Known Windows 2000 Installation Issues

Cannot Install Windows 2000 on a Non-System or Boot Dynamic Volume 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 216341 - When you install Windows 2000 on a dynamic volume, you can install only on a dynamic volume that is a boot or system volume. Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 and earlier versions do not support dynamic volumes with third-party software, so this is not an issue with earlier operating systems. 

Cannot Join Windows 2000 Client to a Windows NT Domain 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 258832 - A Windows 2000-based computer may be unable to join a Windows NT 4.0-based domain. When you attempt to change the domain membership for the Windows 2000-based computer in the Identification Changes dialog box, you receive the following error message: 

Cannot Run Windows 2000 GUI-Mode Setup in Safe Mode
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 243068 - When Setup reboots your computer into the GUI-mode portion of Setup, the Boot.ini file has been built and lists an option to press F8 for advanced startup options (such as Debugging mode or Safe mode).

Cannot Upgrade to Windows 2000 Using Winnt.exe
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 199349 - When you run the 16-bit Winnt.exe program or you boot from the Windows 2000 CD-ROM to install Windows 2000, there is no option for upgrading your current installation of Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 or earlier.

Error Message Installing Windows 2000 from an MS- DOS Boot Disk
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228218 - If you start your computer using an MS-DOS boot disk and try to run the Winnt.exe program to install Windows 2000, you receive the following error message:

Error Message: Microsoft Windows 2000 Has Detected Software That Is Not Completely Installed on Your Computer
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 242435 - When you attempt to upgrade to Windows 2000, you may receive an error message: 

Error Message: Setup Cannot Create the Folder \Winnt\Temp
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 239596 - When you upgrade your Microsoft Windows 98/95-based or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0-based computer to Windows 2000, you may receive the following error message 

Err Msg: Setup Did Not Detect Smartdrive on Your Computer
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 203128 - When you use Winnt.exe to run Windows 2000 Setup, you may receive the following message: Setup did not detect Smartdrive on your computer. SmartDrive will greatly improve the performance of this phase of Windows Setup. You should exit now, start Smartdrive, and then restart Setup. Press F3 to exit Setup. Press ENTER to continue without SmartDrive.

Error Message: The Operating System Image You Selected Does Not Contain the Necessary Drivers...
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 247983 - When you attempt to install Windows 2000 from a Pre-boot Execution Environment (PXE) client and you select an image created by Riprep that contains the proper network adapter driver, Setup starts but you may receive the following error message 

Error Message When You Try to Add Windows 2000-Based Workstation to Windows NT 4.0-Based Domain
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 272237 - When you attempt to add a Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional-based workstation to a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0-based domain, you may receive the following error message:

Event ID 12 After Installing or Upgrading to Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 256222 - When you install or upgrade your computer to Windows 2000, the following Event ID may be logged to the application event log: Failed to CoGetClassObject for provider "Microsoft|DSLDAPClassProvider|V1.0". Class not registered (0x80040154) This entry appears only for the first restart; subsequent restarts do not log this event. 

Legacy-Free Computers Take Longer to Install Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 278011 - When you use Remote Installation Service (RIS) to install an operating system on a legacy-free computer, RIS takes much longer to install the operating system than it takes to install the operating system on a computer that is not legacy free. 

No Upgrade Option When Setup Is Started from Disks or CD-ROM
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 181049 -  When you boot your computer from the Windows 2000 floppy disks or CD-ROM to start the Windows 2000 Setup program, you are not given an option to upgrade your operating system. 

Required Service Packs before upgrading to Windows 2000
Current Microsoft server applications and server suitesİand even legacy applications?are fully supported on Microsoft Windows? 2000 Server. However, some product versions require service packs for full support. Check this table before upgrading your NT 4 Servers if they have SQL. SMS, Exchange, Proxy, SNA, Site Server, SBS, or the BackOffice Server Suite installed.

Setup Does Not Continue If Repair Console Is Installed During Setup Process
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 242446 - If you install Recovery Console while an installation of Windows 2000 is in progress, you cannot continue with the installation. Installing Recovery Console while the other installation is in progress deletes necessary files from the $win_nt folder. 

Setup Problems During Floppy Disk Installation If OEM HAL Option Is Used
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 281647 - When you are installing Windows 2000 by using boot floppy disks, the Setup process does not properly allow for switching floppy disks if you are using a custom hardware abstraction layer (HAL). This problem can occur if you press F5 during setup.

Setup Shows "(Mirror):\Winnt" as an Existing Installation of Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 245728 - When you are installing Windows 2000 from CD-ROM, Text-mode Setup searches for pre-existing installations. If Setup locates any installations of Windows 2000, it prompts you to either repair the installations or continue with a fresh installation. 

Setup Requests DHCP IP Address Too Early
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 256177 - When you perform a clean installation of Windows 2000 (that is, you are not upgrading from Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, Microsoft Windows 95, or Microsoft Windows 98), Setup may request a DHCP (server assigned) IP address during GUI-mode Setup 

Shells Other Than Explorer.exe Replaced on Installation or Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228309. When you upgrade a computer that is using a shell (interface) other than Windows Explorer (Explorer.exe), the shell is changed back to Windows Explorer. 

Sound Files Moved to System32 Folder During Windows 2000 Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227802 - After you upgrade your computer from Microsoft Windows 98 to Windows NT 2000, sound events do not function properly or you may receive an error message when you configure events in the Sounds And Multimedia tool: 

Users Group Members Can Modify Boot.ini When Installing Windows 2000 on a FAT Partition
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227623 - When an ordinary user who is a member of the Users group is installing Windows 2000 on a drive using the FAT file system, that user can edit the Boot.ini file and save the changes.

Windows File Protection May Not Copy Word Breaker Files
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 263311 - When you install Windows 2000, the Setup program may not copy word breaker files from the I386\Lang folder to the dynamic-link library (DLL) cache. In addition, the first time you run System File Checker, it may not add these files to the DLL cache. 

Windows 2000 Setup Automatically Selects Network Adapter
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227428 - When you initially install Windows 2000, the automatic selection of the network adapter cannot be changed, regardless of any installation options you select. 

Windows 2000 Setup Seems to Hang on Compaq Servers
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 249686 - When you are installing Windows 2000 on a Compaq server, Setup may seem to stop responding (hang) during the GUI-mode portion of the installation because the keyboard and mouse stop responding. 

Windows 2000 Professional Evaluation Version Upgrades
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 253523 - When you attempt to upgrade Windows 2000 Professional Evaluation Version, you may receive the following error message: Setup cannot upgrade your current installation to Windows 2000. Your copy of Windows 2000 does not support upgrading from an evaluation copy of Windows. Setup cannot continue.

Windows 2000 Upgrade Setup Does Not Recognize Qualifying Media CD in First Drive
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 285120 - When you are performing a clean Windows 2000 installation by using a Windows 2000 Upgrade CD-ROM on a computer that has two CD-ROM drives, and you are prompted to insert a qualifying media CD-ROM, if you replace the Upgrade disc with the qualifying media disc in the first CD-ROM drive, the following error message may appear: Qualifying operating system was not found  

Windows 2000 Professional Cannot Join Windows NT 4.0 Domain with Third-Party DNS Server 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 260231 - A computer that is running Windows 2000 Professional cannot join a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0-based domain using a third-party Domain Name System (DNS) server if the SRV resource records are not supported. 

Windows 2000 Setup Hangs When "Starting Windows 2000" Screen Appears
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 217073 - During text-mode Windows 2000 Setup, your computer may stop responding (hang) when the Starting Windows 2000 screen appears, and you may have to restart it. 

Windows 2000 Hangs at "Setup Is Starting Windows 2000" Message
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 234772 - This article lists troubleshooting steps to try if Windows 2000 Text-mode Setup stops responding (hangs) while displaying the "Setup is starting Windows 2000" message.

Windows 2000 with Blank Administrator Password Vulnerable During Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 260927 - During Windows 2000 Setup, there is a brief period during which the computer is on the network with a blank Administrator password, even if you specified a password earlier in the Setup process. After the network components are installed, anyone on the network can connect to resources on the computer by using the Administrator account with a blank password 

Cannot Use "/" Character in Local Group Names
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 218925 - You cannot use the forward slash character (/) in group names in Windows 2000.

Daylight Saving Time Option Is Not Retained While Installing Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 235417 - During the Windows 2000 installation process, a dialog box appears prompting you to set the time zone. By default the Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes check box in this dialog box is selected. If you clear the check box and then select a different time zone, the check box is selected again. 

Default Security Settings Are Not Applied During Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 232617 - Describes the security settings applied when you install Windows 2000.

Disabled Binding Does Not Migrate After Upgrade to Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 233255 - If Netmon tools and agent service binding is disabled before you upgrade from Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 to Windows 2000, binding is enabled after the upgrade. 

Installation Options Ignored After Selecting Any Accessibility Options in Winnt32.exe
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 222963 - When you run Winnt32.exe to upgrade your operating system to Windows 2000 and you select any accessibility options, the options to choose your installation folder and installation partition are ignored. Setup defaults to using the Winnt folder on the primary partition. 

Recycle Bin Settings Not Retained During Windows 2000 Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 240433 - After you upgrade to Windows 2000, from Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, Microsoft Windows 95, or Microsoft Windows 98, your settings for the Recycle Bin may be different than they were before you upgraded. 

Windows 2000 Does Not Permit All-Numeric Computer Names
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 244412 - Windows 2000-based computers cannot have computer names that consist only of numbers. However, Microsoft Windows NT-based computers can have computer names that consist only of numbers. 

Cannot Select FAT16 or FAT32 File System During Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 226492 - During Setup, you cannot choose whether to format a volume with the FAT16 or FAT32 file system. This is done automatically based on the size of the partition you are formatting. 

Cannot Upgrade Non-Shared Hard Disks on Cluster Server
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 242434 - On a Windows 2000 Advanced or DataCenter Server with the Cluster service installed, you cannot upgrade shared disks to dynamic disks. The option is not available. You may also experience this behavior if you have a third or fourth SCSI bus 

Error Message Installing Windows 2000 on Hard Disk Formatted with HPFS
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 226081 - When you are installing Windows 2000 on a computer that has OS/2 installed on a hard disk formatted with the HPFS file system, you may receive the following error message: Disk error. Windows 2000 is installed on a drive formatted with the OS/2 File System (HPFS). Windows 2000 does not support this file system. You must convert this drive to the Windows 2000 File System (NTFS) before upgrading.

Files May Be Damaged During Windows 2000 Setup on Fujitsu MPG3102AT or Fujitsu MPG3204AT Hard Disks 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 311902 - When you try to install Windows 2000 on either a Fujitsu MPG3102AT or Fujitsu MPG3204AT hard disk on a computer that has the Intel 815 chipset, the installation procedure does not report damaged files after Setup copies the initial files and restarts the computer.

Hard Disk Is Misreported as Eight Gigabytes in Size During Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 254769 - During the Text-mode portion of Setup, some Integrated Device Electronics (IDE) drives are reported as being only 8 gigabytes (GB) in size. This behavior can occur with any IDE hard disk that is larger than 8.4 GB in size, but should occur 

Misleading Error Message If Hard Disk Problem Is Found
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 200455 - If you run Winnt32.exe to install Windows 2000 and your computer does not shut down properly when you are prompted to reboot, Chkdsk.exe runs. If Chkdsk needs to make any changes, you need to reboot again. 

Misleading Error Message If Chkdsk Requires Reboot During Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 226071 - When you run Windows 2000 Setup, if Chkdsk.exe repairs a hard disk problem that requires a reboot, you receive a misleading error message 

Multiple Unpartitioned Spaces Displayed During Windows 2000 Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228182 - During the text portion of Windows 2000 Setup, multiple unpartitioned spaces may appear on a single hard disk. When this occurs, it may appear that it is not possible to use all the available unpartitioned space on the disk in a single partition 

Setup Cannot Continue After Reformatting Dynamic System/Boot Partition
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 246119 - After you reformat the system/boot partition on a dynamic disk during Text-mode Setup and the file-copy portion of Setup finishes, you may experience any of the following symptoms when Setup reboots the computer to start GUI-mode Setup: 

Setup Hangs When Installing to 4-GB FAT16 Partition
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 290705 - When you set up Microsoft Windows 2000 Server by running Winnt.exe while booted from a MS-DOS or Microsoft Windows boot floppy disk, Setup stops responding ("hangs") with the CPU operating at 100 % during the file copy process. If you manually restart the computer after this occurs, Setup completes as usual

Setup May Not Format a 30 GB Partition When You Install Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 277546 - If you select the FAT32 file-system format when you try to install Windows 2000 on a partition that is 30 gigabytes (GB) in size, Setup may not format the partition and you may receive the following error message: Setup was unable to format the partition. The disk may be damaged. Make sure the drive is switched on and properly connected to your computer. If the disk is a SCSI disk, make sure your SCSI devices are properly terminated. Consult your computer or SCSI adapter documentation for more information.

Setup Does Not Check Free Disk Space Before Starting File Copy
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 221845 - When you are performing a fresh installation of Windows 2000 by running Winnt.exe, you may receive an error message after you choose the installation partition:

Text-Mode Setup May Not Identify Some SCSI Adapters as Plug and Play Devices
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 267565 - When you install either an embedded or add-on I2O controller that requires an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) miniport driver by pressing F6 during Text-mode Setup, Windows 2000 may not correctly identify the SCSI adapter as a Plug and Play 

The Default NTFS Permissions Are Not Applied to a Converted Boot Partition
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 237399 - When you install Windows 2000 to an NTFS partition, part of the set up process is to apply default security settings to the system files and folders located on the boot partition. 

Windows 2000 Setup Does Not Allow Selection of Partition Type
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227707 - When you create a partition on your hard disk during Windows 2000 Setup, you are not allowed to select the type of partition to create (primary or extended). 

Windows 2000 Setup May Reset SCSI Interrupt Steering Logic (SISL) RAID Configuration
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 259469 - When you install Windows 2000 on a computer with a SCSI Interrupt Steering Logic (SISL) server board, your computer may display the following informational message, and then stop responding (hang) during the Text-Mode portion of Setup:

Dell Inspiron Screen Turns Black During Windows 2000 Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 240371 - When you run Windows 2000 Setup on your Dell Inspiron 3500, 7000, or 7500 laptop computer, your display may appear black. Also, although Setup appears to continue, you are unable to see anything on the screen. 

Display Is Limited to 16 Colors After Upgrading to Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 268467 - After you install Windows 2000, your display may be limited to 16 colors and 640 X 480 resolution. In addition, the properties of Display adapter in Device Manager will have a yellow exclamation mark (!) and a Code 10 with the following status: The device cannot start. (Code 10). This may occur if you have a display adapter that uses the NVIDIA chip set and the basic input/output system (BIOS) on your computer does not have an interrupt request (IRQ) assigned for the display adapter. 

Integrated Video Adapter Is Not Detected During Windows 2000 Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228400 - When you install Windows 2000 on a computer with an integrated video adapter, you may experience one or more of the following symptoms:

Monitor Is Not Detected Properly by Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228167 - When you install Windows 2000, your monitor may not be properly detected, and your display may be limited to 640 by 480 pixels and 16 colors.

No 1024x768 Screen Resolution Setting After You Install or Upgrade to Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228358 - After you install or upgrade to Windows 2000, you may lose the capability to use high resolution screen settings in your Display properties. 

Windows Setup Stops Responding with the VIA Apollo KX133 Chip Set
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 288602 - When you try to run Windows 2000 Setup on a computer with the VIA Apollo KX133 chip set, you may experience any of the following symptoms. Error Messages You may receive one of the following 3 error messages: Stop 0x0000000A IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL..

COM Ports Are Not Released When You Remove a Multi-Port Serial Controller
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 271523 - When you install a multi-port serial adapter on Windows 2000-based computer, the COM port numbers (COM3, COM4, COMx, and so on) that are assigned to the serial devices are registered in a COM port database. 

Compaq Keyboard Controls Do Not Work After Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227375 - After you install Windows 2000 on your Compaq Presario-based computer, the keyboard controls for sound, CD-ROM, and instant Internet access do not function. 

Hardware Not Detected by Device Manager in Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227217 - When you install Windows 2000 and you use hardware drivers designed for Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, the devices that use those drivers are not displayed in Device Manager.

Installing Windows 2000 from a USB CD-ROM Drive May Cause a "Stop 0x7B" Error 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 294820 - If you are using a Universal Serial Bus (USB - CD-ROM drive to install Windows 2000 on certain legacy-free computers, you may receive a "Stop 0x0000007B" Inaccessible_boot_device error message while booting from the installation CD. Because many legacy-free computers do not have a standard CD-ROM drive or floppydisk drive, the USB CD-ROM drive may be the only method for installing or recovering Windows. 

Mouse May Not Work After Installing Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 214632 - After you install Windows 2000, or upgrade from Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, your bus or InPort mouse does not work.

Mouse Jumps or Behaves Erratically After Installing Windows 2000 or Windows XP
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 256043 - After you install or upgrade to Windows 2000 or Windows XP on a laptop computer with a port replicator or docking station, the mouse pointer may jump or behave erratically. 

"Operating System Not Found" Running Setup with Compaq Smart Array Controllers
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 256877 - When you are running Windows 2000 Setup, the server may stop responding (hang) with the following error message after text-mode Setup finishes: 

Out of Memory Error During Setup on Dell OptiPlex GXM 5166
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 211120 - When you try to install Windows 2000 on your Dell OptiPlex GXM 5166 computer, Setup may generate an out of memory error message, and the only option available is to exit Setup.

Problems Installing Windows 2000 on HP NetServer LH3 with NetRAID
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 216645 - When you install Windows 2000 on a Hewlett-Packard (HP) NetServer LH3 with a system partition larger than one gigabyte (GB) in size, you receive the following error message when the computer restarts: DISK READ ERROR CTRL+ALT+DEL TO REBOOT 

Setup from CD-ROM Drive Cannot Finish on Toshiba Portege 320CT
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 211111 - When you are running Windows 2000 Setup on a Toshiba Portege 320CT, Setup may lose access to the CD-ROM drive and be unable to continue. 

Signed Drivers May Appear as Unsigned During Setup
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 282755 - During the Text-mode portion of Setup, if you press F6 to install a third-party driver, the driver files are copied, but Setup may act as if the driver is unsigned during the GUI-mode portion of Setup even if the driver is signed.

Standard IDE/ESDI Hard Disk Controller Marked in Device Manager After Upgrade to Windows 2000
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 228204 - There may be an exclamation point in a yellow circle next to the Standard IDE/ESDI Hard Disk Controller entry in Device Manager after you upgrade to Windows 2000 on a Hewlett-Packard Netserver E-45 computer. 

UPS Goes into Battery Calibration Mode During a Windows 2000 Installation When UPS Is in Smart Signaling Mode
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 259884 - When you install Windows 2000, certain uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs) that are in Smart Signaling mode may go into Battery Calibration mode. This behavior may cause the battery to drain. 

Windows 2000 Setup Detects Only One CPU on Some Compaq Servers 
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 252326 - When you install Windows 2000 on a Compaq computer that supports multiple processors (such as the Compaq Proliant 3000, 5500, 6400, 6500, and 1850R) with multiple processors on board, Setup may detect only one processor (CPU).

Windows 2000 Upgrade Does Not Detect Your Sound Card
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227494 - After you upgrade your computer to Windows 2000, system event sounds may not be played. Also, there may be no playback or recording devices in the Sounds and Multimedia tool in Control Panel, and there may be no audio devices or game control.

Wrong MS-DOS Version Is Displayed in Compaq Diagnostics
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 226140 - After you upgrade a Compaq computer from Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 to Windows 2000, you may note that the MS-DOS version displayed in the Compaq Diagnostics program is Windows NT DOS 5.0.

HyperTerminal Sessions Unavailable after Windows 2000 Upgrade
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 227698 - After you upgrade your Microsoft Windows 98-based or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0-based computer to Windows 2000, saved HyperTerminal sessions may be missing. 

Windows 2000 Support for Windows Messaging
Microsoft Knowledge Base Article: 254458 - When you install Windows 2000 or upgrade to Windows 2000, you may experience any of the following symptoms: