Domain issue after reinstall

[Martin Magnusson]

I just had to reinstall XP Pro after my old installation couldn't find
the file hal.dll. Now, I seem to have lost my CD, so I installed from
another CD (with another CD key, but otherwise I think they are identical).

I chose to repair my previous installation while installing, and
everything seemed to go fine until the last moment, when I was asked to
create new user accounts. That was surprising, because the last time I
did a similar maneuver I think Windows found my old accounts automatically.

Now, whatever I do at the login screen I get a message saying "The
system can not log you on due to the following error: The specified
domain either does not exist or could not be contacted. Please try again
or consult your system administrator." The same thing happens if I try
to login with my newly created account, as Administrator with the admin
password or as Administrator with blank password. Also, I don't believe
I actually have a domain.

Is this a familiar problem? Am I in a large amount of excrement? Do I
need to look harder for my own CD and make another install from that?

/ martin

 

[Drew Tognola]

Is your old profile still in your C:\Documents and Settings folder? If so >
right-click on 'My Computer' > 'Properties' > 'Hardware' > Hardware
Profiles'. Is your old profile listed? If so, make that the 'current'
profile. > OK.
If this doesn't work can you use 'System Restore' to go back to before the
install with the other CD? Then I suggest you find your CD. Good Luck.
Drew

* check the 'Select the first profile listed if I don't select a profile in'
or it will ask for a profile each time Windows

 

[Martin Magnusson]

Is your old profile still in your C:\Documents and Settings folder?

I don't know, because I can't login (even as administrator). That means
I can't access "My Computer" either, or even do a System Restore. Thanks
for your answer, though.

/ martin

 

[NobodyMan]

I don't know, because I can't login (even as administrator). That means
I can't access "My Computer" either, or even do a System Restore. Thanks
for your answer, though.

/ martin

Try this: at the Logon window (which shows up after you press
Ctl-Alt-Del to logon), type in Administrator for user, then whatever
password you assigned it (if you didn't assign an Administrator
password, leave it blank), then click on the button that says
"Options>>."

It should provide a box now that says "Log on to." Change that to
whatever has (this computer) with it.

If those options aren't there, then I'm stumped. Somehow you've
convinced your computer you were part of a domain during install. The
above advice allows you to logon to the local machine using the built
in Admin account, and giving you full admin privileges ON THAT MACHINE
ONLY (you can't adminster the Domain from that account).

 

[Plato]

I just had to reinstall XP Pro after my old installation couldn't find
the file hal.dll. Now, I seem to have lost my CD, so I installed from

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootlist/139.htm#3

 

[Martin Magnusson]

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootlist/139.htm#3

Thanks a lot for that link. Too bad I didn't know about that before I
reinstalled Winows. Argh... it would have been so easy to fix, and now
I've made a complete mess out of everything instead.

/ martin

 

[Martin Magnusson]

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootlist/139.htm#3

When booting normally, I get two versions of Windows XP now: The top one
leads to the reinstalled version, where I can't get past the login
screen; and the bottom one leads to my old corrupt installation, where
hal.dll is "missing".

I tried the tip in the link above and figured that maybe I can still
cure the problem without a complete reinstall. When running "bootcfg
/rebuild" you get two options: first the name of the boot item, and then
"boot options". Do you know if I should specify anything for the boot
options? I tried just leaving it blank, and then bootcfg says that it
couldn't update the boot configuration, and doesn't recreate boot.ini.
Then, on the next startup, Windows complains that boot.ini is missing
(and it is), and then boots from c:\windows, to where I have reinstalled
Windows.


/ martin

 

[Martin Magnusson]

Try this: at the Logon window (which shows up after you press
Ctl-Alt-Del to logon), type in Administrator for user, then whatever
password you assigned it (if you didn't assign an Administrator
password, leave it blank), then click on the button that says
"Options>>."

It should provide a box now that says "Log on to." Change that to
whatever has (this computer) with it.

If those options aren't there, then I'm stumped.

The "Log on to" option isn't there. I guess I must have reinstalled from
a bad copy. Rats.

/ martin