Boot Time Prompt: "Please select the operating system...."

[(PeteCresswell)]

I just re-imaged from a known good image (via ShadowProtect), but
foolishly decided to invoke the "Restore MBR from backup...."
option.

Now, when Windows starts, I get a prompt:

"Please select the operating system to install:

- Windows XP Professional
- Disk partition 1 Windows installation"

It defaults to the first (desired) choice in about 20 seconds,
but still....

Am I stuck with this until I re-image without that parm set?

 

[Tim Meddick]

If you have the original XP Installation Disk to hand - boot from it and
choose :

"To repair a Windows XP installation using Recovery Console, press R."

....then, at the Recovery Console prompt, use the FIXMBR command to repair
the disk.

If you have no XP Installation Disk, see online-documentation on how to
boot to XP's Recovery Console from either a dedicated cd-rom, created
(burnt) from a downloadable image (ISO file), or from a specially
written-to USB flash-drive.

Get the ISO Image to burn a bootable cd-rom with R.C.
(xp_rec_con.iso) (7.68MB)
http://www.mediafire.com/?ueyyzfymmig

Get the instructions and download the zip-file to create a bootable USB
flash-drive with R.C. (usbrecoveryconsole.zip) (Zip-file: 6.6MB)
Download Zipfile Only:
http://www.briteccomputers.co.uk/downloads/usbrecoveryconsole.zip
Instruction and Download Page:
http://www.briteccomputers.co.uk/forum/index.php?action=media;sa=item;in=148

For more help on XP's FIXMBR and FIXBOOT Recovery
Console commands, look at;
http://www.windowsboards.com/general-xp-support/fixboot-vs-fixmbr-what-is-the-difference/

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314058

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London.

 

[Char Jackson]

I just re-imaged from a known good image (via ShadowProtect), but
foolishly decided to invoke the "Restore MBR from backup...."
option.

Now, when Windows starts, I get a prompt:

"Please select the operating system to install:

- Windows XP Professional
- Disk partition 1 Windows installation"

It defaults to the first (desired) choice in about 20 seconds,
but still....

Am I stuck with this until I re-image without that parm set?

Simple fix - just edit the boot.ini file. When you remove the second
option it will cause the first (only) option to execute by default,
without waiting.

<http://support.microsoft.com/kb/289022>

 

[Tim Meddick]

I'm pretty sure that's not what's happening here;

For starters, startup boot options invoked by the "boot.ini" file do not
state :

"Please select the operating system to install: "

....but rather :

"Please select the operating system to start : "

....and, consequently, makes me think that at the time a backup image was
created, there could have been a half-completed Windows installation. A
file other than "boot.ini", if I remember rightly, is then used temporarily
to configure interim startup menus.

Thus, editing the boot.ini file will make little difference (if this was
the case).

However, if I'm wrong, and the OP had actually meant the second message
after all, then all they would have to do, would be to edit the boot.ini
start-up options via the Windows XP interface :

Press: [WinKey]+[Pause/Break] (brings up "System Properties")
Click on: "Advanced" (tab)
Click on: "Startup and Recovery" > "Settings" (button)
Select Default Operating System in drop-down list (System startup)
Select a number for "Time to display list of operating systems:"
(0=no display of Startup Menu)

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London.

 

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per Char Jackson:

Simple fix - just edit the boot.ini file.

My motto has always been "Nothing is easy..."

But *that* was easy.

Thanks again.

 

[Char Jackson]

Per Char Jackson:

My motto has always been "Nothing is easy..."

But *that* was easy.

Thanks again.

Glad it worked out.