Windows NT Does Not Detect Previous WinNT 3.5x Install

• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 3.51 and 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 3.51 and 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you attempt to upgrade your current version of Windows NT, the following error message may appear:

   A previous version of Windows NT could not be found on the system,
   Press F3 to exit.

   No previous version of Windows NT could be found on your computer.
   Setup is unable to verify that you qualify to use this upgrade product.
   Press F3 to exit.

RESOLUTION

Use the Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe) to modify the following values:

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious, system-wide problems that may require you to reinstall Windows NT to correct them. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use this tool at your own risk.

1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe) and locate the following subkey:

   Hkey_Local_Machine\System\Setup\SystemSetupInProgress Hkey_Local_Machine\System\Setup\UpgradeInProgress

2. Double-click SystemSetupInProgress and change the value from 1 to 0.

3. Locate the following subkey:

         Hkey_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\
         CurrentVersion\
   

4. Verify the following registry entry is set to 3.5 or 3.51.

         CurrentVersion:REG_SZ:3.5 or 3.51
   

5. Quit Registry Editor and then restart your computer for these changes to take effect.

NOTE: For additional information on difficulty upgrading Windows NT 4.0, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q154538
   TITLE: Windows NT 4.0 Upgrade CD Will Not Upgrade NT 4.0 Installation

   ARTICLE-ID: Q160175
   TITLE: What Does WinNT 4.0 look for in a Valid WinNT 3.51 Install

During the upgrade process, Windows NT Setup verifies the following before providing an upgrade option to existing installations. If the above steps do not resolve the upgrade option, verify the following components are present and/or correct.

• Ensure the current version of Windows NT is bootable before proceeding with an upgrade.
• Make sure the SCSI or IDE controller detected by Windows NT 4.0 Setup is the correct driver. (You may need to select F6 during setup do manually install the correct driver.)
• The Boot.ini file must contain a valid ARC path for the current system partition.
• A valid Setup.log file must be present in the %SystemRoot%\Repair directory.
• You must break any mirror sets on the boot or system partition before upgrading.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT version 4.0. We are researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.