DEBUG, FDISK, FORMAT, REINSTALL
-a guide to DFFR'ing a Hard Drive for
 Dell Dimension Systems-

In the event you have a virus, or for some other reason must
wipe the drive clean, the following document will walk you
thorough a DFFR (DEBUG, FDISK, FORMAT, REINSTALL).

Note: If you do not have a resource CD, you will
need a bootable floppy disk with CDROM support.
(See link on previous page)

DEBUG:

1) Use the Dell Resource CD
Locate the Dell Dimension Resource CD (RCD) and place it in
the primary CD Drive. Restart the computer.

2) Boot to the CD

DIMENSION 8100,8200,4300:
	When you see the first screen pop up, tap CTRL+ALT+F8.
	You will see the menu 1-4. Choose option 4 to boot to the CD.

	DIMENSION 4200, 4100, BxxxR, Lxxx(R,C,Cx)
Start tapping 'Del' (Delete) when the computer starts. The setup screen
pops up, go to the menu labeled "boot".  Use your arrow keys to go down
the first boot device. Hit "Enter". Choose ATAPI CD Rom. Hit "Enter".
Then hit the F10 key, save and exit.  When the menu appears, choose
option 1 to boot to the CD.

DIMENSION XPST, XPST, XPS RxxxD, Vxxx, Dxxx, Hxxx, MxxxS
Start tapping 'Del' (Delete) when the computer starts. The setup screen
pops up, go to the menu labeled "boot".  Use your arrow keys to go down
the third boot device, labeled ATAPI CDROM. Hit the plus key twice, ATAPI
CDROM should now be the first boot device. If not, work with it until it
is J.  Hit F10, save, then exit. When the menu appears, choose option 1
to boot to the CD.

	You will now be at the A:\> Prompt.

****** WARNING: BEYOND THIS POINT ALL DATA WILL BE LOST ON THE DRIVE.
NOTHING CAN (cheaply) BE RECOVERD AFTER DEBUGGING. BACK UP ALL DATA
BEFORE PROCEEDING!******

3) Type the word DEBUG at the A: Prompt
	You will see a Hyphen (-) then a blinking cursor.
*** Each line must be typed EXACTLY, if you make a mistake,
hit CTRL+ALT+DEL and restart the DEBUG)***

Type:
F 220 L1000 0   (Enter)
A CS:100        (Enter)
MOV AX,301      (Enter)
MOV BX,200      (Enter)
MOV CX,1        (Enter)
MOV DX,80       (Enter)
INT 13          (Enter)
INT 20          (Enter)
                (Enter)
G               (Enter)

-Here you should get "Program Terminated Normally"-

4) Restart
Hit CTRL+ALT+DEL

5) Boot to the CD (again)
        4300, 8100, 8200 Users will need to tap CTRL+ALT+F8 to boot to the CD
        All other systems will boot to the CD

FDISK:

6) Type FDISK at the A:\> Prompt

7) FDISK PROGRAM
[Y]     (Enter)
1       (Enter)
1       (Enter) Verifies drive
[Y]     (Enter) Re-verifies drive
Hit [ESC]

You'll see the A:\> Prompt.
Restart the Computer (CTRL+ALT+DEL)

FORMAT:

8) FORMATTING THE DRIVE
	Boot to the A:\> using the instructions above

	Type: FORMAT C:/U
	Type [Y] then hit [Enter]
	
	The drive will now format

9) VOLUME LABEL?
	My recommendation is to hit [Enter] for none

10) REPLACE THE CD
	Put your Windows 98/95/ME/NT/2K/XP CD into the drive

11) SHUT DOWN THE COMPUTER- UPLUG EVERYTHING FROM THE BACK EXCEPT
    FOR KEYBOARD, MOUSE, MONITOR, POWER CORD

REINSTALL:

12) Boot to the CD

13) Setup Windows

Scandisk runs first, allow it to finish, then choose exit.
At this point, you will be asked a variety of questions by Windows.
Install Windows to C:\Windows to avoid conflicts/further problems.
Perform a typical install unless you are an advanced user. Enter
your time zone information when asked.  Enter the 25 digit Product
ID number when asked (Located on either the certificate of Authenticity
received with the system, or on a white tag on the left-hand side of
the tower.)

14) Reset the System BIOS to boot to the Hard Drive
	4300,8100,8200 Users: Skip this step
	
All other Dell Users: Enter the system setup by tapping Delete. Hit F9 to
restore the setup defaults, then F10 to save and exit.

DRIVERS:

Drivers are tricky, but should be easy enough if they are installed
in the correct order. Use the online reinstall guide when available.

Perferred order of installation:

CHIPSET - IF YOUR MACHINE HAS THIS, DO NOT INSTALL ANYTHING ELSE PRIOR TO THIS!

VIDEO ADAPTER

MASS STORAGE (ATA66/100 CONTROLLER, if applicable)

SOUND

MODEM/COMMUNICATIONS

ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE

EASY CD CREATOR

IOMEGA TOOLS (ZIP DRIVE)

THEN YOU MAY BEGIN ADDING 3RD PARTY SOFTWARE.
(Mouse, Printer, Scanner, Cable/DSL, External Drives)

MAKE SURE TO RESTART THE COMPUTER AFTER EACH AND EVERY CHANGE

Once everything is loaded and working properly:
  Win98/98se/Me users: Click on start, run, then type scanreg, click ok,
       this is a backup of the current configuration.
  WinMe users: Go to start, programs, accessories, system tools, choose
       system restore. Create a restore point.
  WinXP users: A backup has already been created.