Clean Installation
Windows 2000 Professional

Presuming that you have followed our advice thus far, and your computer has a blank, freshly partitioned and formatted hard disk, you need to start your computer using one of the following procedures:

Then see:

To Install using the Setup startup disks.

If you don't have the Setup startup disks, you can create them.

  1. With your computer turned off, insert the Windows 2000 Setup startup Disk 1 into your floppy disk drive.

  2. Start your computer.

    Setup starts automatically.

  3. Follow the instructions that appear.

  4. See "Collecting User and Computer Information" below.

If your computer is capable of booting from a CD-ROM drive and you would rather install using this method, then:

  1. Start your computer by running your current operating system, and then insert the Windows 2000 Professional CD into your CD-ROM drive.

  2. Your version of Windows should automatically detect the CD, then select Install Windows 2000. Setup will then start.

    Now proceed to "Collecting User and Computer Information," below.

    If your version of Windows doesn't automatically detect the CD, just start Setup from the Run command.

    • In Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows NT 4.0, click Start, and then click Run.

    • In Windows NT 3.51 or Windows 3.1, in Program Manager, click File, and then click Run.

  3. At the prompt, type the path to the setup file. the following command, replacing d with the letter of your CD-ROM drive:

    d:\i386\winnt32.exe

    If you're using Windows 3.1 or the command prompt, type the following command at the prompt, replacing d with the letter of your CD-ROM drive:

    d:\i386\winnt.exe

  4. Press ENTER.

  5. Follow the instructions that appear.

  6. See "Collecting User and Computer Information" below.

  7. Starting Windows 2000

  8. Creating a User Account

  9. Registering Windows 2000
To install from or within a network environment.

  1. Using your existing operating system, establish your connection to the shared network folder that contains the setup files. You can also use an MS-DOS® or network installation disk to connect to the network server, presuming that the disk contains the network client software.

  2. If your computer is currently running Windows 95, Windows 98, or a previous version of Windows NT, at the command prompt, type the path to the file winnt32.exe.

    If your computer isn't running one of the above versions of Windows, at the command prompt, type the path to the file winnt.exe.

  3. Press ENTER.

  4. Follow the instructions that appear.

  5. See "Collecting User and Computer Information" below.
Collecting User and Computer Information

The Windows 2000 Setup wizard will lead you through the process of gathering information about you and your computer. While much of this installation process is automated, you may need to provide information or select settings in the following screens depending on the configuration of your computer:

  • Licensing Agreement. If you agree with the terms, select I accept this agreement to continue with Setup.

  • Select Special Options. Use this screen to customize Windows 2000 Setup, language, and accessibility settings for new installations. You can set up Windows 2000 to use multiple languages and regional settings if you like.

  • Upgrading to the Windows 2000 File System (NTFS). Windows 2000 can automatically convert partitions on your hard disk to NTFS, or you can keep your existing file systems. If you're upgrading, setup uses your current file system, however you can change to NTFS, which is the recommended file system for Windows 2000.

  • Regional Settings. Change the system and user locale settings for different regions and languages.

  • Personalize Your Software. Enter the full name of the person and, optionally, the organization to whom Windows 2000 is licensed.

  • Computer Name and Administrator Password. You must enter a unique computer name that differs from all other computers, workgroups, or domain names on your network. While setup will suggest a computer name, you can change the suggested name to anything you wish.

    Setup will automatically create an Administrator account during the installation process. When you use this Administrators account, you will have full rights over the computer's settings and can create user accounts on the computer. Logging on as an Administrator after you install Windows 2000 gives you administrative privileges that you need to log on and manage your computer. You will need to specify a password for the Administrator account. For security reasons you should always assign a password to the Administrator account. Take care to remember and protect your password.

  • Date and Time Settings. Verify the date and time for your region, select the appropriate time zone, and then select whether you want Windows 2000 to automatically adjust for daylight savings time.

  • Networking Settings. Unless you are an advanced user, select the Typical settings option for your network configuration. Select the Custom settings option to manually configure network clients, services, and protocols.

  • Workgroup or Computer Domain. During the setup process, you must join either a workgroup or a domain!

  • Provide Upgrade Packs for Third Party Programs. Some software manufacturers provide upgrade packs that allow your programs to work with Windows 2000. If you don't have any upgrade packs, simply click Next to continue with Setup.

  • Network Identification Wizard. If your computer is participating on a network, this wizard prompts you to identify the users who will be using your computer. If you indicate that you're the only user, you're assigned Administrator privileges.
Providing Network Information

During or after Setup, you need to join either a workgroup or a domain. If you are not on a network, specify that you want to join a workgroup.

Joining a Workgroup

A workgroup is one or more computers with the same workgroup name (for example, a "peer-to-peer" network). Any user can join a workgroup by simply specifying the workgroup name. You don't need special permissions to join a workgroup. You must either provide an existing or new workgroup name, or you can use the workgroup name that Windows 2000 suggests during Setup. This can be change at any time.

Joining a Domain

A computer account identifies your computer to the domain, while the user account identifies you to your computer.

A domain is a collection of computers defined by a network administrator. Unlike joining a workgroup, which you can do yourself, joining a domain requires permission from the network administrator.

Joining a domain during Setup requires a computer account in the domain you want to join. If you're upgrading from Windows NT, setup uses your existing computer account. If an existing computer account is not found, you'll be asked to provide a new computer account. If you are on a network, you may want to ask your network administrator to create a computer account before you begin the setup process. If you have the appropriate privileges, you can create the account during setup and join the domain. To join a domain during setup, you need to provide a user name and password.

Note If you have difficulty joining a domain during setup, join a workgroup, and then join the domain after you finish installing Windows 2000.

 

Starting Windows 2000

After gathering information, the Setup wizard completes the installation. During the setup process, you computer will restart several times, and then the logon prompt for Windows 2000 appears. After you log on, you can register your copy of Windows 2000, create user accounts, and reconfigure any settings that you entered in Setup.

Logging on to Windows 2000

When your computer restarts after installation, you will be able to log on to Windows 2000 for the first time. If you upgraded from a previous version of Windows and already had an existing user account, you can log on using that account and password.

If you did not have a previous user account, you will need to log on using the Administrator account and the password you selected during setup. Then you can create your user account.

To log on to Windows 2000 using the Administrator account
  1. In the Log on to Windows 2000 dialog box, type the Administrator password that you created during Setup.

  2. Press ENTER.

    Windows 2000 starts, and the Welcome screen appears.

Creating a User Account

Your user account identifies your user name and password, the groups that you are a member of, which network resources you have access to, and your personal files and settings. Each person who regularly uses the computer should have a user account. The user account is identified by a user name and a password, both of which the user enters when logging on to the computer. You can create individual user accounts after logging on to the computer as Administrator.

To create your user account
  1. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.

  2. Double-click Users and Passwords.

  3. Click Add.

    The Add New User wizard appears.

  4. Follow the instructions that appear.

    After you've added your user account, you're ready to log off as Administrator and log on using your user account.

Registering Windows 2000

To open the Welcome screen, click Start, click Run, type welcome, and then click OK.

If you have a modem, you can register your copy of Windows 2000 by starting the Registration wizard in the Welcome to Windows 2000 dialog box. If you do not have a modem or an Internet connection, use the registration card included in Windows 2000 software package.

 


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