Hi

I've just reformatted and installed winxp home on a mates pc, but before
doing this I scanned his pc in safe mode using AVG and the results were
errors reading in the.... HOST...MBR... BOOT. So I had a go using recovery
console to no effect after running "FIXBOOT"..."FIXMBR!!"..."CHKDSK" So as I
was in the process of getting ready to reinstall, I took the option to
repair the original O/S, which ran just like a reinstall ( "you know,
regional settings, product key etc.etc" ) I haven't used this feature
before but I wasn't expecting that. Anyway half way through I was informed
that some files could not be loaded, untill it eventually locked up on one
message, so I had no choice than to Soft off the pc, and that's when I did a
full format after deleting the original O/S, but after all that, when I now
boot up it shows 2 O/S's to choose from, the first was the new installation
with all the right amount of Gb of space for 1 O/S, but on entering the 2nd
O/S it states;

"Windows could not start because of a computer disk
hardware configuration problem. Could not read from the selected boot disk.
Check boot path and disk hardware. Please check the windows documentation
about hardware disk configuration and your hardware reference manuals for
additional information"

Why is this here? Even after a full format!! It's as if the half loaded O/S
remained!! Anyhow I googled and the info was to fix or edit the boot.ini
file to get the thing to boot up, but what I want is to delete the 2nd O/S
"if that's what it is" and get it off the boot up sequence.

Any advice?...Anyone!!



--

Regards
p.mc

Just edit the boot.ini file and remove the reference to the non existant
Operating System. You can do this manually or with the msconfig tool.
Under certain obscure circumstances what you describe can happen and the
old boot.ini file can remain or reappear on a formatted hard disk. It
appears your computer had the right set of conditions for this to happen.

John

p.mc wrote:

> Hi
>
> I've just reformatted and installed winxp home on a mates pc, but before
> doing this I scanned his pc in safe mode using AVG and the results were
> errors reading in the.... HOST...MBR... BOOT. So I had a go using recovery
> console to no effect after running "FIXBOOT"..."FIXMBR!!"..."CHKDSK" So as I
> was in the process of getting ready to reinstall, I took the option to
> repair the original O/S, which ran just like a reinstall ( "you know,
> regional settings, product key etc.etc" ) I haven't used this feature
> before but I wasn't expecting that. Anyway half way through I was informed
> that some files could not be loaded, untill it eventually locked up on one
> message, so I had no choice than to Soft off the pc, and that's when I did a
> full format after deleting the original O/S, but after all that, when I now
> boot up it shows 2 O/S's to choose from, the first was the new installation
> with all the right amount of Gb of space for 1 O/S, but on entering the 2nd
> O/S it states;
>
> "Windows could not start because of a computer disk
> hardware configuration problem. Could not read from the selected boot disk.
> Check boot path and disk hardware. Please check the windows documentation
> about hardware disk configuration and your hardware reference manuals for
> additional information"
>
> Why is this here? Even after a full format!! It's as if the half loaded O/S
> remained!! Anyhow I googled and the info was to fix or edit the boot.ini
> file to get the thing to boot up, but what I want is to delete the 2nd O/S
> "if that's what it is" and get it off the boot up sequence.
>
> Any advice?...Anyone!!
>
>
>

Hi John John

"Thank's for the reply mate"...Unfortunately he's picked up his pc now, but
if you could let us know how to edit/delete the boot.ini in the "System
Configuration Utility" I'd be much obliged. It sounds like a simple process
but I'm looking at my "System Configuration Utility" but nothing seems
obvious as how I would do that!

The simpler the process the better, then I could just phone him and instruct
him over it.



--

Regards
p.mc


"John John" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> Just edit the boot.ini file and remove the reference to the non existant
> Operating System. You can do this manually or with the msconfig tool.
> Under certain obscure circumstances what you describe can happen and the
> old boot.ini file can remain or reappear on a formatted hard disk. It
> appears your computer had the right set of conditions for this to happen.
>
> John
>
> p.mc wrote:
>
>> Hi
>>
>> I've just reformatted and installed winxp home on a mates pc, but before
>> doing this I scanned his pc in safe mode using AVG and the results were
>> errors reading in the.... HOST...MBR... BOOT. So I had a go using
>> recovery console to no effect after running
>> "FIXBOOT"..."FIXMBR!!"..."CHKDSK" So as I was in the process of getting
>> ready to reinstall, I took the option to repair the original O/S, which
>> ran just like a reinstall ( "you know, regional settings, product key
>> etc.etc" ) I haven't used this feature before but I wasn't expecting
>> that. Anyway half way through I was informed that some files could not be
>> loaded, untill it eventually locked up on one message, so I had no choice
>> than to Soft off the pc, and that's when I did a full format after
>> deleting the original O/S, but after all that, when I now boot up it
>> shows 2 O/S's to choose from, the first was the new installation with all
>> the right amount of Gb of space for 1 O/S, but on entering the 2nd O/S it
>> states;
>>
>> "Windows could not start because of a computer disk
>> hardware configuration problem. Could not read from the selected boot
>> disk. Check boot path and disk hardware. Please check the windows
>> documentation about hardware disk configuration and your hardware
>> reference manuals for additional information"
>>
>> Why is this here? Even after a full format!! It's as if the half loaded
>> O/S remained!! Anyhow I googled and the info was to fix or edit the
>> boot.ini file to get the thing to boot up, but what I want is to delete
>> the 2nd O/S "if that's what it is" and get it off the boot up sequence.
>>
>> Any advice?...Anyone!!
>>
>>
>>
>

Click on the "Boot.ini" tab at the top then click on "Check All Boot Paths".

John

p.mc wrote:
> Hi John John
>
> "Thank's for the reply mate"...Unfortunately he's picked up his pc now, but
> if you could let us know how to edit/delete the boot.ini in the "System
> Configuration Utility" I'd be much obliged. It sounds like a simple process
> but I'm looking at my "System Configuration Utility" but nothing seems
> obvious as how I would do that!
>
> The simpler the process the better, then I could just phone him and instruct
> him over it.
>
>
>

Cheers John John

So if he does this on his machine it will give him the option to edit. I did
try that on my machine but there was no editing facility, just a message
informing me that my boot.ini file apears ok.
I also tried to modify the boot.ini file on mine after making a backup so
I'd be able to do his, but after following the instruction;

(Modifying the Boot.ini
While you can modify the Boot.ini file using the Startup and Recovery
dialog, where you can select the default operating system, change the
timeout value, or manually edit the file, the following method uses the
command line utility, Bootcfg.exe. 1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open text box, type cmd.
3. At the command prompt, type bootcfg /?.
4. The help and parameters for BOOTCFG.exe will display. )

I typed in step 3 "bootcfg /?." (without quotes) and got the message;
*'bootcfg' is not recognised as an internal or external command, operable
program or batch file.*

"Should I have put bootcfg /1. instead of a question mark ?"




--

Regards
p.mc


"John John" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> Click on the "Boot.ini" tab at the top then click on "Check All Boot
> Paths".
>
> John
>
> p.mc wrote:
>> Hi John John
>>
>> "Thank's for the reply mate"...Unfortunately he's picked up his pc now,
>> but if you could let us know how to edit/delete the boot.ini in the
>> "System Configuration Utility" I'd be much obliged. It sounds like a
>> simple process but I'm looking at my "System Configuration Utility" but
>> nothing seems obvious as how I would do that!
>>
>> The simpler the process the better, then I could just phone him and
>> instruct him over it.
>>
>>

"Come to thik of it, it's probably bootcfg /2. instead of /1"...?

--

Regards
p.mc


"p.mc" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:%(E-Mail Removed)...
> Cheers John John
>
> So if he does this on his machine it will give him the option to edit. I
> did try that on my machine but there was no editing facility, just a
> message informing me that my boot.ini file apears ok.
> I also tried to modify the boot.ini file on mine after making a backup so
> I'd be able to do his, but after following the instruction;
>
> (Modifying the Boot.ini
> While you can modify the Boot.ini file using the Startup and Recovery
> dialog, where you can select the default operating system, change the
> timeout value, or manually edit the file, the following method uses the
> command line utility, Bootcfg.exe. 1. Click Start, and then click Run.
> 2. In the Open text box, type cmd.
> 3. At the command prompt, type bootcfg /?.
> 4. The help and parameters for BOOTCFG.exe will display. )
>
> I typed in step 3 "bootcfg /?." (without quotes) and got the message;
> *'bootcfg' is not recognised as an internal or external command, operable
> program or batch file.*
>
> "Should I have put bootcfg /1. instead of a question mark ?"
>
>
>
>
> --
>
> Regards
> p.mc
>
>
> "John John" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>> Click on the "Boot.ini" tab at the top then click on "Check All Boot
>> Paths".
>>
>> John
>>
>> p.mc wrote:
>>> Hi John John
>>>
>>> "Thank's for the reply mate"...Unfortunately he's picked up his pc now,
>>> but if you could let us know how to edit/delete the boot.ini in the
>>> "System Configuration Utility" I'd be much obliged. It sounds like a
>>> simple process but I'm looking at my "System Configuration Utility" but
>>> nothing seems obvious as how I would do that!
>>>
>>> The simpler the process the better, then I could just phone him and
>>> instruct him over it.
>>>
>>>
>

If he does the "Check All Boot Paths" it will inform him if invalid
entries are found and offer to delete them. As for bootcfg, I'm on
Windows 2000 here so I can't verify but I believe that bootcfg is a
Recovery Console tool only, but I stand to be corrected on that. In any
case using it is more complicated than the other methods. If your mate
can't correct the problem with msconfig he can do it manually using
Notepad to edit the file. He should backup the file before he manually
edits it. If he has a diskette drive on the computer he can easily make
a boot diskette to use in case he damages the boot.ini file. An NT boot
diskette takes about 2 minutes to make and it's a handy thing to have.
If he doesn't have a diskette and he needs to undo errors he made in the
file he will have to use the Recovery Console to restore the file.

John

p.mc wrote:
> Cheers John John
>
> So if he does this on his machine it will give him the option to
> edit. I did try that on my machine but there was no editing facility,
> just a message informing me that my boot.ini file apears ok. I also
> tried to modify the boot.ini file on mine after making a backup so
> I'd be able to do his, but after following the instruction;
>
> (Modifying the Boot.ini While you can modify the Boot.ini file using
> the Startup and Recovery dialog, where you can select the default
> operating system, change the timeout value, or manually edit the
> file, the following method uses the command line utility,
> Bootcfg.exe. 1. Click Start, and then click Run. 2. In the Open text
> box, type cmd. 3. At the command prompt, type bootcfg /?. 4. The
> help and parameters for BOOTCFG.exe will display. )
>
> I typed in step 3 "bootcfg /?." (without quotes) and got the message;
> *'bootcfg' is not recognised as an internal or external command,
> operable program or batch file.*
>
> "Should I have put bootcfg /1. instead of a question mark ?"
>
>
>
>

This is the actual statement iI found for deleting an O/S Applying to WinXP
Home after accessing BOOTGFG.exe through a command prompt.
------------------------
(Removing an Operating System
At the command prompt, type:
bootcfg /delete /ID#
Where # specifies the boot entry ID that you want to be deleted from the
operating systems section of the BOOT.INI file (e.g. 2 for the second
Operating system that is listed.)

------------------------

It looks like you don't have to use the recovery console to delete the other
O/S!
If he does edit the boot.ini file after saving a copy, is it a case of just
deleting the 2nd text line something like this;

multi(0)disk(1)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
/fastdetect
**multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
/fastdetect **

Or is there more to it than that?


--

Regards
p.mc


"John John" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> If he does the "Check All Boot Paths" it will inform him if invalid
> entries are found and offer to delete them. As for bootcfg, I'm on
> Windows 2000 here so I can't verify but I believe that bootcfg is a
> Recovery Console tool only, but I stand to be corrected on that. In any
> case using it is more complicated than the other methods. If your mate
> can't correct the problem with msconfig he can do it manually using
> Notepad to edit the file. He should backup the file before he manually
> edits it. If he has a diskette drive on the computer he can easily make a
> boot diskette to use in case he damages the boot.ini file. An NT boot
> diskette takes about 2 minutes to make and it's a handy thing to have. If
> he doesn't have a diskette and he needs to undo errors he made in the file
> he will have to use the Recovery Console to restore the file.
>
> John
>
> p.mc wrote:
>> Cheers John John
>>
>> So if he does this on his machine it will give him the option to edit. I
>> did try that on my machine but there was no editing facility,
>> just a message informing me that my boot.ini file apears ok. I also
>> tried to modify the boot.ini file on mine after making a backup so I'd
>> be able to do his, but after following the instruction;
>>
>> (Modifying the Boot.ini While you can modify the Boot.ini file using
>> the Startup and Recovery dialog, where you can select the default
>> operating system, change the timeout value, or manually edit the file,
>> the following method uses the command line utility, Bootcfg.exe. 1. Click
>> Start, and then click Run. 2. In the Open text
>> box, type cmd. 3. At the command prompt, type bootcfg /?. 4. The
>> help and parameters for BOOTCFG.exe will display. )
>>
>> I typed in step 3 "bootcfg /?." (without quotes) and got the message;
>> *'bootcfg' is not recognised as an internal or external command,
>> operable program or batch file.*
>>
>> "Should I have put bootcfg /1. instead of a question mark ?"
>>
>>
>>

No, you don't have to use the RC to edit the boot.ini file. You would
have to use the RC or a boot disk to fix the file if you were to remove
the wrong path and the pc didn't boot. You pretty well have it down
pat, you have to remove the invalid line, as I said earlier he can do
that with msconfig, or as you have confirmed with the bootcfg command.
That's all there is to it.

John

p.mc wrote:

> This is the actual statement iI found for deleting an O/S Applying to WinXP
> Home after accessing BOOTGFG.exe through a command prompt.
> ------------------------
> (Removing an Operating System
> At the command prompt, type:
> bootcfg /delete /ID#
> Where # specifies the boot entry ID that you want to be deleted from the
> operating systems section of the BOOT.INI file (e.g. 2 for the second
> Operating system that is listed.)
>
> ------------------------
>
> It looks like you don't have to use the recovery console to delete the other
> O/S!
> If he does edit the boot.ini file after saving a copy, is it a case of just
> deleting the 2nd text line something like this;
>
> multi(0)disk(1)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
> /fastdetect
> **multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
> /fastdetect **
>
> Or is there more to it than that?
>
>

"Well thanks again John John for your advice"

--

Regards
p.mc


"John John" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:O$$(E-Mail Removed)...
> No, you don't have to use the RC to edit the boot.ini file. You would
> have to use the RC or a boot disk to fix the file if you were to remove
> the wrong path and the pc didn't boot. You pretty well have it down pat,
> you have to remove the invalid line, as I said earlier he can do that
> with msconfig, or as you have confirmed with the bootcfg command. That's
> all there is to it.
>
> John
>
> p.mc wrote:
>
>> This is the actual statement iI found for deleting an O/S Applying to
>> WinXP Home after accessing BOOTGFG.exe through a command prompt.
>> ------------------------
>> (Removing an Operating System
>> At the command prompt, type:
>> bootcfg /delete /ID#
>> Where # specifies the boot entry ID that you want to be deleted from the
>> operating systems section of the BOOT.INI file (e.g. 2 for the second
>> Operating system that is listed.)
>>
>> ------------------------
>>
>> It looks like you don't have to use the recovery console to delete the
>> other O/S!
>> If he does edit the boot.ini file after saving a copy, is it a case of
>> just deleting the 2nd text line something like this;
>>
>> multi(0)disk(1)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
>> /fastdetect
>> **multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows XP Home Edition"
>> /fastdetect **
>>
>> Or is there more to it than that?
>>