NTLDR not found - but I'm looking at it!

[Thriell]

Long story. typing is a pain due to Rheumatoid Arthritis in hands. plz
exscuse.

Machine one: 1.0 Ghz Celeron w/ 800mb RAM and 80Gig HD. OS is Windows
XP home.

Tuesday, 5/1, the smoke got let out of the CPU, so the machine is, for
the moment, a paperweight.

This brings Machine Two into the equation: a 533Mhz Celeron w/ 128Mb
RAM and a 15Gig hd with Win98 installed. Picked it up used, with the
stipulation that I need to format the HD to be certain that the other
guy's stuff is gone.

"No problem," says I, "I'll just take that 15Gig drive out and put my
80Gig in it's place." Yeah, right.

Performed the drive transplant and was greeted with "NTLDR not found"
upon boot. When I finished swearing, I put the smaller drive back in
and checked google for the error message. Found a discussion board
where someone suggested to another poor slob with this problem that he
copy "NTLDR" and "NTDETECT.EXE" from the I386 directory of the XP
install disk. Same thread, farther down, someone else suggests running
"FIXMBR" on the drive.

"Oh," says I, "that should be simple to fix," and the drive transplant
is repeated a third time while I don't hear the maniacle laughter of
the Fates.

After getting to the "recovery console" (which looks more like a "DOS
PROMPT" in my opinion), I look for and FIND a copy of NTLDR in the
root of my primary partition (C: drive - the drive in question has 6
partitions).

I think to myself, "Well, crud. Maybe it's corrupted" and copy the two
files from the CD and reboot.

"NTLDR is missing," says the computer.

"Horse Feathers!", says I, "I just saw it!"

Next, I go back to the Recovery Console/Dos Box thingumy and try
"FIXMBR". This little gem warns me that I have a non-standard
partition table and proceeding could make some or all partitions
inaccessable.

Methinks, "Well, THAT ain't gonna happen" and exit I from FIXMBR.

In a fit of desperation I start the setup program and am given the
opportunity to repair an existing installation of XP. Since I'm REALLY
ready for SOMETHING to go right at this point - ANYTHING, really - I
pick that option and wait 20 minutes while it replaces
every .dll, .exe, .wav, and .chm file in my \windows directory
structure, along with I-Don't-Know-What-Else.

Having deluded myself into believing that this MUST have fixed the
problem, I reboot, get the same old error message and, after an
afternoon and evening of ranting, raving, screaming, swearing, and
throwing things, I switched out the hard drives AGAIN (that's FOUR,
for those who are keeping score) and discovered this newsgroup so that
I can ask someone for a reason why I'm being told a file is missing
when I know as well as I know my own name that it isn't.

-=*(H_E_L_P___P_L_E_A_S_E)*=-

 

[Rock]

Long story. typing is a pain due to Rheumatoid Arthritis in hands. plz
exscuse.

Machine one: 1.0 Ghz Celeron w/ 800mb RAM and 80Gig HD. OS is Windows
XP home.

Tuesday, 5/1, the smoke got let out of the CPU, so the machine is, for
the moment, a paperweight.

This brings Machine Two into the equation: a 533Mhz Celeron w/ 128Mb
RAM and a 15Gig hd with Win98 installed. Picked it up used, with the
stipulation that I need to format the HD to be certain that the other
guy's stuff is gone.

"No problem," says I, "I'll just take that 15Gig drive out and put my
80Gig in it's place." Yeah, right.

Performed the drive transplant and was greeted with "NTLDR not found"
upon boot. When I finished swearing, I put the smaller drive back in
and checked google for the error message. Found a discussion board
where someone suggested to another poor slob with this problem that he
copy "NTLDR" and "NTDETECT.EXE" from the I386 directory of the XP
install disk. Same thread, farther down, someone else suggests running
"FIXMBR" on the drive.

"Oh," says I, "that should be simple to fix," and the drive transplant
is repeated a third time while I don't hear the maniacle laughter of
the Fates.

After getting to the "recovery console" (which looks more like a "DOS
PROMPT" in my opinion), I look for and FIND a copy of NTLDR in the
root of my primary partition (C: drive - the drive in question has 6
partitions).

I think to myself, "Well, crud. Maybe it's corrupted" and copy the two
files from the CD and reboot.

"NTLDR is missing," says the computer.

"Horse Feathers!", says I, "I just saw it!"

Next, I go back to the Recovery Console/Dos Box thingumy and try
"FIXMBR". This little gem warns me that I have a non-standard
partition table and proceeding could make some or all partitions
inaccessable.

Methinks, "Well, THAT ain't gonna happen" and exit I from FIXMBR.

In a fit of desperation I start the setup program and am given the
opportunity to repair an existing installation of XP. Since I'm REALLY
ready for SOMETHING to go right at this point - ANYTHING, really - I
pick that option and wait 20 minutes while it replaces
every .dll, .exe, .wav, and .chm file in my \windows directory
structure, along with I-Don't-Know-What-Else.

Having deluded myself into believing that this MUST have fixed the
problem, I reboot, get the same old error message and, after an
afternoon and evening of ranting, raving, screaming, swearing, and
throwing things, I switched out the hard drives AGAIN (that's FOUR,
for those who are keeping score) and discovered this newsgroup so that
I can ask someone for a reason why I'm being told a file is missing
when I know as well as I know my own name that it isn't.

-=*(H_E_L_P___P_L_E_A_S_E)*=-

Do you know that computer can run XP? Did you run the Upgrade Advisor on
it?

 

[Rock]

Long story. typing is a pain due to Rheumatoid Arthritis in hands. plz
exscuse.

Machine one: 1.0 Ghz Celeron w/ 800mb RAM and 80Gig HD. OS is Windows
XP home.

Tuesday, 5/1, the smoke got let out of the CPU, so the machine is, for
the moment, a paperweight.

This brings Machine Two into the equation: a 533Mhz Celeron w/ 128Mb
RAM and a 15Gig hd with Win98 installed. Picked it up used, with the
stipulation that I need to format the HD to be certain that the other
guy's stuff is gone.

"No problem," says I, "I'll just take that 15Gig drive out and put my
80Gig in it's place." Yeah, right.

Performed the drive transplant and was greeted with "NTLDR not found"
upon boot. When I finished swearing, I put the smaller drive back in
and checked google for the error message. Found a discussion board
where someone suggested to another poor slob with this problem that he
copy "NTLDR" and "NTDETECT.EXE" from the I386 directory of the XP
install disk. Same thread, farther down, someone else suggests running
"FIXMBR" on the drive.

"Oh," says I, "that should be simple to fix," and the drive transplant
is repeated a third time while I don't hear the maniacle laughter of
the Fates.

After getting to the "recovery console" (which looks more like a "DOS
PROMPT" in my opinion), I look for and FIND a copy of NTLDR in the
root of my primary partition (C: drive - the drive in question has 6
partitions).

I think to myself, "Well, crud. Maybe it's corrupted" and copy the two
files from the CD and reboot.

"NTLDR is missing," says the computer.

"Horse Feathers!", says I, "I just saw it!"

Next, I go back to the Recovery Console/Dos Box thingumy and try
"FIXMBR". This little gem warns me that I have a non-standard
partition table and proceeding could make some or all partitions
inaccessable.

Methinks, "Well, THAT ain't gonna happen" and exit I from FIXMBR.

In a fit of desperation I start the setup program and am given the
opportunity to repair an existing installation of XP. Since I'm REALLY
ready for SOMETHING to go right at this point - ANYTHING, really - I
pick that option and wait 20 minutes while it replaces
every .dll, .exe, .wav, and .chm file in my \windows directory
structure, along with I-Don't-Know-What-Else.

Having deluded myself into believing that this MUST have fixed the
problem, I reboot, get the same old error message and, after an
afternoon and evening of ranting, raving, screaming, swearing, and
throwing things, I switched out the hard drives AGAIN (that's FOUR,
for those who are keeping score) and discovered this newsgroup so that
I can ask someone for a reason why I'm being told a file is missing
when I know as well as I know my own name that it isn't.

-=*(H_E_L_P___P_L_E_A_S_E)*=-

One other question, is the version of XP Home retail or OEM?

 

[Joe]

When you started up the computer did you go into BIOS to ensure the BIOS can
see the HDD correctly?

 

[Anna]

Long story. typing is a pain due to Rheumatoid Arthritis in hands. plz
exscuse.

Machine one: 1.0 Ghz Celeron w/ 800mb RAM and 80Gig HD. OS is Windows
XP home.

Tuesday, 5/1, the smoke got let out of the CPU, so the machine is, for
the moment, a paperweight.

This brings Machine Two into the equation: a 533Mhz Celeron w/ 128Mb
RAM and a 15Gig hd with Win98 installed. Picked it up used, with the
stipulation that I need to format the HD to be certain that the other
guy's stuff is gone.

"No problem," says I, "I'll just take that 15Gig drive out and put my
80Gig in it's place." Yeah, right.

Performed the drive transplant and was greeted with "NTLDR not found"
upon boot. When I finished swearing, I put the smaller drive back in
and checked google for the error message. Found a discussion board
where someone suggested to another poor slob with this problem that he
copy "NTLDR" and "NTDETECT.EXE" from the I386 directory of the XP
install disk. Same thread, farther down, someone else suggests running
"FIXMBR" on the drive.

"Oh," says I, "that should be simple to fix," and the drive transplant
is repeated a third time while I don't hear the maniacle laughter of
the Fates.

After getting to the "recovery console" (which looks more like a "DOS
PROMPT" in my opinion), I look for and FIND a copy of NTLDR in the
root of my primary partition (C: drive - the drive in question has 6
partitions).

I think to myself, "Well, crud. Maybe it's corrupted" and copy the two
files from the CD and reboot.

"NTLDR is missing," says the computer.

"Horse Feathers!", says I, "I just saw it!"

Next, I go back to the Recovery Console/Dos Box thingumy and try
"FIXMBR". This little gem warns me that I have a non-standard
partition table and proceeding could make some or all partitions
inaccessable.

Methinks, "Well, THAT ain't gonna happen" and exit I from FIXMBR.

In a fit of desperation I start the setup program and am given the
opportunity to repair an existing installation of XP. Since I'm REALLY
ready for SOMETHING to go right at this point - ANYTHING, really - I
pick that option and wait 20 minutes while it replaces
every .dll, .exe, .wav, and .chm file in my \windows directory
structure, along with I-Don't-Know-What-Else.
(SNIP)
-=*(H_E_L_P___P_L_E_A_S_E)*=-

Thriell:
All the following is based on my understanding that what you're attempting
to do is simply transfer a HDD from one PC to another PC so that you'll have
a workable computer with that HDD containing the XP OS together with your
programs & user-created data.

First of all we'll assume that the 80 GB HDD that you're attempting to
transfer to "Machine Two" does not contain an XP operating system that was
BIOS-locked to the machine from whence it came (as in the case of many OEM
machines). And that you have a retail version of the XP Home Ed.
installation CD that will allow you to undertake a Repair install (see
below) of the OS. And that there are no OEM considerations affecting
"Machine Two" which might preclude the installation of a new HDD into that
system. The latter shouldn't be an obstacle but one never knows for sure in
these cases.

You will need to run a Repair install of the XP OS after you connect that
HDD in the new machine. The process is relatively straightforward. It would
be roughly akin to making a fresh install of the OS, but in nearly every
case your existing programs & user-created data would be retained. Notice I
said "nearly". While it would be a rather rare situation where data would be
lost or corrupted as a result of the Repair install, and as unlikely as it
may be, it *could* happen.

So if there are any programs and/or other data on your present drive that
are absolutely crucial to you and you could not tolerate its loss, then I
would strongly suggest that before installing the HDD you use whatever means
you have at your disposal to copy whatever data you want from that HDD to
some other media.

There are a number of websites that contain step-by-step instructions for
undertaking a Repair install. Let me assure you that it's not a difficult
process and not terribly time-consuming. If you do a Google search on "XP
repair install", you'll be pointed to many of these sites. Here are a few...
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm#RI
http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm
http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=138

There may be another complicating factor in this process in that following
the (hopefully) successful Repair install, you might need to install drivers
associated with components such as the motherboard and sound & video cards,
etc. Hopefully the XP OS will pick up these drivers during the Repair
install but that is not always the case so I would hope you have the
motherboard's installation CD that contains the drivers or you can obtain
them by & by.

Assuming the Repair install is successful, you should use your A-V program
to immediately check out your PC for any virus infestation. Also, you will
need to download/install *all* the MS critical updates since SP2. (I'm
assuming that if the Repair install is necessary, you will be undertaking it
with a XP CD that contains SP2). That, of course, is one of the downsides re
undertaking a Repair install. It's usually an onerous task to download all
the Critical Updates from MS especially if you have a dialup phone
connection rather than broadband.

BTW, I assume you're aware that even if this Repair install process is
successful and you then have a working machine on your hands you'll be
experiencing what I expect to be a painfully slow system. I assume this will
be only a stopgap measure until you get your other system repaired or
replaced.
Anna

 

[Frank Saunders, MS-MVP OE/WM]

Long story. typing is a pain due to Rheumatoid Arthritis in hands. plz
exscuse.

Machine one: 1.0 Ghz Celeron w/ 800mb RAM and 80Gig HD. OS is Windows
XP home.

Tuesday, 5/1, the smoke got let out of the CPU, so the machine is, for
the moment, a paperweight.

This brings Machine Two into the equation: a 533Mhz Celeron w/ 128Mb
RAM and a 15Gig hd with Win98 installed. Picked it up used, with the
stipulation that I need to format the HD to be certain that the other
guy's stuff is gone.

"No problem," says I, "I'll just take that 15Gig drive out and put my
80Gig in it's place." Yeah, right.

Performed the drive transplant and was greeted with "NTLDR not found"
upon boot. When I finished swearing, I put the smaller drive back in
and checked google for the error message. Found a discussion board
where someone suggested to another poor slob with this problem that he
copy "NTLDR" and "NTDETECT.EXE" from the I386 directory of the XP
install disk. Same thread, farther down, someone else suggests running
"FIXMBR" on the drive.

"Oh," says I, "that should be simple to fix," and the drive transplant
is repeated a third time while I don't hear the maniacle laughter of
the Fates.

After getting to the "recovery console" (which looks more like a "DOS
PROMPT" in my opinion), I look for and FIND a copy of NTLDR in the
root of my primary partition (C: drive - the drive in question has 6
partitions).

I think to myself, "Well, crud. Maybe it's corrupted" and copy the two
files from the CD and reboot.

"NTLDR is missing," says the computer.

"Horse Feathers!", says I, "I just saw it!"

Next, I go back to the Recovery Console/Dos Box thingumy and try
"FIXMBR". This little gem warns me that I have a non-standard
partition table and proceeding could make some or all partitions
inaccessable.

Methinks, "Well, THAT ain't gonna happen" and exit I from FIXMBR.

In a fit of desperation I start the setup program and am given the
opportunity to repair an existing installation of XP. Since I'm REALLY
ready for SOMETHING to go right at this point - ANYTHING, really - I
pick that option and wait 20 minutes while it replaces
every .dll, .exe, .wav, and .chm file in my \windows directory
structure, along with I-Don't-Know-What-Else.

Having deluded myself into believing that this MUST have fixed the
problem, I reboot, get the same old error message and, after an
afternoon and evening of ranting, raving, screaming, swearing, and
throwing things, I switched out the hard drives AGAIN (that's FOUR,
for those who are keeping score) and discovered this newsgroup so that
I can ask someone for a reason why I'm being told a file is missing
when I know as well as I know my own name that it isn't.

-=*(H_E_L_P___P_L_E_A_S_E)*=-

Is this a retail copy of WinXP? If it came with computer 1 it is probably
tied to that computer and cannot be installed on a different computer.

 

[Thriell]

One other question, is the version of XP Home retail or OEM?

It's XP Home Retail w/ Service Pack Two.

 

[Thriell]

When you started up the computer did you go into BIOS to ensure the BIOS can
see the HDD correctly?

Yes, the bios reports the correct size for the drive and the "recovery
console" can see all six partitions (drives c: thru h.

 

[Thriell]

Thriell:
All the following is based on my understanding that what you're attempting
to do is simply transfer a HDD from one PC to another PC so that you'll have
a workable computer with that HDD containing the XP OS together with your
programs & user-created data.

Correct. I need some way to access all my programs/data on the 80 gig
drive until Santa
Claus brings me a new CPU.

First of all we'll assume that the 80 GB HDD that you're attempting to
transfer to "Machine Two" does not contain an XP operating system that was
BIOS-locked to the machine from whence it came (as in the case of many OEM
machines).

I, frankly, have no way of telling. I just know that it's an HP
Pavillion that was shipped with
98 pre-installed.

And that you have a retail version of the XP Home Ed.
Correct.

And that there are no OEM considerations affecting
"Machine Two" which might preclude the installation of a new HDD into that
system. The latter shouldn't be an obstacle but one never knows for sure in
these cases.

Again, I'm not 100% sure, but I do know that the WinXP Recovery
Console was able to read
the entire 80gig drive with no complaints.

You will need to run a Repair install of the XP OS after you connect that
HDD in the new machine.
(Again)

The process is relatively straightforward. It would
be roughly akin to making a fresh install of the OS, but in nearly every
case your existing programs & user-created data would be retained. Notice I
said "nearly". While it would be a rather rare situation where data would be
lost or corrupted as a result of the Repair install, and as unlikely as it
may be, it *could* happen.

If that is what I think you're talking about (start setup and select
"R" to repair an existing
installation after it determines that XP already exists on that
drive), I've already done that
and, after I watched it copy 80 gazillion files, I still got the same
error message.

So if there are any programs and/or other data on your present drive that
are absolutely crucial to you and you could not tolerate its loss, then I
would strongly suggest that before installing the HDD you use whatever means
you have at your disposal to copy whatever data you want from that HDD to
some other media.

I have access to two machines. One has a dead cpu. the other makes my
blood pressure
go up every time I get the 80gig drive near it. I don't see a way to
back up anything on that
drive.

There are a number of websites that contain step-by-step instructions for
undertaking a Repair install. Let me assure you that it's not a difficult
process and not terribly time-consuming. If you do a Google search on "XP
repair install", you'll be pointed to many of these sites. Here are a

[snip]

Thanks, I'll look into those.

There may be another complicating factor in this process in that following
the (hopefully) successful Repair install, you might need to install drivers
associated with components such as the motherboard and sound & video cards,
etc. Hopefully the XP OS will pick up these drivers during the Repair
install but that is not always the case so I would hope you have the
motherboard's installation CD that contains the drivers or you can obtain
them by & by.

I have all the CDs that were originally sold w/ the computer,
including two "restore"
disks. I'm praying that somewhere on those all the necesary drivers
exist.

Assuming the Repair install is successful, you should use your A-V program
to immediately check out your PC for any virus infestation.

I'll do that just as a matter of course, but the reason the cpu died
was overheating. I have
two fans on it, but I've been negligent in cleaning dust off of them -
I moved a while back and
the problem is much worse than I realized in this place. The dust was
thick enough to make
the fans useless!

Also, you will
need to download/install *all* the MS critical updates since SP2. (I'm
assuming that if the Repair install is necessary, you will be undertaking it
with a XP CD that contains SP2). That, of course, is one of the downsides re
undertaking a Repair install. It's usually an onerous task to download all
the Critical Updates from MS especially if you have a dialup phone
connection rather than broadband.

Oh, be still my heart! I get to do that AGAIN? I just installed xp for
the first time a couple of
months ago and, yes, I'm on dialup. Nothing else is available out in
the middle of nowhere
where I live. I'm REALLY looking forward to that!

BTW, I assume you're aware that even if this Repair install process is
successful and you then have a working machine on your hands you'll be
experiencing what I expect to be a painfully slow system. I assume this will
be only a stopgap measure until you get your other system repaired or
replaced.

I'm already complaining about this system that goes 1/2 the speed I'm
used to! It works, but
as soon as the other one is fixed, this one goes in the closet!

 

[Anna]

Thriell:
I trust you now understand (assuming you've taken a look at one or more of
those websites I listed) that the Repair install of the XP operating system
is *not* what you thought it is when you stated "If that is what I think
you're talking about (start setup and select "R" to repair an existing
installation after it determines that XP already exists on that drive), I've
already done that and, after I watched it copy 80 gazillion files, I still
got the same error message." What you're referring to and what you've
already attempted (apparently without success) is accessing the Recovery
console in order to enter some commands that would resolve the problem. The
Repair installation of which I speak and its process as detailed in those
websites I referred you to is a completely different process. Anyway, give
it a go and hopefully you'll have a bootable functioning system.
Anna

Thriell:
All the following is based on my understanding that what you're
attempting
to do is simply transfer a HDD from one PC to another PC so that you'll
have
a workable computer with that HDD containing the XP OS together with your
programs & user-created data.

Correct. I need some way to access all my programs/data on the 80 gig
drive until Santa
Claus brings me a new CPU.

First of all we'll assume that the 80 GB HDD that you're attempting to
transfer to "Machine Two" does not contain an XP operating system that
was
BIOS-locked to the machine from whence it came (as in the case of many
OEM
machines).

I, frankly, have no way of telling. I just know that it's an HP
Pavillion that was shipped with
98 pre-installed.

And that you have a retail version of the XP Home Ed.
Correct.

And that there are no OEM considerations affecting
"Machine Two" which might preclude the installation of a new HDD into
that
system. The latter shouldn't be an obstacle but one never knows for sure
in
these cases.

Again, I'm not 100% sure, but I do know that the WinXP Recovery
Console was able to read
the entire 80gig drive with no complaints.

You will need to run a Repair install of the XP OS after you connect that
HDD in the new machine.
(Again)

The process is relatively straightforward. It would
be roughly akin to making a fresh install of the OS, but in nearly every
case your existing programs & user-created data would be retained. Notice
I
said "nearly". While it would be a rather rare situation where data would
be
lost or corrupted as a result of the Repair install, and as unlikely as
it
may be, it *could* happen.

If that is what I think you're talking about (start setup and select
"R" to repair an existing
installation after it determines that XP already exists on that
drive), I've already done that
and, after I watched it copy 80 gazillion files, I still got the same
error message.

So if there are any programs and/or other data on your present drive that
are absolutely crucial to you and you could not tolerate its loss, then I
would strongly suggest that before installing the HDD you use whatever
means
you have at your disposal to copy whatever data you want from that HDD to
some other media.

I have access to two machines. One has a dead cpu. the other makes my
blood pressure
go up every time I get the 80gig drive near it. I don't see a way to
back up anything on that
drive.

There are a number of websites that contain step-by-step instructions for
undertaking a Repair install. Let me assure you that it's not a difficult
process and not terribly time-consuming. If you do a Google search on "XP
repair install", you'll be pointed to many of these sites. Here are a

[snip]

Thanks, I'll look into those.

There may be another complicating factor in this process in that
following
the (hopefully) successful Repair install, you might need to install
drivers
associated with components such as the motherboard and sound & video
cards,
etc. Hopefully the XP OS will pick up these drivers during the Repair
install but that is not always the case so I would hope you have the
motherboard's installation CD that contains the drivers or you can obtain
them by & by.

I have all the CDs that were originally sold w/ the computer,
including two "restore"
disks. I'm praying that somewhere on those all the necesary drivers
exist.

Assuming the Repair install is successful, you should use your A-V
program
to immediately check out your PC for any virus infestation.

I'll do that just as a matter of course, but the reason the cpu died
was overheating. I have
two fans on it, but I've been negligent in cleaning dust off of them -
I moved a while back and
the problem is much worse than I realized in this place. The dust was
thick enough to make
the fans useless!

Also, you will
need to download/install *all* the MS critical updates since SP2. (I'm
assuming that if the Repair install is necessary, you will be undertaking
it
with a XP CD that contains SP2). That, of course, is one of the downsides
re
undertaking a Repair install. It's usually an onerous task to download
all
the Critical Updates from MS especially if you have a dialup phone
connection rather than broadband.

Oh, be still my heart! I get to do that AGAIN? I just installed xp for
the first time a couple of
months ago and, yes, I'm on dialup. Nothing else is available out in
the middle of nowhere
where I live. I'm REALLY looking forward to that!

BTW, I assume you're aware that even if this Repair install process is
successful and you then have a working machine on your hands you'll be
experiencing what I expect to be a painfully slow system. I assume this
will
be only a stopgap measure until you get your other system repaired or
replaced.

I'm already complaining about this system that goes 1/2 the speed I'm
used to! It works, but
as soon as the other one is fixed, this one goes in the closet!