This topic serves as the main discussion and reference point for legacy Microsoft operating systems:
Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003.

These platforms are long out of official support, but they are still encountered in real-world scenarios:
• Industrial and embedded systems
• Laboratory and research equipment
• Legacy servers and appliances
• Retro hardware and preservation projects
• Offline or isolated environments

This is NOT a general user support thread.
The purpose of this topic is technical discussion, troubleshooting, and experience sharing.

What is appropriate to discuss here:
• Installation issues on legacy hardware
• BIOS and firmware compatibility
• IDE / SATA / RAID controller behavior
• ACPI, HAL, and power management problems
• Driver availability and limitations
• Service Pack differences and known bugs
• Software compatibility and constraints
• Stability issues and diagnostics
• Migration, data access, and recovery scenarios

Important notes:
• These operating systems are end-of-life and must NOT be exposed to the internet.
• Security patches are no longer provided.
• Discussions about piracy, license circumvention, activation bypasses, or malware usage are not allowed.
• This forum focuses on legitimate technical use, analysis, and preservation.

If you have a specific problem:
Create a separate topic in this category and include:
• Exact OS version and Service Pack
• Hardware specifications (CPU, chipset, storage controller, GPU)
• BIOS version and settings
• Error messages or STOP codes
• What you are trying to achieve

This pinned topic is intentionally left open for:
• Questions
• Experience sharing
• Clarifications
• Long-term reference discussion