Departitioning?

[AntiKryptonite]

Ok, I used a CD and successfully copied the boot.ini file.

A new error;

Windows 2000 could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
,windows 2000 root>\system32\ntoskrnl.exe.
Please re-install a copy of the above file.

 

[EricB]

I just got back from a trip the indianapolis. anyway, this is how you burn an iso file. if you don't burn it as a disc image, most of the time it won't boot right.

guys. he need to reinstall 2000. restoring his mbr (same thing as modifying the boot.ini) obviously didn't work on 2000. I gave this advice about 10 times on this form and it always work before when people delete their linux partition. but everybody else had xp. I'd assume 2000 was the same, but I guess it isn't.

 

[AntiKryptonite]

I see. Well, I don't care if I have to reinstall Windows 2000 eventually, I just want to get to the files. Speaking of which, can I still get to the files right now if I boot using Knoppix or Bart PE?

 

[EricB]

I see. Well, I don't care if I have to reinstall Windows 2000 eventually, I just want to get to the files. Speaking of which, can I still get to the files right now if I boot using Knoppix or Bart PE?

yes. post back when you boot

 

[MrCoffee]

guys. he need to reinstall 2000. restoring his mbr (same thing as modifying the boot.ini) obviously didn't work on 2000. I gave this advice about 10 times on this form and it always work before when people delete their linux partition. but everybody else had xp. I'd assume 2000 was the same, but I guess it isn't.

your MBR is not that same thing as boot.ini.

the MBR contains the code that locates the system bootable partition, from the system partition NTLDR executes and then Boot.ini is referenced by NTLDR to find out where the boot files for which ever OS you choose to load are located.
the partition(x) part of the boot.ini indicates which partition the files are for the selected windows installation.

The problem here is that the linux partition was the windows system partition (not that I'm in anyway familiar with dual booting linux).

A new error;

Windows 2000 could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
,windows 2000 root>\system32\ntoskrnl.exe.
Please re-install a copy of the above file.

I think this simply indicates that I got the boot.ini ARC path wrong, I suggest you try other other configurations, Its tricky knowing what state your hdd is in at the moment with out sitting infront of your computer.
Its curious that the original boot.ini pointed to a partition number 3 when you say you only had 2 partitions... perhaps try changing the number to 2.

However if you're not concerned with recovering the current OS then things are very simple. Either use knoppix as suggested or just reinstall windows, grab your data, format then start afresh.

 

[AntiKryptonite]

"Just reinstall windows." I've tried repairing, it said that it couldn't find an OS to repair. How would I reinstall it?

And I may have an explanation for the number 3. When I was deleting the Linux partition, I noticed something like 150MB of space that did not belong to either partition. I'm not sure if it was partitioned, but it was seperate of the Linux and Windows parititions.

 

[MrCoffee]

well in that case I suggest you try changing the boot.ini to the following before you go for the reinstall:

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect

 

[MrCoffee]

"Just reinstall windows." I've tried repairing, it said that it couldn't find an OS to repair. How would I reinstall it?

just select a freah installation, don't format, install to the availiable partition under a diferent folder i.e. \windows

 

[EricB]

your MBR is not that same thing as boot.ini.

the MBR contains the code that locates the system bootable partition, from the system partition NTLDR executes and then Boot.ini is referenced by NTLDR to find out where the boot files for which ever OS you choose to load are located.
the partition(x) part of the boot.ini indicates which partition the files are for the selected windows installation.

The problem here is that the linux partition was the windows system partition (not that I'm in anyway familiar with dual booting linux).



I think this simply indicates that I got the boot.ini ARC path wrong, I suggest you try other other configurations, Its tricky knowing what state your hdd is in at the moment with out sitting infront of your computer.
Its curious that the original boot.ini pointed to a partition number 3 when you say you only had 2 partitions... perhaps try changing the number to 2.

However if you're not concerned with recovering the current OS then things are very simple. Either use knoppix as suggested or just reinstall windows, grab your data, format then start afresh.

whatever. I get tired of geeks trying to over corrected somebody. technically it isn't the same, but in a short simple easy explainitory term to somebody, that is not a rocket scientist, it is the same thing

when you hit restorembr.exe (a tool I uploaded here the other day), after deleting a linux partition, it will correctlthe boot.ini file so that you can boot back to xp, as the linux bootloader will be gone and there will not be any bootloader.

like I said, I posted this tool to at least ten other posters here and they have success deleting the linux partition. I suspect that it didn't work here because it was windows 2000


I could fix AntiKryptonite's problem, but I don't actually have his computer in front of me, so I'm trying to get him back to where he was as easy as possible.

guys (you know who you are), for the thousandth time, stop trying to correct me when I'm trying to explain stuff in terms that regular people can understand

 

[MrCoffee]

but i like geekiness