cant start up-major problem after attempted service pack 4 install

[karina]

I was running windows 2000 pro. I wanted to install some
new softsiteware that required service pack 2 or higher to
be installed. i downloaded Service Pack 4 from microso9ft
downloads page. Since the process of installing can become
quite long, i started the procedure and then went to bed.
when i awoke the next morning, there was some error about
not having enough room to finish installation (i didnt
actually see this, my boyfriend did), next thing i know is
my computer continues to restart but never actually gets
to start up or welcome page.

I have the windows 2000 installation cd but cannot figure
out how to boot from the cd drive on my dell latitude cpi
laptop. so i am stuck.
could someone tell me what i can do? also i have very
important files and family pictures on my hard drives,
will i ever be able to access this stuff again?

any help is greatly appreciated.
karina

 

[Chuck]

First: Always download the entire file before installing it . . . it just is
better than trying to download pieces.
Second: You could attempt to "fix" Windows 2000, but after that . . . copy
and save your important files and then reinstall windows.
Third: In order to boot from the CD, insert the CD into the CD drive and
then start/restart the machine, if you do NOT see the option to boot from
the CD then you will need to enter your machine's CMOS/BIOS . . .
Fourth: To enter your systems CMOS/BIOS you will need to either hit your
DELETE key or your F2 key while the machine is starting -- usually, it's one
or the other. You will see plenty of options . . . don't mess with any of
them, but look for the BOOT order options and make sure that CD-ROM is
first. When you've selected the proper order (for example: CD, A drive,
hard disk) then save and exit the CMOS/BIOS . . . as long as the CD is in
the drive, you should have the option to boot from the CD when you restart .
.. .
When it boots, you should see an option to "repair" the installation . . .
give that a try. -- good luck.

 

[karina]

Chuck, thanks for quick response. the cd is in drive but
not booting from it. I went into CMOS/BIOS but am unsure
how to change the order. It tells me that it goes in the
order diskette, hard drive, then cd drive. I have pushed
just about ever key but cannot seem to change it. The cd
is a backup copy of the installation disk (burned). does
this matter?
I am desperate to see my desktop again.thanks for yur time

 

[karina]

Chuck,
here is the error message i get when trying to start up,
"windows 2000 could not start because the following file
is missing or corrupt:
<windows 2000 root>/system32/ntoskrnl.exe."

i wonder how my computer thinks i might reinstall it if
the darn thing wont let me get in.

 

[Chuck]

Okay . . . you say the order is: "diskette, hard drive, then cd drive"

You need to change that order possibly by hitting ALT and the RIGHT ARROW
KEY or whatever the BIOS says . . . take the time to read the screen along
the bottom and the right sides.

Of course, since the floppy is first in your order we can start the Windows
set up with floppies . . .

You are obviously using a computer right now . . . do you have a floppy
drive? You'll need 4 floppies and your Windows 2000 CD-ROM . . .

To create setup disks
1.. Insert a blank, formatted, 3.5-inch, 1.44-MB disk into the floppy disk
drive.
2.. Insert the Windows 2000 CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive.
3.. Click Start, and then click Run.
4.. In the Open box, type d:\bootdisk\makeboot a: (where d: is the drive
letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive), and then click OK.
5.. Follow the screen prompts.
When you're done insert the floppy in the machine's drive and start the
machine . . . it will ask for disk 2, then 3, then 4, . . . when prompted,
after floppy four you will need your WIndows 2000 CD . . . then when asked
try to REPAIR the Windows 2000 installation on the machine.

 

[Chuck]

"Ntoskrnl.exe Could Not Be Loaded" Error Message on PXE Client
View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q262268
SYMPTOMS
When you are booting a Pre-Boot Execution Environment (PXE) client, you may
receive the following error message:

Windows 2000 Setup

File \Setup\English\IMAGES\ImageFolderName\I386\Ntoskrnl.exe could not be
loaded.

The error code is 21

Setup cannot continue. Press any key to exit.
CAUSE
This error message can occur if the Ntoskrnl.exe file is corrupted, missing,
or the wrong version (for Windows 2000 build 2195, the version number should
be 5.0.2195.1).

This problem occurs whenever anything is wrong with the Ntoskrnl.exe file in
a Remote Installation Service (RIS) image.
RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, copy the Ntoskrnl.exe file from the retail Windows
2000 CD-ROM or from the appropriate service pack to the folder that contains
the RIS image that you are attempting to install.

Sample path on the RIS server:
Drive:\RemoteInstall\Setup\English\IMAGES\ImageFolderName\I386\

The information in this article applies to:
a.. Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional

 

[Chuck]

"Windows NT Could Not Start...Ntoskrnl.exe" error message
View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q124550
For a Microsoft Windows XP version of this article, see 314477.


SYMPTOMS
When you try to start Microsoft Windows NT, you may receive the following
error message:

Windows NT could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:

Winnt_root\System32\Ntoskrnl.exe

Please re-install a copy of the above file.
CAUSE
This behavior can occur if any of the following conditions exist:
a.. The Default value in the [Boot Loader] section of the Boot.ini file is
missing or invalid.
b.. Windows NT is not installed in the location specified in the Boot.ini
file.
c.. For Microsoft Windows 2000, the Hal.dll file can be corrupted or
missing.
NOTE: This issue can also occur in Windows NT 4.0 and 3.5 if the system
partition is larger than 7.8 gigabytes and system boot files have be placed
outside of the 7.8 GB limit (possibly as a result of applying a service pack
or defragmenting the drive). Windows XP does not have this limitation. This
is a hardware limitation and occurs independently of the operating system.
This should not be an issue on newer computer if their BIOS supports INT13
Extensions and this feature is turned on, which it is by default.

For additional information, click the following article number to view the
article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
224526 Windows NT 4.0 supports maximum of 7.8-GB system partition

RESOLUTION
To resolve this problem, use one of the following methods:
Method One
Start the operating system with a bootable disk. After you start the
operating system, edit the Default entry in Boot.ini and ensure that the
other entries in the [Operating Systems] section point to the appropriate
directories.

For additional information about creating a bootable disk for Windows NT or
Windows 2000, click the following article number to view the article in the
Microsoft Knowledge Base:
119467 How to create a bootable disk for an NTFS or FAT partition

Method Two
Use the repair process to correct inconsistencies in the Boot.ini file. To
do so, follow these steps:
1.. Start your computer using the three Windows NT Setup diskettes. When
prompted, type R to begin the repair process.
2.. Insert the Emergency Repair Disk (ERD) in the floppy drive when you
are prompted.
3.. When prompted, enable only the Inspect Startup Environment option to
correct inconsistencies in the Boot.ini file.
4.. Follow the instructions on your screen to complete the repair process.
Method Three
If you determine the system partition is larger than 7.8 GB, Windows NT has
been setup in an unsupported configuration, and the drive will need to be
repartitioned to a size less than 7.8 GB.
Method Four (Windows 2000)
To fix a corrupted Hal.dll file, restore the Hal.dll file from a backup to
the %windir%\sytem32\ folder.

For additional information about how to fix a corrupted Hal.dll file, click
the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:
237556 How to troubleshoot Windows 2000 hardware abstraction layer issues

MORE INFORMATION
If the Default value in the [Boot Loader] section of the Boot.ini file is
missing, Windows NT displays a new entry in the OS Loader (boot loader) menu
named "NT (default)" and defaults to the new entry. The "NT (default)" entry
points to the following path to load Windows NT:


multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT
For additional information about the Boot.ini file, click the following
article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
102873 Boot.Ini and ARC path naming conventions and usage

 

[Chuck]

Err Msg: Windows Could Not Start...(Missing Ntoskrnl.exe)
View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q103673
SYMPTOMS
When you try to start Windows on a system with IBM OS/2 version 2.x, the
following error message is displayed:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
<winnt root>\System32\ Ntoskrnl.exe.
CAUSE
OS/2 Boot Manager creates another primary hard disk partition that is
enumerated before any extended partitions.
RESOLUTION
Edit your Boot.ini file and change the partition information by performing
the following steps:
1.. Remove the Read Only and System File attributes from the Boot.ini file
by typing the following command at an MS-DOS or OS/2 command line:
Attrib -S -R C:\Boot.ini

2.. Edit the Boot.ini file and change the partition number for Windows. In
most cases, you need to increase the partition number by one. A typical
Windows line in the Boot.ini file looks similar to the following, where x is
the partition number and <ntdir> is the name of the folder into which
Windows is installed:
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(x)\<ntdir>="Windows NT Workstation
Version 4.00"

For additional information about the Boot.ini file, click the article number
below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
102873 BOOT.INI and ARC Path Naming Conventions and Usag

 

[David]

Chuck,
here is the error message i get when trying to start up,
"windows 2000 could not start because the following file
is missing or corrupt:
<windows 2000 root>/system32/ntoskrnl.exe."

i wonder how my computer thinks i might reinstall it if
the darn thing wont let me get in.

Of course, it's very frustrating, but you just have to learn how to
work with it a little. It's not too hard to do, just don't get too
upset with it.

Chuck's advice to have your computer boot up from the CD was great.

I'd forget the floppy method, in your situation.

If you can't get your Windows CD copy to boot, then stick in the
original, clearly.

If you can't get your boot order arranged properly so the computer
will boot up from the CD, then you need to go into your BIOS and
change your boot order. The CD needs to be BEFORE the hard drive.

I can't emphasize enough to sit on your fingers, watch what the heck
you're doing, and change NOTHING else in the BIOS, except the boot
order.

Usually, two arrow keys are used to navigate the highlight field, and
the other two arrow keys are used to change the highlighted field.

Be sure to save your change before exiting (or as you exit), from the
BIOS program.

Sounds like you have a corrupt file from the update trying to write a
change, and your hard drive got too full, but I could be mistaken.

If you do a complete re-install or a reformat of any kind, your data
will be unaccessable, so don't do that!


Good luck.

Dave

























Go Metric!

 

[karina]

Hi Chuck,
I just wanted to let you know I followed your step by step
instructions about making floppy disks then repairiung my
hard drive. And guess what. It worked. granted I was a
little confused and it took me a couple of times, but it
finaaly worked like a charm. You can't know what an impact
you have made on my life. You helped me save critical data
that might have been lost otherwise and now i have a fuly
functional laptop again. I will not be updating to SP4
again. I am back at 2000 Pro and happy at that. Thank you
so much Chuck. It never ceases to amaze me that I can
always get better information and results using newsgroups
than I ever could from a technical support phone #.
Wherever you are Chuck, know that you are appreciated.
Thanks a bunch.,
Karina

 

[Michel]

Hi Chuck, I'm having a similar problem as Karina had and
also did all the steps indicated. Restarted with the 4
disks and win 2000 pro install disk. Tried all the
different options that Repair offers but still to no
avail. My PC keeps loading Win 2000 Pro up to what seems a
complete load when looking at the progress bar but then
switches off and restart.
Also tried booting from a boot disk and an emergency
repair disk. It just keeps switching off and restarts...
ANy other suggestions?
Thanks,
Michel