The automatic windows utility that loads new hardware by finding the
inf file and then going to get the drivers is not working. Devices
that have properly installed before will not properly install now.
The error message says that the files cannot be found. I suspect that
the inf file is either corrupted or that for some reason the files it
points to have been moved. (I recently created a linux partition and
a boot partition, which may have changed some drive letters?)
What is the best way to make sure I have a proper inf file for windows
2000 and the files that it points to? (I know the files that are
requried for the devices are normally part of the windows system)
I recently added a linux partition to my laptop and a boot partition |
Request for Question Clarification by
sublime1-ga
on
03 Nov 2004 16:38 PST
buddyt...
The standard location for the inf files used to install
hardware in Windows 2000 is:
C:\WINNT\inf
If you have changed the Windows partition to a different
drive letter, you will have to locate them accordingly,
and you may need to use the dialog in Add/Remove Hardware
to manually navigate to the new location, e.g.
D:\WINNT\inf
if the drive letter was changed.
Let me know where this takes you. If it answers your
question, I will post it as an answer.
sublime1-ga
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Clarification of Question by
buddyt-ga
on
03 Nov 2004 19:22 PST
Thanks for the response. Let me clarify. The inf file is in the
right place and the setup wizard can find it. But, my understanding
is that the inf file in turn points to the correct driver and that is
the file that the set up wizard cannot find. Am I right in thinking
that the inf file merely points to another file for a particular
device? In any event is it possible to refresh the inf file and the
files it points to? The drive letters have not actually changed, the
reason I mentioned it was that I had another problem caused by the
fact that there is now an additional partition at the beggining of the
drive that throws off some programs. Sorry for the rambling
clarification, but I guess the bottom line is whether there is a way
to update the inf file and update the files that it points to.
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Request for Question Clarification by
sublime1-ga
on
03 Nov 2004 21:47 PST
buddyt...
Thanks for the clarification. The following instructions,
excerpted from a help page at the bestpricecomputers.ltd.uk
website may be of help:
"2. Don't have a setup or install file to install the drivers?
Chances are that you have an 'inf' file i.e. a file with the
'inf' extension. Installation from an inf file is slightly
different. It involves going into the control panel, choosing
to add new hardware, NOT using the autodetect but choosing
manual installation, and then using the "browse" button to
direct the installation routine to the directory where you
have the 'inf' file."
"3. An important step before installing: Visit the control
panel to see if that device is already listed with a yellow
exclamation mark or a red cross. If it is, then you have to
delete that listing before attempting any new installation.
This is especially true of soundcards and modems which also
tended to show up under the wrong category (usually 'other
devices')."
"4. The installation asks for a file that you don't have?
Sometimes, halfway through the installation process, you
may see a screen saying that a certain file is required
and/or that it can't be found. Very often the file required
is in the Windows CD, compressed in one of the CAB files
(in the Win95 or Win98 directory of the CD). On other
occasions it may be elsewhere on the driver CD itself, or
on your hard drive. Don't panic if you don't know exactly
where it is. Don't hit the cancel button just yet. See the
next tip."
"5. It's amazing what the "find" command can do. Right click
on your start button and choose "find" from the menu. Type
in the name of the file you are looking for, choose your
drive, and click on "find now". Make sure that the "include
subfolders" box is ticked. Haven't found it on the C: drive?
Repeat the process with the driver CD and the Windows 95/98
CD as well."
More on the page:
http://www.bestpricecomputers.ltd.uk/freehelp/installtip.htm
These instructions fit my experience. When you install with
an executable file, the inf file usually looks for the drivers
to be in the same location as itself, in the temporary setup
folder in which the cab files are located and the other files
are unzipped. The inf file seldom specifies a more exact
location than that.
When you go to reinstall, using only the inf file, it doesn't
know where to find the drivers, and the wizard then tends to
automatically refer to recent locations, which are not where
the file is. Using find to locate the file in Windows Explorer,
and then plugging that location in so that the wizard finds it
is about the only way to overcome this effectively.
Let me know where this takes you.
sublime1-ga
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Clarification of Question by
buddyt-ga
on
04 Nov 2004 04:20 PST
Thanks for your patience. Still no luck--
Here is what happens when I go through the process described:
Dialog is displayed saying windows found a driver for the device (it
is at c:\winnt\inf\input.inf)
It then shows the file copy screen moving files from c:\winnt\system32\drivers
so, thus far everything seems to be working and the inf file seemed to
point to a driver within system32\drivers.
But then at the finish screen there is an error messaging saying "an
error occured during the installation of the device. The system
cannot find the specified file.
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Clarification of Question by
buddyt-ga
on
06 Nov 2004 03:50 PST
The early post helped answer the question. For a formal
clarification, here is my updated question--is it correct that the
function of the inf file points to driver locations for devices listed
in the file and that a system file checker utility (which can be run
from a command line from the directory where the inf file is located
if you have the windows 2000 cd) can be used to fix inf problems
indicated by an error message "file cannot be found" displayed during
a set up process?
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