntu would do on this machine.

With Ubuntu booted from the freshly burned CD (it was still warm!) I found that at the top level of the OS install was a memory test. Why not?
Well- I'll tell you what... a 10 year old machine might take issues with a new stick of RAM in a previously empty slot.
I reseated and generally futzed with the sticks until the memory test on the Ubuntu disk came up clean.
Ta-Da! A victory for Linux!

...but now I'm continuing the Win2k install.
*sigh*
Next time, my friend, next time...

Small steps for small ... err, whatever.

Seriously, though. For the eventual user of this machine, Ubuntu is going to be a way simpler step-up from Win98 than WinNT will be. And more advanced and capable, too. And no need to hunt for drivers for the hardware, and suspend / resume / hibernate will likely just work by default, too.

But anything that keeps the old hardware tickin' is a win for all involved, so kudos for keeping at it!

Cheers

Dust. Use an air duster. Safely.

Thanks, Roger! I'll try the air duster tonight.
I was also thinking of folding a sheet of paper around the stick of memory in order to polish the contacts in the slot. A couple of insertions should be enough to burnish any oxide.

Meanwhile, the thing doesn't run too bad on 128MB.
I'm still loading, tweaking, and setting things up.

Mark- the ease of Linux setup that you describe is very compelling, especially in light of the fact that I'm still searching for monitor drivers so I can get off 16-color 800x600 (D'oh!).

I'd not heard of the paper trick, but it sounds like it might work. With the air duster, the trick is not to spray too close to the contacts -- because the air comes out at pressure, you get cooling and condensation, which isn't always good for components.

I killed a PSU with an air duster last year.

Was it turned on at the time? I suppose a PSU could have have some charge left in it which might cause problems. In my experience you're not getting your money's worth if you're getting cooling/condensation instead of pressure, but it's never hurt anything. The hydroflorocarbons or whatever they are evaporate very quickly.

They can leave a residue if the can is used at close range. The laser techs here have all learned not to hold the can too close to the optic they're cleaning.

I'll heed the warnings.

It can't just be that the optics are getting dislodged because of the pressure if they spray too close?

Canned air has a propellant in the can as well. It isn't just air. If you spray it too close then the propellant ends up collecting on the item because it can't evaporate fast enough.

Well, it's the dust that should be dislodged, not the optics! It's a cleaning issue. The 'air' cans are good for dusting, but not good for close-range blasts.

That's what I've heard, anyways. Personally, I stay away from the laser stuff and work with the robots and process-chamber safety interlocks.

Just for posterity's sake-

I finally found a clue that led to functional drivers for this machine on Windows 2000.
Sony couldn't point me to them on their own site- all they could say was that none existed and as soon as they were published they would be available. Yah- a ten year old system and a ten year old OS upgrade will be revisited for updates, soon... riiiiight.

As it turns out, though, stepping backwards one model number *does* allow for driver updates wrt Win2k. I downloaded the ATI driver updates for the PCV-L630 on Win2k and they were good enough to work without a problem while retaining the original monitor- PCVA-15XTAP2.
Yay!

Still having a problem with the second memory slot, though. Perhaps I'll have to try a variety of stick combinations before I find something that the machine is happy with. Until then it's stuck on 128MB- ugh!

Thanks again to everyone for their support and interest!

Not to mention that the expanding gases can chill the parts to the point of condensing water from the air. Very much not good for some coatings.