How to run system restore without a mouse or keyboard?

[Guest]

Windows XP Home Edition SP2.

I know you shouldn't but I was editing the registry, following some
instructions on how to fix a problem with recognition of my DVD writer caused
by Roxio. I rebooted the machine and the keyboard and mouse (both USB)
stopped responding.

I did set a restore point before any of this and also made a backup of the
registry in a separate file.

This doesn't seem to be a hardware failure because I have tried a PS2
keyboard and another mouse with the same response. Curiously whjilst the
screen saver responds to the mouse, none of the buttons or movement bit has
any effect. Similarly the problem with the keyboard is confined to the
Extended 102 keys, yet the finger print scanner and other special buttons all
continue to work. The keyboard works fine in the BIOS and using recovery
console. Therefore, I conclude I must have broken something in the registry
that is fundamental to the "human interface" devices.

I have booted with F8 and every option available. All safe mode options
display the same problem with mouse and keyboard.

I can log in using the finger print thingy, and even run programs using the
special keyboard buttons, and XP seems to run perfectly (except for the mouse
and keyboard response) so that indicates no other serious problems...yet.

The obvious solution was to use the recovery console from the Windows XP
disk, but the extra complication is that I have a Silicon Graphics Sil3114
RAID controller. Windows is sitting on one pair of mirrored disks, my data
on the other mirrored pair. I have a RAID driver floppy which works and I
eventually get to the c: prompt for the recovery console, but.....it only
shows my data "disk" (curiously on both C: & D. I have been through A:-Z:
with no sign of the Windows "disk". So that seems to be a dead end for
simply copying the registry.reg backup ontop of the corrupted registry
(instructions I found on another site).

My only other idea was to create an autorun.inf file on a CD using my 2nd
machine, which might somehow run system restore from the command line (Safe
mode) when I insert a CD, but the message seems to be that you can't specify
command line parameters for %systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe.

I don't really want to have to reinstall XP from scratch having just taken
the last 3 weeks to do it (and configure all my software) following another
unrelated problem.

Any ideas? - and please none that involve "clicking" or "typing" for obvious
reasons.

 

[Bert Kinney]

Hi,

If you cannot launch System Restore from Safe Mode command prompt, or by the use
of this article, then a repair install is in order.

How to recover from a corrupted registry that prevents Windows XP from starting:
http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?id=307545

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install by Michael Stevens MS-MVP:
http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[Guest]

Thanks Bert,

It is very reassuring to get such a quick response. You can probably guess
how frustrating it is sitting in front of a computer and not being able to
communicate with it, but knowing what I would like to do.

I had spotted your first article (id=307545) previously, but not tried it
due to the problem with not being able to see the Windows drive through my
RAID controller whilst in the Recovery Console. Thinking further on this I
see that the Silicon Image (not Graphics as prerviously stated!) website has
some new drivers available
(http://www.siliconimage.com/support/supportsearchresults.aspx?pid=28&cid=3&ctid=2&osid=4&)
which may fix this problem. Failing that I will probably temporarily unplug
the S-ATA and power cables from my data drives in the hope that the windows
drive will then show up in the XP Recovery Console. Unfortunately the
Silicon Image RAID controller software does not give an option of disabling.

Thanks again

 

[Bert Kinney]

A repair install isn't all that bad.