Post the model info and BIOS firmware version for the laptop. Maybe you can find the latest and greatest BIOS revision on HP's site. With any luck, it'll activate USB booting..
I am doing this more for meeting a challenge now, not for saving a few bucks. (Plus I really hate to wait, when I want to do something...) Interesting new issue: The new SSD that I installed Win7 on (from the desktop)... when I plugged it into the SATA #2 position on the laptop, Win7 did not see it at all, as if the SSD was not there. "Device Manager" didn't show it. Window's Partition Manager (or whatever it is called) didn't show the disk at all. Simply non-existent. I plugged the new SSD back to the desktop, no problem. Saw the geometry and all the files, etc... If I hooked up a USB-to-SATA adapter for the new SSD on the laptop's USB, no problem. It also saw the all file files on the new SSD. I don't know why it could not be seen if I hooked it up to the SATA #2 position on the laptop. Right now... I am trying to hook up both the laptop's old SSD and the new SSD on the desktop, and am trying to run the EaseUS Todo Backup software to clone the partition. See if that would work...
Whoa - if you can boot from the network.... http://superuser.com/questions/42263/how-to-install-windows-7-from-the-network All you need is the another PC with a working DVD to act as the server machine and some static IP's....
Looks like the generic cloning didn't work. Booting the laptop from the new SSD, error screen: Windows Boot Manager Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. To fix the problem: 1. Insert your Windows installation disk and restart your computer. 2. Choose your language settings, and then click "Next." 3. Click "Repair your computer." If you do not have this disc, contact your system administrator or computer manufacturer for assistance. Status: 0xc0000225 Info: The boot selection failed because a required device is inaccessible.
FYI http://www.rmprepusb.com/tutorials/serva Disclaimer - I have not tried any of that. When experimenting, I have old spare hard drives that I have my old XP installs on (and are backed-up). I swap in the old spare drive onto a PC and do all installs/test on it. If it screws up the OS, I just restore it and start over. I NEVER test stuff on an important PC's drive. Good luck & Happy Holidays.
My thinking was that you could create a driverless installation which hopefully would then select the appropriate drives on boot in HP. In fairness I only skimmed your post so maybe missed something.
BTW - I'm sure you know this, but that means that you will have to kill the 1st attempt on the SSD by deleting the partition you created when trying to install Win7 while it was in a different PC. (Run Setup with the SSD in the other PC and kill the partition, then put the blanked SSD into the laptop and proceed with a Serva network install or whatever other PXE boot method you want to try.)
1) clone a good running xp to a laptop hard drive 2) replace laptop hard drive and see if it starts, if not mess around with start up seq. 3) if xp up and running upgrade it to win 7 then clone it to SSD just some brainstorming I did something like that in order to re-use some surplus but still password protected laptops.