Won't Boot Up

[Copper]

Hi.

Can anyone point me in the right direction here.

When i was burning a DVD the other night my PC crashed, showing nothing but the Blue Screen of Death.

Now when i switch on my PC it will not load up past the boot screen, it just turns black then freezes, i have tried starting up in all the avialable modes including 'Safe Mode' but it just freezes up just after the screen shows you the list of all the paths for the drivers etc.

So i threw in my old 30gb Hard drive (which i replaced about a year ago) and it it boots up no problem.

I don't want to lose all my programs etc, on my 80 gb hard drive. Will ihave to re-install, or can i do this without losing all my programmes that are on the drive already ?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Copper.

 

[Senseis]

"So i threw in my old 30gb Hard drive (which i replaced about a year ago) and it it boots up no problem."

Sound like to me you answer yourself why it won't boot, as in files and programm loos what are you trying to retrieve and where it is located on the c:\ drive...? you might be able to get some after you get another Hd drive going.

 

[zoidberg]

If you cannot boot even in safe mode then there is a likely problem with the drive itself. There may be some physical damage or the boot sector may have been corrupted in some way.

Try rebooting from a floppy and then trying to access the drive. You may have to do this is dos mode. You couls also try adding a bootable drive and using the faulty one as a slave and trying to recover your data that way.

 

[Copper]

Hi.

Thanks for the replies

Yes sorry the OS is Windows XP Professional Service Pack 1.

They way my system was, was my 80gb HD was my master and the 30gb was my slave. The 30gb is on itÂ’s last legs (i.e. very very slow) but both have the above OS installed.

As the 80gb will no longer boot up I have swapped them around so that the slow 30gb is now my master.

MicroBell Can I still access System recovery if I canÂ’t get past the Boot Screen ? As for the recovery console, I have no idea which commands apart from chkdsk & fixboot, I did try both of these, but I am unsure if I did it correctly, can you give me some help there ?


Senseis My knowledge on the mechanics of an OS is very very limited, are you saying I could replace files from when OS to the other, if so what files, how do I find out which ones are damaged ? and is it a case of just cut and paste ?

Zoidberg Thanks, I did have a wee bit of a try of fixboot in the system recovery, but no joy, whether or not I am doing it right is another story though.

From past experience, when transferring a programme file from one HD to another, (like my antivirus) I loose the licence and have to purchase them again, is there another way round this ?

Once again thanks for all the replies.

They are much appreciated
Copper.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Copper, welcome ... i know you joined in Oct '03 but it's the first time i've seen you posting here. All the way from Scotland nonetheless... yeah I know you guyz like to run around in them silly skirts all day, but you're still alright in my book ...hehe...

Regarding your Q about the programs/license issue. Once you get your OS back up and running again, you can re-install your AV software as long you have the product key for it. (looks like a long series of #s and letters). If you legitimately bought a copy of a software, you should be able to re-install it as many times as you want (in most cases) - NOT talking about XP here.

I don't mean to sound like a smart-arse...but there's a reason why MicroBell has a title of MODERATOR below his name... He definitely knows his shyte man. And i'm not just kissin' his arse cuz I certainly have no reason to. I recognize and appreciate techies who know much more than I do and try to learn from them whenever possible. (But MB is a few years ahead of me and it's gonna be mighty tough to catch up to him. lol...)

Now i don't mean to insinuate that Senseis & Zoidberg don't know what they're talkin about but when an experienced guy like MB gives you advice... it's generally a good idea to go w/ that.

As for using the recovery console, i only know one command... that's 'DIE YOU STINKIN PIECE OF SH*T...DIEEEEEE!!!!!"

EDIT:

I'm not sure MS would officially recognize that command as it's more of a home brewed method. I would wait for MB to post back w/ further help on the recovery console command... mine probably wouldnt' do much good anyway unless you're really pissed drunk and wearing a kilt.

 

[Copper]

Hi Lonestar.

Ye all the way from Scotland, although it's not that far on the WWW !! Nothing wrong in wearing a kilt, keeps a fine breeze going around your knackers.

I am aware of Microbell's knowledge, he has more or less replied to most of my queries that i have had in past, hope he finds the time to give us a hand with this one.

Thanks again
Copper.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Lonestar is my evil twin...

Hi Lonestar.

Ye all the way from Scotland, although it's not that far on the WWW !! Nothing wrong in wearing a kilt, keeps a fine breeze going around your knackers. Copper.

Yikes! that definitely tops my too much info posting i made earlier.

One thought i had was to restore the registry using the recovery console and this link to the MSKB article explains with clear steps how you would do that.

If you wanna wait for MB's input before proceeding, i'm sure he'll post back here and give you further advice.

 

[Copper]

Sorry Lone Wolf.

Where did i get Lonestar from ??? Is that some Ltd edition Fender Stratocaster or the name of one of your country western bands or something !!

Sorry it's been a trying couple of days lately.

Thanks again.

 

[Copper]

Hi folks.

Could I just simply take my Win XP install CD and reinstall (as if I was upgrading my Win XP Pro to Win XP Pro !!), without having to format the drive, ie save all my original programmes and files.

My memory is a bit vague on what happens after I pop the CD in, I think it gave me the two options of Installing or Recovery.

If I choose Install does that automatically format etc, or will I be given the option to just go over the top of my previous installation, and hope it repairs that bad bits ??

Once again thanks for any responses.
Copper

 

[Lone Wolf]

Copper, i'm sure MB is just busy and hasn't had a chance to come back to post. But in case he doesn't, why don't you try the link I gave you previously to the MSKB article? The directions are pretty straightforward and I'm sure you could do it. You could reinstall it but if it's just a matter of a corrupt registry, the above link would be worth checking into.