install loop in virtualbox

[sanitarium]

hey
i'm trying to install windows 2000 sp4 into virtualbox so that i can get a few old games to work that i cant get to work in xp but when i try to install the os i get stuck in a loop & have to go through the installation prosses that requires me to insert the product key & no matter how many times i do this i always get sent to the same place.
any help would be much appreciated
many thanks
sanitarium

[Perryg]

So when you get to the place that you enter the key, do you enter the key and click continue and it keeps asking you for the key again?
If so the key you entered is not the key for that software.
If you enter that key and it continues on with the install and then you are brought back to the install process again when you reboot it may be that you have not unmounted the install CD/DVD.
Select shutdown and unmount the CD/DVD and then start the guest again.

[alexlamsl]

I have the same / similar issue, in that I have tried both Windows 2K Pro Personal / OEM disc.

It is not an issue with the CD key, since in both instances it has accepted the key and let me move onward with configuring the network options.

It is after that, and when it is copying files etc., then it would reboot (not sure if this is intended behaviour), then goes back into Step 1 of the installation (i.e. asking for Locale settings)

I hope this is clear of what is going on. I have also filed a issue under the tracker. (http://www.virtualbox.org/ticket/4594)

[Sasquatch]

It's a known issue for Windows 2000 Guests. Please check the manual, it has the fix for it. You need to enter a command that forces the hard drive to wait for something before it will continue. It's all in the manual. At the bottom I believe, advanced topics or troubleshooting.