HP DV6500T Review

Installing Windows XP

 05/22/07

Click each picture to make it big.  Then back to return here.  For pictures taken of a computer screen, put your cursor in the lower right corner, then click to make the picture big, that will get rid of the black wavy lines and make it clear. 

Yes, this guide is long.  I tried to give people as much detail as possible to make it easy.   Remember, this guide is for the x500 series of HP Pavillion notebooks which have Intel Santa Rosa.   If you bought your laptop before May of 2007, it's not a Santa Rosa x500 series (DV2500T, DV6500T, or DV9500T).   If your laptop has an AMD Turion processor, this guide will not work for you.   The principles in this guide will work for other laptops, but you must get the chipset drivers and other drivers for your laptop before starting.   Basically you get the Sata, Chipset, Graphics, and Wireless drivers from the Intel or AMD site.  Then you get the rest of the drivers from HP for your notebook.   I spent weeks searching the Notebookreview forums before I found all the drivers I needed.    If you have an older version, a guide to installing XP on the x000 series (DV2000T, DV6000T, or DV9000T) may be found here. 

Installing XP on the DV6000 series  http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=119155

Before you can even begin, you must figure out what hardware your laptop has.   

Run Everest and CPU-Z in Vista before wiping your laptop clean.   The last free version is 2.20, the company has since made the product commercial.   Search google for "Everest 2.20" or you may download the program from my web space.

Everest Home Edition 2.20 http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/everesthome220.exe

Another program to download is called CPU-Z, their web site is here.   http://www.cpuid.com/

CPU-Z version 1.42 http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/cpu-z-142.zip

Once you know all your hardware, then you can compare that to the drivers I am using in this guide.   No, I can not get all the drivers you need and I can not walk you through this guide step by step.   You must figure out the exact hardware your laptop has and get the drivers for it.   

A thread for installing XP on the AMD version on the DV6500 may be found at the next link.   If you have an AMD processor, this thread will help you find the correct drivers.     Thanks to TheDave for making this thread.

Installing XP on the AMD version http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=186409

I can not find drivers for the AMD version, you are on your own at this point.   Read the above thread and follow those directions.

 

The DV6500T was ordered on 05/10/07, shipped on 05/17/07 from China, and delivered on 05/22/07.    It was ordered from Costco.com and costed $1447.95.

The specs are Intel Santa Rosa 2.0ghz (T7300 Processor), 2 gigs of memory, 120 gig 5400 RPM hard drive, Realtek audio, 4965 Intel wireless, bluetooth, fingerprint reader.  

Look at the box in picture 1, it was delivered from Shanghai China.  What the box looks like when opened.

Here's the laptop and everything laid out.   There is a protective cover over the keyboard.

The poster, notice it says DV6000T.   There is only an update CD, no recovery CDs or OS.  

Side shots, the back with a protective cover still on, and the keyboard.  Look in the upper right corner of the display, it says DV6000.

Here I am installing the operating system for the first time.  This took about 15 minutes.

Laugh.   If only the above were true.   Vista really blows, it's impossible to work with. 

This is the best part of the install.  

Here comes the bloatware.   Norton antivirus can't wait to get going.  The first thing the computer did upon booting was ask me if I wanted to sign up for an ISP.  Hello?   If I'm connected to the net then I don't need an ISP.   Norton pops up every time the computer is booted.   Norton is bloatware, it takes over the entire computer.    Free AVG is much better.

Look at the hard drives, out of 120 gigs, there's only 85 left.   The experience rating is 3.4      Most of the programs installed are all trials, that only work for a month, then ask for money.  I don't need any of them, I'm going to start over with XP.

It was time to burn the recovery disks.  These are used incase the laptop crashes and needs to be restored to factory settings.   My DVD drive is the cheapest one available, it says DVD/CD-RW which means it's really a CD burner that reads DVDs.   This meant I had to burn 9 CDs to make my recovery set.   The system burns a CD, verifies it, then asks for the next one.  

 

Removing Vista and installing Windows XP

 05/28/07

I tried Vista but didn't like it.   Many people have gone back to XP, and now I'm one of them.  This section of the web page will detail installing XP on your DV2500T, DV6500T, or DV9500T. 

The first step is to make the recovery set like I did up above.    That way if you really wanted to go back to Vista ( I don't know why), you could.  

The next step is to burn a copy of your \SWSETUP directory to a DVD.    The Vista drivers are located in this folder.   You won't be able to run the EXEs once XP is loaded, but the computer may search for drivers on the DVD and use them.   It's best to use Nero to burn your \SWSETUP folder.   I've seen that using the built in software has problems.  

The DV6500T bios does not allow the Sata mode of the hard drive to be turned off.    This means that the Sata drivers must be slip streamed into the XP install CD using Nlite.  Otherwise the computer won't find the hard drive when you boot the CD.

Visit the Nlite web site, download and install the software, it's free. I'm using version 1.3.5.  There are newer versions on the web site.

http://www.nliteos.com/    Downloadable file I used is here http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/nLite-1.3.5.installer.exe

Go on the Intel web site and search for Intel 965 Chipset drivers.   The exact name is GM965 which is for the integrated graphics.    There will be 3 files to download, 1 for graphics, 1 for the chipset drivers, and 1 for the Sata drivers.   The GM965 files are for laptops with integrated (Intel) graphics, PM965 are for laptops that have an Nvidia GPU installed. 

http://www.intel.com/support/chipsets/sb/CS-025753.htm

Download the files from the above link as new versions will appear.   For the operating system, you select Windows XP Professional.

The first step in this section is to download the Intel Matrix Storage Manager for the GM965 chipset from the link above. To get the files we need, they have to be installed on the DV6500T.   It puts the files into C:\Programs\Intel\Intel Matrix Storage Manager.   Don't worry about installing these on your Vista machine, it won't hurt anything, even though it does install the files and asks to reboot.    There's two directories, one says Driver, one says Driver64. You need the one that says Driver. Copy the files to a USB drive or burn them to a CD. Copy them to the computer where Nlite is installed.   What you have now done is moved the Sata drivers to the computer with Nlite.  I have put the Sata Drivers in my web space to make it easy for everyone.    You may download the files found in the Driver directory here.  Right click each link and "Save As" to a directory named Driver on your hard drive. 

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/iaahci.cat

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/iaahci.inf

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/iastor.cat

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/iastor.inf

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/iaStor.sys

http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/Driver/TXTSETUP.OEM

To slipstream Sata drivers into XP, first you have to create a folder on your hard drive, copy the entire XP cd to it.  I've heard that nLite will error out if the length of the folder name is greater than 260 characters.   So make your folder name near the root directory with a short name.      It is best to use the 32 bit version of XP with SP2 already installed.     Create another folder and copy the Sata drivers to it (folder named Driver).    Run Nlite, a splash screen appears asking what language you would like to use. 

In the first picture, browse to the folder where you copied the entire XP CD, click Next.  In the 2nd picture, nLite verifies XP and gives some stats, click Next.  A presets screen will appear, click next past it.     In the 3rd picture, click drivers and bootable ISO box so the little dot is green, click next.  In the 4th picture, click multiple drive folder and Next.  In the 5th picture, click All, a warning box will appear, don't worry about it, click next. 

In the 1st picture, a list appears of Sata drivers.  Pick the Mobile ICH8M-E/M.  Click OK then start the process.  If you have a DV6000T series, pick the ICH7M-E/M.    In the 2nd picture, the data file is created, click Next.  In the 3rd picture, click on the Make ISO box and click Next.  In the 4th picture a window will appear asking for the location you want to put the file.   In the 5th picture, the ISO is created and placed in the folder.  In the 6th picture is the final screen.    Click Finish and you're done with Nlite.   Find the file on your hard drive, burn the ISO with Nero, and boot the 6500T with the CD.  If you need help burning the ISO to a bootable CD, there are many web sites that can explain that.  For this guide, I'm using Nero to burn the ISO to a CD.   Please use Nero and remember to click the ISO button to the left.   I've received e-mails from people who get stuck at the nLite step and most of it time, it's because they didn't know how to use Nero or tried something else.  

In Nero, click on the left side of the screen and make sure CD ISO is selected.   Near the left side of the screen click Open, then browse to the ISO file.   You will have to click the little black down arrow and select All Files to see it.    Once the ISO file is opened, burn it.  

Put the CD in the dirve and XP will boot, give a partition menu, and then install.   If you made the CD correctly, then you'll get a partition menu after a few prompts.  Otherwise you'll get a message saying no Disk Drive was found.   If the partition menu does not appear, go back to Nlite and figure out why the Sata drivers were not slipstreamed.   

You may partition the drive using XP, or scroll down the page to the Triple Play install to get a good idea of how to completely erase your drive and partition using Killdisk and Gparted.   XP can install in the existing partition, but you'll have the recovery partition left, which you can delete.   It's always nice to start over from scratch with a clean drive.  At this point, scroll all the way down the page to the triple play section and look at using Killdisk and Gparted.   You don't have to install Ubuntu on your machine.   The section below talks about doing that, but you can leave it out at this time.   If you wipe your disk clean, use Gparted, and leave out the Ubuntu partition, you'll have 3 partitions, one for XP, one for Vista, and a data partition.   Come back here after reading the part about wiping your drive clean.   Again, if using Killdisk and Gparted is too complicated, the XP CD you just made using nLite will format your drive and make partitions if you want.   It's just better to follow the steps below to completely wipe your drive clean and start over.  

Install XP using the CD you just made into the first partition of the hard drive.   I'm not going into exact details about how to install XP, screen shots of that are in the triple play section below.    If the CD you made works, you'll get an install menu, it will copy files, reboot a few times, and you'll have XP on your laptop.    Once that's done, you install drivers.   

This is an overview of installing the Intel drivers, there will be detail pictures below.   It's a good idea to have all your drivers on a CD or a USB flash drive.     After the system comes up, install the Intel Chipset drivers first.   You download these files from the Intel site like I showed you up above.      You may download the Chipset driver directly from Intel Chipset Drivers  (right click the link) for the INF files.  This is the file I used, check the Intel web site for a newer version, there is a link up above.     Copy the file to a folder on your DV6500T, run the EXE and the files are installed.   Next install the integrated Graphics driver.  You may download the file directly from Integrated Graphics Driver X3100 (right click the link).       If you have the Nvidia GPU, follow the steps in the next paragraph to install the Forceware driver.

Go to --> http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=14302 and download the driver and modded inf.  You'll have two files on your hard drive.     This is Forceware 163.16.    Search the web site for a newer version of the driver, or use the link I give you since we know it works.        Run the driver program which will extract the files to your hard drive.   Next download the modified INF file and place it in the directory where you extracted the driver files overwriting the INF file.   There is a walk thru here http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=33  Run the install and it will use the modified INF file.   

Next install the wireless driver, you may download the file from  Wireless Driver (right click the link).    Unzip the file, and run the EXE.   Once the wireless is installed, the DV6500T will attempt to connect.   If a connection is available, you can log on and start surfing.    Direct link to Intel Wireless Download page is here.  It may be a better idea to get the files from the Intel site as there may be a newer version. 

http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Product_Filter.aspx?ProductID=2753&lang=eng (Intel Wireless 4965AGN for DV6500T)

http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Product_Filter.aspx?ProductID=2259&lang=eng (Intel Wireless 3945ABG for DV6000T)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-53245-1&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3245619&os=228%E2%8C%A9=en (Broadcom Wireless Driver)

The broadcom wireless driver is used for the DV 6105US.   If the Intel driver does not work, try the Broadcom driver.   

Up above are pictures of me installing the drivers.  In the 1st picture are the folders I have on my main computer with all the drivers.  In the 2nd and 3rd picture I'm installing the the main chipset driver.  This is the first thing you do after the operating system finishes installing.        In pictures 4-6 I'm installing the graphics driver.

 

Next I install the wireless driver.   If you have a wireless router, the system will find it, let you connect, enter your password, and you can immediately start surfing.  That's great but there's still a few things we need to install.   At this point I've installed all the Intel drivers.    Now it's time to move on to the drivers from HP.  

Click Start, Control Panel, System, Hardware, Device Manager and look at the yellow question marks.   Below is a listing of what the question marks represent.   Remember, your hardware may be different than mine, especially if you are installing XP on a DV6000T.    If so, then you need to find the drivers for your laptop.   This guide is focused on the DV6500T.    I do provide a link to a thread installing drivers on the DV6000T series, but you must find the correct drivers for your laptop.   There are many combinations, and for me to have each one is impossible.  

Audio Device on High Definition Audio Bus = Realtek High Definition Audio
Base System Device = Ricoh 5-in-1 Card Reader Drivers
Ethernet Controller = Realtek Nic
Fingerprint Sensor = AuthenTech Inc. AES2501A Personal Identification Device
HP Integrated Module = HP Integrated Bluetooth Module
Modem Device on High Definition Audio Bus =  Motorola SM56

Start installing the drivers.   This section of the guide will show you a few pictures.   Below I have links to every driver I installed.     I went in the order you will see below starting with quicklaunch, touchpad, wireless assistant, then UAA driver.  While you are installing drivers, your computer may attempt to install hardware on it's own.  Click cancel on those boxes for now and don't worry about them.  If your keyboard driver doesn't install properly, don't worry about that. 

Now I'm installing the Realtek Nic and Audio drivers.   Windows comes up with an error message saying files have to be restored.  Go ahead and put your Windows XP CD back in the drive and let it put the files back.  

 

The amount of yellow question marks is less as we install drivers.  Now I install the finger print driver and software.

 

As you get near the bottom of the list, put your Vista \SWSETUP CD back in the drive.  Now install the Bluetooth drivers.   As you do this, a box will appear saying new hardware found for the modem.  It will find the Motorola SM56 but need a file.  Surf over to the \SWSETUP\Modem\Vista\X86 directory and the file you need will be there.   Click OK and the driver will install.

Remember that keyboard error we had up above, well, now it's fixed after you let windows restore files.    In the last picture is a clean device manager.

Everything works, internet, wireless, ethernet, fingerprint reader, buttons, and so on.

A thread discussing putting HP drivers on the DV6500T series can be found here.  Thanks to Docangle for the helpful tips.   The thread you see in the next link is what I used to make this guide.  

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=125539

The HP drivers page for the DV6500T can be found here.  Download and install each one, this is the order I went in.  There's not many drivers on this page for XP, most of the drivers had to be found separately.   Many came from the DV6000T with exceptions for the audio.    Open the next link in a new window and take a look at the drivers available.   If a newer version of a driver is available on the next page, then use it.   For each driver below, I'll give you a direct link to the file I used, and a link to the HP page where the driver can be downloaded.    Again, it may be a good idea to download the files directly from the HP links if they still work.  

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareList?os=228&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3411249&lang=en

Quicklaunch driver (sp34796.exe)  Right click this link and save as for the file I used.   Or open the next link in a new window and download the file directly from HP.   This is a better idea since you'll have the latest file for your laptop.   

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-49029-1&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3411249&os=228&lang=en

Symantics Touchpad (sp35444.exe)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-48345-1&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3411249&os=228&lang=en

HP Wireless Assistant (sp35333.exe)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-48908-1&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3411249&os=228&lang=en

Microsoft Universal Audio Architecture (UAA) Bus Driver, Needed for Audio and Modem (sp32646.exe)  This file needs to be installed before the audio drivers.  

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/s...os=228&lang=en

Richo 5 in 1 card reader (sp33604.exe)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-42847-1&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=3224055&os=228&lang=en

AuthenTec AEC1610 Fingerprint Driver (sp35337.exe) Use this file for the finger print driver.  The next link no longer works and leads to a blank page.   I can no longer find the file SP35337.exe on the HP web site.   I don't know if newer versions of the DV6500T have a different finger print reader or not.  

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/genericSoftwareDownloadIndex?cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&softwareitem=ob-48363-1&jumpid=reg_R1002_USEN

Bilscrypt Verisoft Access Manager (sp35640.exe)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/genericSoftwareDownloadIndex?cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&softwareitem=ob-49006-1&jumpid=reg_R1002_USEN

The Audio drivers come from the Realtek site.  Realtek RTL8101 main drivers (RTL8169_8139_810x_663_0705.zip) Right click the link and save as for the file I used.   I have received e-mails from people saying they can't get the audio to work.   Use the drivers from the Realtek site since they are newer.   I have also heard from a user they installed the main driver, then the UAA driver, then the rest of the audio drivers and everything worked.  In my case I installed the UAA driver first and had no problems.   Click the next link and look at the files available for download.   It is a better idea to download the audio files directly from the Realtek site.    

http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsView.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=6&PFid=6&Level=5&Conn=4&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false

Realtek Ethernet driver (RTL8168_8101E_Windows_668.zip) Right click the link and save as for the file I used.   Again, it is a better idea to click the next link and get the files directly from the Realtek site.  

http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsView.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=14&PFid=7&Level=5&Conn=4&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false

Realtek High Definition Audio Driver (WDM_R167.exe) Right click the link and save as for the file I used.   Again, it is a better idea to click the next link and get the files directly from the Realtek site.  If you'll notice, the version of the driver I used on my laptop is 167, and when you click the next link, you'll see there are newer versions of the drivers available.   At the time of writing this, the web site has version 1.82 available.  Click the next link and download the Windows XP/2003 (32/64 bits) Driver Only (Executable File)

http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsView.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=24&PFid=24&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false#High%20Definition%20Audio%20Codecs

Things got a little tricky for the modem and blue tooth setup.   Put your Vista \SWSETUP DVD in the drive and leave it there.  Now install the drivers.

Bluetooth and Modem (sp32883.exe)

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-41620-1&cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en&product=3224055&dlc=en&lang=en

Now this is where things get weird.   Install the blue tooth driver, but you may have a yellow exclamation point after it loads.   Wait a few minutes (walk your dog), and when your screen comes up, the little box in the lower right corner of the screen will say new hardware found.  Let it install the driver while you have the \SWSETUP folder in the DVD drive.  It will say it can't find the file like I showed you up above.    Browse to the needed file and install it.  

If you try to run the Vista EXEs from your \SWSETUP to install the drivers, they won't work saying they can only be run for Vista.   But it appears the computer will use the drivers if it searches for them.  

After installing all the drivers, you should have no yellow questions marks in the device table.    Click on Control Panel, System, Hardware, Device manager.   For any device with a yellow question mark or exclamation point, right click on it and write down the hardware information.   Then go on the web and try to find the driver for it.  You can also try updating the driver and it may search the DVD and find what it needs in the \SWSETUP folder.

The drivers for the DV2500T are different for the modem, sound, touchpad, and network adapter.   Go back to this thread on the Notebook Review forums to find links to the correct files.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=125539 (Notebook Review Thread for installing XP on x500 series) 

I'll post the links to the drivers here for the DV2500T that are different.

Sound Driver for DV2500T  Open this link in a new page for the Conexant driver.

Network Adapter for DV2500T Open this link in a new page for the Marvel driver.

Quicklaunch for DV2500T Open this link in a new page for the HP Quicklaunch driver.

If a driver does not work, and you still have a yellow question mark, you have to figure out what hardware you have installed, and go find a driver for it on the web.   Right click on the yellow question mark, then click on Properties.   That may give you the information you need to go searching for a driver.  

If you want to install Vista into the 2nd partition, you use a fresh copy of the OS.   Do not use your recovery CDs to install Vista, that will wipe out the XP partition and all the work you just did.   To get a fresh copy of Vista, use torrents, a friend, or buy a clean copy where you actually get a DVD.    The recovery backup still contains all the bloatware, you do not want to use that.  

 

Installing the Triple Play on the HP DV6500T

XP SP2 / Ubuntu 7.04 / Vista Ultimate

 06/02/07

First of all, I'd like to say I never got Ubuntu to work on my DV6500T.  I got it to install, but that's it.   The problem with version 7.04 is the graphics.   So why didn't I install a new kernal and figure it out?   Because it's very complicated and the messages on the Ubuntu forums assume you know everything.   That's the problem in the Linux world, people don't give out enough information and assume you can search for it.  It's like finding a needle in a haystack.   So this section of the guide will show you what it looks like to install Ubuntu on the laptop, and it will triple boot, but Linux won't start.  I'm going to wait for Gutsy Gibbon to come out in October.      Each driver is very complicated to install, and involves a bunch of instructions at the command line level.    If you want a puzzle to solve, getting version 7.04 to run on your laptop would be it.     This section of the guide will also show you how to use Killdisk and Gparted to set up your laptop for a dual boot system.    For XP and Vista, make each partition 40 gigs.  At first I made my partitions 20 gigs, and that's what I talk about below, but that's too small, go with 40 gigs each.   If you are not installing Ubuntu, and only want a dual boot system, then read the parts about using Killdisk, and Gparted.    For a dual boot system, you would create three partitions, two of them NTFS, and one Fat32 which can be shared by both operating systems.   Install XP into the first partition, Vista into the 2nd, then format the 3rd partition as a shared data drive. 

Update: 08/03/07 - Even though I gave up on installing Ubuntu on the DV6500T, others are writing to me with advice and realize that a walk thru is needed.    Here is the current advice from Mooseboy.   

Video: the 8400gs is not recognized properly by the currently shipping opensource nv driver in X. As a result, you need to use the alternate install cd, setting X to run with VESA until you can install the
commercial driver yourself (either by hand or with envy if you prefer).    Sound: A detailed howto on getting this to work is on the forums: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=502335&page=1 802.11n: This can be done either by using ndiswrapper, or by upgrading to gutsy gibbon (which has kernel 2.6.22). Pick your poison. IDE/SATA: The CD/DVD apparently isn't correctly recognized by the builtin drivers. The all_generic_ide kernel flag will fix this temporarily until you can correctly load the piix drivers on your full install.

Update: 09/14/07 - I've since learned that installing the newer Gutsy Gibbon kernal solves some problems.    If you search the Ubuntu Forums for the term "DV6500" you'll find helpful threads like this one.  

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=512059&highlight=dv6500

Update 10/31/07 - A newer Gusty thread has been created for 7.10 be EXCiD3, it is right here.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=569789

Using Killdisk and Gparted

The guide will now continue with using Killdisk and Gparted.  You will need bootable copies of each OS.    The first step is to completely wipe the hard drive clean.

I used Kill Disk which can be found for free right here.

Killdisk ( http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/boot-cd-iso.zip) Right click the link and Save As to your hard drive.  Or click the next link for a newer version. 

http://killdisk.com/downloadfree.htm

Download the ISO and burn it with Nero.   This will create a bootable CD that will find your hard drive.   Erase the drive wiping everything off of it, takes 1 hour.

Now it's time to partition the drive.   First I tried installing Ubuntu 7.04 to partition the drives.  In the 1st picture you can see what I downloaded.  In the 2nd picture, the Ubuntu splash screen appears.  In the 3rd picture, an error message appears and the system dumps to a command prompt.  The problem is the graphics.  

So I download the alternate version of Ubuntu 7.04 that uses the alternate text based installer.

This version loads, but the partition section is text based and hard to work with.    I downloaded the bootable version of Gparted from the web site and burned the ISO using Nero.   After you download the ISO, open Nero, make sure the CD ISO tab is selected, open your ISO file and burn it.  

Gparted ISO (http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/gparted-livecd-0.3.4-7.iso) Right click the link and Save As to your hard drive.   Or click the next link for a newer version.

http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=115843&package_id=173828

When running Gparted, it loads, but then stops saying the video can't be loaded.    Look at the bottom of the 2nd picture.  Type Forcevideo, then Vesa, then 1280x1024. 

Partition the drive similar to what Ilya did in his blog.  In the first picture, right click the drive box, then New. 

Make the first partition 40 gigs NTFS for XP.   In the first picture, I'm making a 20 gig partition, but that was too small.   I've since made my XP and Vista partitions 40 gigs each, which is 40960.  In the 2nd picture, I'm making a 10 gig NTFS partition for Vista, but this is actually too small.   Vista Ultimate X64 needs 13 gigs just to install.  If you install Vista X86, there will be 1 gig left after the install, not that much.     So for your install, make Vista the same size as XP, which is 40 gigs or 40960.   

In this example, my hard drive is 120 gigs and I'm making the shared FAT 32 partition, which can be used by all 3 operating systems.  How do you figure out how big to make it?  A meg is 1000 x 1024 = 1024000.    Multiply this times the number of gigs you want and take the first 5 digits.   For example, in the picture above, I have 70 gigs, which is 70 x 1024000 = 71680000 or 71680.  The pictures show a 120 gig drive but you only get 111 after formatting.   

Now make the Ubuntu partition.  There are only 4 partitions allowed.  For this one, use all the remaining space, and make it an Extended partition. 

Under the 4th partition, create a logical EXT3 partition, then a 510 meg Swap.    If you don't get exactly 512 megs, don't worry about it.   Keep working with the window until it looks similar to the 3rd picture.  Your partitions may have different sizes depending on your hard drive.   In the 4th picture I click Apply and the changes are made. 

Right click on each partition and click Format To.    Click the correct file type system, then Apply to format the drives.   It doesn't take very long to do this.  That's it, reboot your machine with the XP cd in the drive.

I installed XP just like I did up above.  Put your XP CD in the drive, boot it, select the first partition.  Follow the steps up above to install the drivers.  

The next thing I did was install Ubuntu 7.04 with the text based installer , Vista is last.    In the 2nd picture is my partition table.  The names you see at the far right of the screen are important when it comes time to copy the Ubuntu.BIN file to the shared folder and then to a windows directory.   Write these names down on a piece of paper.     That's used if you want to copy the Ubuntu.Bin file to a windows directory and edit the Boot.INI file.   There are articles on the web that talk about it.  This is done if you want to boot Ubuntu from inside the windows partition.  I got the file copied over and tried to boot Ubuntu from XP, but it crashed.   What you basically do is move the Ubuntu.BIN file from the Ubuntu root directory to a \Windows directory.   Then when you install Vista, it picks up the boot record from XP and adds it to the new boot record Vista writes out.   Sounds complicated, I know, but if you read Ilya's blog, he talks about it in there.   

In picture 3 you can see the partition table for the root drive.  Set the file system as EXT3, the mount point as / (root) and make it bootable.   In the 4th picture is the swap directory, this is not bootable.  In the 5th picture I'm done with the partition table.  The system asks a few more questions and installs.   It loads Grub into the boot loader.  I've since read some articles that say this is not the way to go.   I'm not sure about this, I can boot XP and Vista just fine.    When I try to start Ubuntu, the Xserver shows a few boxes saying the graphics are messed up and dumps me at the command line. I tried to reconfigure with this command
sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg
It asks a bunch of questions, writes a file, then I reboot but get the same thing. So techincally Ubuntu did install, I just have to figure out how to configure the Xserver.  I have since found that this error can be fixed, but it involves recompiling the kernel. 

Load Vista into the 2nd partition.   Do not use your recovery CDs, use a fresh copy of Vista you can download from torrents, a friend, or buy.     This is easy and straight forward.   Most of the drivers you need are located in the Vista \SWSETUP folder.  After Vista installs, load the chipset drivers.   Next load the wireless, you'll have to get that from the Intel site, it's not in the \SWSETUP folder.   Now install other drivers from the \SWSETUP folder until you have no more yellow question marks in the device manager.  The link to download the wireless driver for Vista is here.

Vista Wireless Driver (V11.1.1.1.0_VT_DRIVERS.ZIP) Right click the link and Save As to your hard drive, or click the next link for a newer file. 

http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Product_Filter.aspx?ProductID=2753 

If you have the \SWSETUP folder you made before starting, and you have the wireless driver from the link above, then you can install Vista, load all drivers, and have a clean device manager.  Some of the stuff in the \SWSETUP folder is bloatware.    If you start the install for something, and realize it's bloatware, click cancel.  

Open up Control Panel, and type in user account into the search box. You'll see the link for "Turn User Account Control (UAC) on or off". Click it. Uncheck the box, and reboot your computer. You should be done with obnoxious prompts!

When you are finished, you will be able to boot any operating system you want.   When you restart your computer, a menu will appear asking what system you want to boot.    At first you will have two choices.   One is for Vista, the other for Older operating systems (XP).    If you select older operating system, you will then have a choice between XP and Ubuntu.  

Q:  Can I install Ubuntu without deleting Vista?

A:  You'll have to use VMWare Player (free) and get Ubuntu 6.06.   It appears that 7.04 has problems with the integrated graphics.   I have not installed Ubuntu with VMWare Player running on Vista.  A program like partition magic may let you reduce the Vista partition, and create a new one for Ubuntu 6.06 to install in a new partition.    I have not tried this, so you're on your own.  

Q:  I followed the instructions making a new installation DVD with XP Pro, but during installation a message appears showing, "Cannot find end user licensing agreement (EULA)" and the installation stops.  

A:  I searched the error message and found a MS web site that explains the error here.  http://support.microsoft.com/kb/326673  It appears the best idea is to reformat the drive and start over.  

Q:  I have a DV9000T and the audio and quick launch buttons won't install.  What can I do?

A:  This response was e-mailed to me.     In device manager, there was a device with a caution sign called "PCI Device" (very descriptive, I know) under "System Devices" or something similar to that. I updated the driver to the Microsoft Universal Audio Architecture driver from HP (the one which would start the install then just exit shortly after), and after that a device appeared. I updated the driver on that to the audio driver from HP, again manually, and all is well, including sound and media keys.

Q: My DV6500T goes to sleep, but doesn't wake up when I open the lid. 

A:  I've had this happen with both laptops (Integrated and 8400GS).  The answer is still up in the air, but Mario Carillo was kind enough to send me a newer version of the Forceware Driver Version 163.16 for the Nvidia laptop.      Go to --> http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=14302 and download the driver and modded inf.   Run the driver program which will extract the files to your hard drive.   Next download the modified INF file and place it in the directory where you extracted the driver files overwriting the INF file.   There is a walk thru here http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=33  Run the install and it will use the modified INF file.    I was successful at installing the driver and Mario reports that his lap top is waking up with no problems.  Thanks Mario. 

Q: I'm trying to install XP 64 bit, or Windows Server 2003, or the Tiny version of XP, and none of them will work.   What can I do?   

A: Unfortunately, I don't have any answers for these operating systems.   The drivers on the Intel site ask which operating system you have, but it still appears these operating system don't work.    You'll have to figure it out by yourself.    The best idea is to use XP 32 bit with SP2 installed. 

Q: I'm trying to install XP on a DV6502CU which has an AMD Turion processor.  Or I'm trying to install XP on a DV6540eo.     Can you get me all the drivers for this laptop?

A:  Unfortunately, I don't have time to talk people thru installing XP on different HP laptops.   There are many versions with different hardware, and I can't cover all of them.    You'll have to find all the drivers on your own.    My guide is written for the DV6500T.   Search the www.notebookreview.com forums for your model number.   

I have received e-mails from all over the world thanking me for this guide.  Your kind words are appreciated.   If you have questions, send me an e-mail.   Please remember, I can't walk you through every step of this guide or get the drivers for you.   I receive many e-mails from people asking if I can walk them through this step by step or figure out what drivers they need.    I have a full time job and don't have the time to help people step by step.    It took me weeks to prepare this guide.    So it may take you a few weeks to get all the drivers and figure it out, but it's well worth it.  

06/30/07 Update:  I have since reformatted the machine to only have XP and Vista.   I'm not an Ubuntu expert, and couldn't get it to work.  I've read the Ubuntu forums but it seems very complicated to get it working on the HP laptops.  When I see all that command line stuff and things needed to install drivers, it doesn't make sense to me and I give up.      Please read the Ubuntu forums for advice if you want to try.

07/07/07 Update: I have purchased a 2nd DV6500T, this one has the Nvidia 8400M GS graphics and a 160 gig hard drive.   I successfully installed XP and Vista, making each partition 40 gigs (ntfs), which left about 70 gigs for a shared partition (Fat32).  That's right, you only get about 150 gigs of your 160 gig hard drive after partitioning and formatting.    On Vista, everything installed except there is still a yellow question mark for Other Devices.   I still haven't figured out what it is, but the properties mention something about it being on the ICHM8 sata controller.    I installed the Sata drivers, but still don't know what that yellow question mark is for.   On the XP side, the device manager is clean.    Far Cry, UT2K4, and Tribes2 play great. 

08/27/07 Update: I have purchased a 3rd DV6500T, the same as the last one.   This time I formatted the XP and Vista partition at 30 gigs, and left 10 gigs for a Linux partition.   I plan on installing Linux again since others seem to have figured it out.   I followed my own guide installing the drivers for XP and they all worked, I have a clean device manager.  

09/14/07 Update: Another guide has been posted in the Notebookreview Forums for the x500 series by Mujjuman.   It may help if you get stuck with mine.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=165319

A few people have reported trying to restore their laptop from the recovery DVDs and they don't work.  These people forgot to make a copy of their SWSETUP folder and now can't get Vista to work from a clean install.   If you need the SWSETUP folder, you may download it from my web space.   I've left out the bloatware of Norton, Office, and MuVee.   The total size of all the drivers is about 700 megs.   This folder was taken from the 3rd laptop I bought, which is a DV6500T with the Nvidia graphics.   These drivers are for Vista.

http://www.quatraine3.com/tribalwar/SwSetup/

10/29/07 Update:  A few people have been e-mailing me saying the audio drivers do not work.   There may be a newer version of the audio hardware, and it's impossible for me to have the exact drivers for every laptop out there.    Make sure the UAA driver is installed, then try downloading the latest drivers from the Realtek site here. 

http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsView.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=24&PFid=24&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3

11/17/07 Update: A great thread on how to install XP on the AMD version of the DV6500 has been posted by TheDave here.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=186409

11/20/07 Update: I keep receiving e-mails from people with different versions of the laptop, asking me if I can figure out what drivers they need.    To do this, bring up Google, and type in HP and your model number.   For example, in the search box put "HP DV6560el specs" and press return.    This laptop happens to be an Italian version of the DV6500T with similar specs, but I have no way of knowing each piece of hardware.   I don't have the time to go find specs for every laptop out there, and I don't have time to walk people through each step of this guide.    I have a full time job.     Please, use Google and search for the specs on your own.   Then visit the www.notebookreview.com forums and search for your model there.    I appreciate it when people send me thanks saying they got it, but I don't have time to search for specs on all the other laptops.    The best idea if everything seems to complicated, is to find a friend who can help.    

11/23/07 Update: Mujjuman had some great advice for those wondering what kind of hardware their laptop has.   Run Everest and CPU-Z in Vista before wiping your laptop clean.   The last free version is 2.20, the company has since made the product commercial.   Search google for "Everest 2.20" or you may download the program from my web space.

Everest Home Edition 220 http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/everesthome220.exe

Another program to download is called CPU-Z, their web site is here.   http://www.cpuid.com/

CPU-Z version 1.42 http://www.quatraine3.com/HPDV6500T/cpu-z-142.zip

11/29/07 Update:  Mehul e-mailed me with some advice on installing the audio drivers.   "I downloaded the latest Realtek audio driver (version 1.82).  Before running UAA Drivers, I ran kb888111xpsp1 and kb888111xpsp2 from the Realtek driver download. I restarted between each install. I  then ran the UAA driver install.  At that point, Windows recognized the Realtek HD Audio chip and the Unknown PCI device went away.  I restarted to be safe.  I then ran the Realtek audio driver installation.  It worked.  I think what is happening per you instructions is that the kb888111xp service packs need to be installed before UAA.  Since they come with the Realtek install, that does not happen and that causes problems.  I did not get the Windows Files need to be restored page that you got. I think it has to do with different flavors and service packs of windows XP.  You may have avoided this issue because of the flavor of XP you are running."

12/13/07 Update: I've received a few e-mails from people who are trying to use their recovery CDs to install Vista.   Do Not Use Your Recovery CDs to install Vista, this will wipe out the XP partition.  When I said get a copy of Vista, that means a fresh copy.   You can get this from a friend, torrents, or go out and buy it.   You see, this is the problem in the OEM world, people pay for a copy of the OS, but that copy is really a bloatware filled backup that is meant for one computer.   Did I ask for all that bloatware?   No.   Did I get a clean copy of the Vista OS when I purchased the laptop?  No.   Did I get a Vista DVD when I bought the laptop?   No.    You have to go find a fresh copy of Vista on your own and use that

03/04/08 Update: I can no longer take e-mails, I have removed the link to my e-mail address.  Most people have a weird model and ask if I can get them drivers.    Or the sound doesn't work after going through all the steps.   I no longer have the time to answer these e-mails.    You are all on your own at this point.   The best advice is to register and search the www.notebookreview.com forums for an answer.   Just to remind everyone, it took me two months to get all the drivers for my laptop.  

09/03/08 Update: Check out my guide to replacing the LCD screen

HP DV6500T LCD Screen

Update 11/05/08 - The driver files are no longer available from my web space.  Someone linked to them and cause so many hits, my ISP had to disable the folder.   Only takes a few people to ruin it for everyone else in this world.   You will have to find all the drivers I have listed from the Intel and HP web sites.  

Update 04/05/09 - I've restored the driver files and it appears the idiot who was linking to them has stopped.    If my bandwidth usage spikes up, I'll have to remove them again.  

End of Report.   Thanks for reading.  

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