Disk Needs Formatting

[rn5a]

I have Win2K Pro installed in the C:\ & WinXP Pro installed in the D:\
of my m/c. Usually I use WinXP Pro, hence I have set it as the primary
OS.

After working on my m/c for around 6-7 hours today evening, I swtiched
it off & went for my dinner. When I came back & restarted WinXP, I got
the *hal.dll file missing or corrupt* error!

I restarted my m/c, logged into Win2K Pro & opened *My Computer* but
when I tried to open D:\, Win2K tells me that the disk is not
formatted & that it needs formatting!

What do I do now?

I JUST CANNOT AFFORD TO FORMAT D:\ AT ANY COST! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Someone please suggest me a way to get out of this massacre.

I had shut down WinXP Pro properly (closed all open windows, clicked
the *Start* button, then selected *Shut down* & finally clicked the
*OK* button) just before going for my dinner. I neither installed any
new hardware or software nor did I do any mischief that might prevent
WinXP from booting normally when I restart WinXP the next time; then
why does Windows do this on its own? What sin have I committed for
WinXP to behave in this manner? This is so frustrating. Why doesn't
Microsoft ensure that Windows doesn't crash by itself (unless & until
someone deletes some files/folders that Windows uses to boot or any
other mischievious activities)?

 

[Guest]

Read this article
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314477/EN-US/

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I have Win2K Pro installed in the C:\ & WinXP Pro installed in the D:\
of my m/c. Usually I use WinXP Pro, hence I have set it as the primary
OS.

After working on my m/c for around 6-7 hours today evening, I swtiched
it off & went for my dinner. When I came back & restarted WinXP, I got
the *hal.dll file missing or corrupt* error!

I restarted my m/c, logged into Win2K Pro & opened *My Computer* but
when I tried to open D:\, Win2K tells me that the disk is not
formatted & that it needs formatting!

What do I do now?

I JUST CANNOT AFFORD TO FORMAT D:\ AT ANY COST! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Someone please suggest me a way to get out of this massacre.

I had shut down WinXP Pro properly (closed all open windows, clicked
the *Start* button, then selected *Shut down* & finally clicked the
*OK* button) just before going for my dinner. I neither installed any
new hardware or software nor did I do any mischief that might prevent
WinXP from booting normally when I restart WinXP the next time; then
why does Windows do this on its own? What sin have I committed for
WinXP to behave in this manner? This is so frustrating. Why doesn't
Microsoft ensure that Windows doesn't crash by itself (unless & until
someone deletes some files/folders that Windows uses to boot or any
other mischievious activities)?>

Whenever I read things like "I cannot afford to lose this data" or
"My life depends on it" I wonder why people don't back up their
data regularly while they can. An external hard disk in a USB case
costs less than $100 - it's about the cheapest life saver I can think of.

You must install your disk as a slave disk in somebody else's PC,
then run some data recovery tool. You must not use your disk for
anything in the meantime - the more you use it, the smaller your
chances of success. If you are not an expert in such things and if
your life really depends on retrieving your data then you must give
the disk to a data recovery service. The risk of you losing whatever
is still there is too great.

http://www.restorer2000.com/r2k.htm
http://www.hddrecovery.com.au
http://bootmaster.filerecovery.biz
http://www.runtime.org/ (GetDataBack - has a trial version)
http://www.softwarepatch.com/software/filerecoverysecdownload.html
http://www.snapfiles.com/get/restoration.html
www.acronis.com (RecoveryExpert)

 

[db]

sounds like your ntfs crashed.
you likely were too busy to engage
in regular disk maintenance or
something.

if so, then your data is still on
the disk, it is simply inaccessible
without taking corrective measures.

if you did not use an ntfs system
then it is highly likely you simply
lost the data and may need to
send the hd out to be "recovered".

in any case, try downloading the
free trial version of acronis disk director
and install it on a working partition.

it can scan that crashed ntfs drive and
show you some of the files and proof
that it can repair it. however, it won't repair
the crashed drive without purchase.

- db
I have Win2K Pro installed in the C:\ & WinXP Pro installed in the D:\
of my m/c. Usually I use WinXP Pro, hence I have set it as the primary
OS.

After working on my m/c for around 6-7 hours today evening, I swtiched
it off & went for my dinner. When I came back & restarted WinXP, I got
the *hal.dll file missing or corrupt* error!

I restarted my m/c, logged into Win2K Pro & opened *My Computer* but
when I tried to open D:\, Win2K tells me that the disk is not
formatted & that it needs formatting!

What do I do now?

I JUST CANNOT AFFORD TO FORMAT D:\ AT ANY COST! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

Someone please suggest me a way to get out of this massacre.

I had shut down WinXP Pro properly (closed all open windows, clicked
the *Start* button, then selected *Shut down* & finally clicked the
*OK* button) just before going for my dinner. I neither installed any
new hardware or software nor did I do any mischief that might prevent
WinXP from booting normally when I restart WinXP the next time; then
why does Windows do this on its own? What sin have I committed for
WinXP to behave in this manner? This is so frustrating. Why doesn't
Microsoft ensure that Windows doesn't crash by itself (unless & until
someone deletes some files/folders that Windows uses to boot or any
other mischievious activities)?

 

[Poprivet]

I JUST CANNOT AFFORD TO FORMAT D:\ AT ANY COST! MY LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!

....

Well, once you get yourself out of that mess, maybe you'll understand why
anyone with any computer sense, BACKS UP their important data. Sounds like
your life may not be worth much now.

Have you tried a Repair INstall?

 

[rn5a]

(e-mail address removed) wrote:

...




...

Well, once you get yourself out of that mess, maybe you'll understand why
anyone with any computer sense, BACKS UP their important data. Sounds like
your life may not be worth much now.

Have you tried a Repair INstall?

Hold on...mates....my entire hard disk is backed-up. So I won't be
losing anything. The problem is the time taken to download & install
the programs I need again. For e.g. Win2K SP4, Visual Web Developer
2005, SQL Server 2005, .NET Framework3.0, IE6, Windows Media Player,
security patches etc. Downloading & then installing them eats up a lot
of time. Trying to download a few of them simultaneously will further
increase the downloading time; hence I will have to download them one
at a time. Even the suggestion given by Pegasus might consume a lot of
time, more so because it's close to midnight now & tomorrow, being a
Sunday, is a holiday!

Because of these reasons, I might lose out atleast 3, if not more,
huge projects which are knocking at my door & the money these projects
are offering can make my life! After all, time is money!

DB, can you recommend any FREE softwares similar to Acronis Disk
Director that will also repair the crashed hard disk? Of course, I can
Google it but.......

BTW, thanks to all of you for your ideas & suggestions.

RON

 

[rn5a]

Hold on...mates....my entire hard disk is backed-up. So I won't be
losing anything. The problem is the time taken to download & install
the programs I need again. For e.g. Win2K SP4, Visual Web Developer
2005, SQL Server 2005, .NET Framework3.0, IE6, Windows Media Player,
security patches etc. Downloading & then installing them eats up a lot
of time. Trying to download a few of them simultaneously will further
increase the downloading time; hence I will have to download them one
at a time. Even the suggestion given by Pegasus might consume a lot of
time, more so because it's close to midnight now & tomorrow, being a
Sunday, is a holiday!

Because of these reasons, I might lose out atleast 3, if not more,
huge projects which are knocking at my door & the money these projects
are offering can make my life! After all, time is money!

DB, can you recommend any FREE softwares similar to Acronis Disk
Director that will also repair the crashed hard disk? Of course, I can
Google it but.......

BTW, thanks to all of you for your ideas & suggestions.

RON

Forgot to point out another thing - C:\ & D:\ are 2 partitions on the
same hard disk. So had the hard disk crashed then I believe my
machine. wouldn't have allowed me to login to Win2K as well, isn't it?
I am not sure.....

 

[db]

oooh, i really wish i could
recommend one to you.

but honestly, i would not rely
on freeware for this operation.

keeping in mind that most
freeware is reliable, there is
always a risk involved and
no gaurantee's and i certainly
would not take a risk with
valuable files.

at this time, we are not really
sure if the ntfs has crashed, although
it seems reasonable.

what i would suggest is to
download the free trial from
acronis, since it is proven to
be flawless.

use it only to confirm or deny
that the ntfs has crashed. if
it validates that the ntfs is
recoverable, then you know
what fix you need for your issue.

at least you will be able to sleep
tonight without worries, since you
have confirmed that your data is
there and basically safe.

later, you can spend time
scouring the net for ntfs recovery
methods, beginning with microsoft.

or possibly another contributor here
can provide a freeware that they
have used and provened to have
worked with reliable results.

or you can simply buy the program
and use it's many features for directing
your disks and partitions.

as a simple suggestion that might help
to minimize loss of personal data is to create
a partition exclusively for the personal
data files. that way if the o.s. crashes,
the o.s. partition will be affected and not
your personal partition. Replacing the
o.s. and software would only be an
inconvenience and not a heart attack
like loosing the personal data.

- db

(e-mail address removed) wrote:

...




...

Well, once you get yourself out of that mess, maybe you'll understand why
anyone with any computer sense, BACKS UP their important data. Sounds like
your life may not be worth much now.

Have you tried a Repair INstall?

Hold on...mates....my entire hard disk is backed-up. So I won't be
losing anything. The problem is the time taken to download & install
the programs I need again. For e.g. Win2K SP4, Visual Web Developer
2005, SQL Server 2005, .NET Framework3.0, IE6, Windows Media Player,
security patches etc. Downloading & then installing them eats up a lot
of time. Trying to download a few of them simultaneously will further
increase the downloading time; hence I will have to download them one
at a time. Even the suggestion given by Pegasus might consume a lot of
time, more so because it's close to midnight now & tomorrow, being a
Sunday, is a holiday!

Because of these reasons, I might lose out atleast 3, if not more,
huge projects which are knocking at my door & the money these projects
are offering can make my life! After all, time is money!

DB, can you recommend any FREE softwares similar to Acronis Disk
Director that will also repair the crashed hard disk? Of course, I can
Google it but.......

BTW, thanks to all of you for your ideas & suggestions.

RON

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Hold on...mates....my entire hard disk is backed-up. So I won't be
losing anything. The problem is the time taken to download & install
the programs I need again. For e.g. Win2K SP4, Visual Web Developer
2005, SQL Server 2005, .NET Framework3.0, IE6, Windows Media Player,
security patches etc. Downloading & then installing them eats up a lot
of time. Trying to download a few of them simultaneously will further
increase the downloading time; hence I will have to download them one
at a time. Even the suggestion given by Pegasus might consume a lot of
time, more so because it's close to midnight now & tomorrow, being a
Sunday, is a holiday!

Because of these reasons, I might lose out atleast 3, if not more,
huge projects which are knocking at my door & the money these projects
are offering can make my life! After all, time is money!

DB, can you recommend any FREE softwares similar to Acronis Disk
Director that will also repair the crashed hard disk? Of course, I can
Google it but.......

BTW, thanks to all of you for your ideas & suggestions.

RON

You might want to tone down your language a bit. Your life does
obviously not depend on restoring this data but the effort might
wreck your free Sunday. It seems what you really wanted to ask
is this: My data is fully backed up. How can I restore it with the
least amount of effort, without spending any money and without
sacrificing my weekend.

Since your data is fully backed up, you can try some of the
recovery programs suggested by various respondents without
swapping disks. If this does not work then it's a rebuild job.
To protect yourself against similar mishaps in future, install an
imaging product such as Acronis TrueImage and take a
snapshot of your machine once every few months. A full
restoration will then take less than one hour.

 

[Andy]

Try running TestDisk <http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk>, or
File Recovery
<http://www.pcinspector.de/file_recovery/uk/welcome.htm>.

 

[whiteurls]

You can even try Stellar Phoenix NTFS data recovery software. It will
cost 79$.
Try the demo first, Download it from http://www.stellarinfo.com/recover-windows-nt.htm
Scan your hard drive and see if you are able to see any data through
the demo. If you can then get the full version to save it.
Best of Luck...