The "Insert CD" Fix

How to Fix that annoying "Please Insert CD" message

Put them on your Hard Drive and Point Windows XP to the Folder !!!

It's annoying . . . every time you add new drivers, hardware. or reinstall a component of Windows XP, a box pops up asking you to Insert the WinXP CD.  

How Windows locates XP Install Files

Every time that you attempt an install of either a program or drivers that also require files from the Windows XP CD, the system will first look for an "registry override" setting which can be found using the GPedit.msc utility.  This setting tells the system to ignore any paths found in the registry.  If there is no registry override setting, it will then look in the registry for the path, which by default is the CD drive that you installed XP from.  So, you can either use the override setting, or clear it and edit the registry.

NOTE:  Windows knows that the XP install files are located in the i386 folder on the CD.  Therefore, it will look for the install file location path and then append \i386 to it.

One way to avoid this in the first place is to install XP from your hard drive.  Copy the XP source files to your hard disk and then install the operating system from there. To do this, you need to copy the i386 folder from the CD onto your disk (warning: it takes up somewhere around 500MB, depending on the version, so be sure there's plenty of room on your disk). 

But if you already have XP installed, follow these directions:

Run a Test Before and After

You can test where XP "thinks" the WinXP files are located by adding a Windows service that you do not need, such as "Index Service" and then remove it.  This will either tell you that your files on the drive are being found and you are OK, or it will tell you that they are not found and the location of where Windows thinks they are.  Perform the following to test this:

1. Start/Run . . . Control  (opens Control Panel)
2. Add/Remove Programs
3. click "Add/Remove Windows Components"
4. check the "Indexing Service" box (by default this service is not installed) and click OK  One of two things will happen :

• if Windows copies the necessary files and does not prompt you fo the CD, then it knows where your i386 folder is located.  You are done.
• if Windows asks you for the CD, then it will also list the path where it thinks the WinXP CD should be located (for example, H:\).  You will need to perform the following steps to let Windows know where the i386 folder is located.

    5.    remove the Indexing Service (or keep it - it does make file searches faster)

NOTE:  you will also want to run this test after running the following fix steps - to make sure it is indeed fixed

Automated Script Method

This is a VB script that will let you change the path to the source files from your CD-ROM drive to the location on your disk where you copied the folder.  The script performs two functions:

a)  prompt you for a path and then inserts that path into your registry at: 
          HKLM\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\setup\sourcepath 
b)  clear any install file path override settings that are in :
     Start/Run/gpedit.msc/Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/System/Specify Windows Installation File Location

Here are the steps:

1. Insert the installation CD in your CD-ROM drive
2. navigate to the i386 folder and copy it to a location on your hard disk (for example, c:\i386). 
3. Download this Visual Basic script - 
4. Unzip and save the file
5. doubleclick the file cabpath.vbs  -  the Cab Path tool dialog box will show you the current path that XP thinks is where your I386 source files folder resides (usually D:\ or whatever drive letter represents your CD drive)
6. in the text box, type in the new path where you copied the i386 folder (for example, c:\i386). 

Now XP will look on the hard disk for the files it needs to make configuration changes instead of asking you for the CD !!

Manual Method (edit the Registry)

Step 1

    Make sure "Specify Windows Installation File" is NOT configured

• if you have only one drive partition, copy the i386 folder to c:\i386 - if you other drives or more than one partition on your drive, then use that instead (for example, D:\i386 ior E:\i386)
• Start/Run . . . gpedit.msc  (we need to make sure this override is "not configured" !!!)
• go to Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/System
• locate the "Specify Windows Installation File Location" setting
• right-click on it for Properties, click "Not Configured".
  
  NOTE:  by leaving this system setting as "not configured" WinXP will default to the "original install" location in the registry and not override it.  The reg entry that contains the location for i386 is,
  
  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\SourcePath
  

Step 2

For example, you have copied the XP CD's i386 folder to your E drive so that you do not have to keep inserting the CD.  Note that the path in the registry points to the root of your hard drive - Windows knows to look for the i386 folder directly under the root.  In fact, if you enter for example, e:\i386, then Windows will look for e:\i386\i386and will fail to find the install files !!

Start/Run . . . regedit

Go to  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\SourcePath

    - change it to e:\  (this is the reg key that Windows XP uses to find the install files - it appends \386 to this location

Go to  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\Installation Sources 

    - you may see a number of paths listed.  Leave them all alone except for those that list your WinXP CD drive - change those to e:\  (this will not fix the problem - but do it anyway for accuracy sake)

Step 3

If Step1 & 2 does not work - then add the I386 path here (for example, if you have your i386 folder on the root of your E drive, use the path -  e:\ ).  For each of the three reg paths below - if your registry does not have the path - then skip that entry (you may have none of these in your registry !!)  :

1)  HKCU\Software\Micorsoft\Windows\Current Version\Group Policy  Objects\LocalMachine\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Setup

2)  HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Setup

3)  HKEY_Users\S-1-5-21-1343024091 . . . .(long string)  .  .  .  \Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Group Policy Objects\LocalMachine\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Setup