Malware hit; in trying to get into safe mode and not being able to, edited BOOT.INI ... now in endle

[StargateFanFromWork]

This was stupid of me. I listened to advice forgetting I was on WinXP and
not Win98SE (7 years on 98SE, 13 months on XP at home ... go figure). My
computer looped endlessly and wouldn't go into safe mode no matter what I
tried. The advice was to go into the boot.ini tab in msconfig and select
SAFE MODE and NETWORKING so that it would go in. No deal. No I can't get
back into Windows. And now no DOS, of course, to potentially go back in and
edit the INI manually! <sigh>

Was wondering if there was anything I could do to fix the loop issue? I
found out yesterday that a restore would probably want to wipe my entire
computer, forget the partitions (why the hell do I have them, then, I'd like
to know??), so just wanting to know if there was a way to make it so that I
could get back into WinXP?

I'me at work only today for the full day. The person I'm replacing will go
back on training only until next Monday, so hoping to get enough research
done today to fix this because I'll be without easy computer access till
then. Once I can get back to Windows, I can continue on with the issue that
needed safe mode to begin with. But that's another worry that I'll deal
with after the more important issue of getting back in.

Thank you.

 

[PcCare]

Have you tried booting from the computer manufacturers operating system
cdrom ?

http://pccare.com/ComputerStartupFailed.aspx

Mark Naughton
http://www.PcCare.com
(631) 424-0217

 

[StargateFanFromWork]

Have you tried booting from the computer manufacturers operating system
cdrom ?

Hi, thanks for responding! Lots of people not working today (well, except
me and a handful of others, like you <g>).

I didn't get one. And, of course, when I visited one of the branches of the
store yesterday (the chain where I originally bought the box, previously
Radio Shack Canada) to talk to one of the lads, he asked me if I'd put some
disk in and I said no, that I hadn't known I needed to create one (like a
Win98SE boot disk, I imagine, but in CD format for XP, yes????); he said
that that was the tragedy that his store rarely informed people of the need
to do create this CD. <grrr> So it's a little late for this step as I'm
looping in some sort of DOS-like, but not DOS-like environment, and no
matter which option I choose, after the drivers scroll through, then a black
screen for moment, I get sent back to the COMPAQ logo screen, then back to
choosing which mode I want to enter .... etc. <sigh>

Can I get one of these "boot disks" somewhere, after the fact, perhaps? I
remember that if one didn't have one's Win98SE boot disk or we didn't create
one during the 98SE install, that one could go to an MS URL somewhere and dl
one. Perhaps the same is somewhat true for the XP equivalent??

Thanks.

p.s., one quick question re XP, IF I decide to go the restore route and if
_that_ works, do I or do I not have the choice to ONLY RESTORE THE C DRIVE?
This is of vital importance. I didn't completely understand what the sales
reprentative at the store told me re this. He said it may or may not be
possible; but that XP had a tendency to want to wipe everything. At least,
that's what I think I understood him to mean. Bottom line, _not_ like in
98SE where I'd wipe just the C drive and re-install, and everything was
always safe on the other partition. Thx.

 

[Woody]

XP restore only restores the system and config, not the whole disk. The
information for creating disks is in the install information you should read
when you buy a system. A store salesperson is just that, not someone who
will hold your hand and train you. You need an XP install disk or an install
disk from the computer manufacturer. The disks you should have made were
restore disks for the preinstall on the system. This is usually in a
partition on the disk and can be restored from there or disks created. Now
you need to call the manufacturer's service number and see if they can
supply the preinstall disks for your computer. You will probably have to pay
for them..

 

[StargateFanFromWork]

XP restore only restores the system and config, not the whole disk. The
information for creating disks is in the install information you should
read when you buy a system. A store salesperson is just that, not someone
who will hold your hand and train you. You need an XP install disk or an
install

Yes, thank you. Nicely said.

Of _course_ the salesperson isn't there to train us. But how was I to know
about this disk, I'd like to ask? A simple instruction re having to make a
disk would have been appreciated.

When I bought my first computer, the install disks came with it. Same with
a second hand one, too! Where was I supposed to find out that something had
changed? I am no clairvoyant! I precisely went back to ask for the Windows
XP disks. I wasn't told then, either, thank you very much about the CD that
had to be made.

disk from the computer manufacturer. The disks you should have made were
restore disks for the preinstall on the system. This is usually in a
partition on the disk and can be restored from there or disks created. Now
you need to call the manufacturer's service number and see if they can
supply the preinstall disks for your computer. You will probably have to
pay for them.

Thanks. I'll blast XP and install 2000 first before I dish out another
penny for anything re this OS. I'm one breath away from getting an old box
for my day-to-day stuff and for what needs faster/newer components to get a
MAC! That will have to be some time down the road, but this has been coming
for a long time! The day that I can't fix a malware problem as easily as an
8 year old computer is the day that the technology no longer works for me!
At any rate, thank god I kept my Win2000 disks even though I never cared for
that OS much either. It sure was better for the user than XP ever was! I
even had to find a windows explorer replacement, XP's is so temperamental
and won't obey orders.

Anyway, thanks. I believe your intentions were good, it's just I'm in no
mood after the extremely frustrating week I've had with this 13-month old
box. It and XP have given me more grief in that time than any other
computer I've ever had just getting it to obey. XP thinks it knows best and
that I have to obey _it_! Even all the help from the XP ngs never fixed
some of the annoyances!

Cheers everyone. Happy New Year.

 

[Elmo]

This was stupid of me. I listened to advice forgetting I was on WinXP and
not Win98SE (7 years on 98SE, 13 months on XP at home ... go figure). My
computer looped endlessly and wouldn't go into safe mode no matter what I
tried. The advice was to go into the boot.ini tab in msconfig and select
SAFE MODE and NETWORKING so that it would go in. No deal. No I can't get
back into Windows. And now no DOS, of course, to potentially go back in and
edit the INI manually! <sigh>

Was wondering if there was anything I could do to fix the loop issue? I
found out yesterday that a restore would probably want to wipe my entire
computer, forget the partitions (why the hell do I have them, then, I'd like
to know??), so just wanting to know if there was a way to make it so that I
could get back into WinXP?

I'me at work only today for the full day. The person I'm replacing will go
back on training only until next Monday, so hoping to get enough research
done today to fix this because I'll be without easy computer access till
then. Once I can get back to Windows, I can continue on with the issue that
needed safe mode to begin with. But that's another worry that I'll deal
with after the more important issue of getting back in.

Thank you.

Burn a BartPE CD on another XP machine and boot to that, do your repairs.

 

[buick60]

Burn a BartPE CD on another XP machine and boot to that, do your repairs.

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm
Not sure if the first post worked.Read the instructions very carefully
and it should at least
boot up the PC.I still can't get mine into "Safe Mode".But I got it
out of the loop with this.

 

[StargateFanFromWork]

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm
Not sure if the first post worked.Read the instructions very carefully
and it should at least
boot up the PC.I still can't get mine into "Safe Mode".But I got it
out of the loop with this.

Sorry for delay in responding! I have no computer at home, of course <g>,
and they advised me that they didn't need me back here where I'm replacing
someone till today <sigh>. So it's been a long spell without computer at
home.

I haven't tried the first instructions above. Luckily for me, this machine
here at work _is_ WinXP so there might be something that can be done here.
I believe it even has some kind of burner (though since old, don't know if
it's just a CD-ROM drive).

Just out of curiousity, there are so many options on that page,
http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm, which one would anyone here recommend
to use? I suspect it's the items here:
"XP Quick Boot Diskette xpquick.zip | xpquick.exe | Read.1st". Is this
correct? My machine might have serious malware from an innocuous piece of
freeware that passed scanning tests (have to fix procedures now to never run
into _that_ problem ever again) but before I did the stupid boot.ini thing,
I was able to get into WinXP.

Once I can get back into Windows, then I can tackle handling the malware
(which I'm covered for, that part will be okay). So just to get back into
Windows.

Oh, btw, since posting, I realized that what may be problem in going into
safe mode is when system is loading drivers. Always gets stuck at mup.sys,
I believe it was, and then I get a black screen before looping back to
beginning. Before I tampered with boot.ini, I could then just choose to
load Windows again and could never get into safe mode, but Windows would
load.

Thank you! D