im preparing to reinstall windows xp on my comp, i was just curious is there anyway to ensure that if the install does not go correctly i can recover my previous xp??, i do want to format and reinstall but i dont wanna lose everything and be stuck with no os

if you format the drive you'll loose all data on the drive if you just want to reinstall windows follow instructions

How do you perform a reinstallation of Windows XP, sometimes called a repair installation?

Configure your computer to start from the CD-ROM drive. For more information about how to do this, refer to your computer's documentation or contact your computer manufacturer. Then insert your Windows XP Setup CD, and restart your computer.

1. When the Press any key to boot from CD message is displayed on your screen, press a key to start your computer from the Windows XP CD.

2. Press ENTER when you see the message To setup Windows XP now, and then press ENTER displayed on the Welcome to Setup screen.

3. Do not choose the option to press R to use the Recovery Console.

4. In the Windows XP Licensing Agreement, press F8 to agree to the license agreement.

5. Make sure that your current installation of Windows XP is selected in the box, and then press R to repair Windows XP.

6. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete Setup.

ok that makes sense, but i would prefer to format i have 2 hdds is there a way to copy my current os and files to the second hard drive?? also i would need to compress the media files on the 2nd drive to make room.

I take it you have a XP disc and all the driver discs.

when you do a clean install you'll maybe have to phone M$ to reactivate windows doing a repair you wont need to reactivate