Laptop won't boot up

[Kevin]

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on laptop it says
windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says to install SETUP CD-ROM the
problem is I cann't find CDs that came with laptop.Can I download CDs off the
internet or how do I go about getting them? Please help thank you.

 

[BillW50]

In Kevin typed on Date: Sat, 19 Sep 2009 06:16:01 -0700:

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on laptop
it says windows could not start because the following file is missing
or corrupt \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says to install
SETUP CD-ROM the problem is I cann't find CDs that came with
laptop.Can I download CDs off the internet or how do I go about
getting them? Please help thank you.

Contact Dell.

 

[SC Tom]

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on laptop it
says
windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says to install SETUP CD-ROM the
problem is I cann't find CDs that came with laptop.Can I download CDs off
the
internet or how do I go about getting them? Please help thank you.

You might be better off contacting Dell support, or check their web site for
downloads. They're probably not free, though.

SC Tom

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on
laptop it says windows could not start because the following file
is missing or corrupt \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says
to install SETUP CD-ROM the problem is I cann't find CDs that came
with laptop.Can I download CDs off the internet or how do I go
about getting them? Please help thank you.

You've been informed to contact Dell - ask them to send you CDs - there may
be a small charge.

You could also find a friend/co-worker/family member with a similar setup
and get a set of installation CDs from them - installation, not
restore/recovery.

In any case - you do know what you will be doing with them after you get
them, right?

How to recover from a corrupted registry that prevents
Windows XP from starting
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307545

 

[Paul]

You've been informed to contact Dell - ask them to send you CDs - there may
be a small charge.

You could also find a friend/co-worker/family member with a similar setup
and get a set of installation CDs from them - installation, not
restore/recovery.

In any case - you do know what you will be doing with them after you get
them, right?

How to recover from a corrupted registry that prevents
Windows XP from starting
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307545

The root cause of the message, is an inability to get to one of
the registry files.

The Microsoft procedure, is basically repairing that in two steps.

1) Copy a backup set of registry files, and make them the primary
registry files for usage in the next bootup. The registry files
are *not* the ones you want to keep. The purpose of using them,
is so the computer can be booted. So you're copying *some* set of
registry files, just to get the computer running again.

2) Once the computer is bootable, then you can use System Restore,
to get a copy of the registry files you really want to be using.
By using a recent System Restore point, you get a recent copy
of the registry files. And all your recent settings/changes will
be stored in there.

For step (1) of the procedure, there is more than one way to get
at the files on the file system. The Recovery Console, available
from a real Windows installer CD, is one way to arrange to copy,
move, delete files and so on. But, if you don't have a Recovery
Console to work in, at least the file movement kinds of things,
can be done using a Linux LiveCD to boot up the computer. I use
a Knoppix CD for that purpose. (It is a version of Linux, that boots
without installing any files on the computer.) You need some knowledge
of Linux to work there, so you may need to enlist the help of a Linux
knowledgeable friend, to finish the procedure. (I'm still evaluating
Linux distros, to find friendly/safe ones, and Knoppix 5.3.1 DVD
sized distro, is currently the best. There are about 500 different
distros, so a lot of them to test.)

The good news is, your situation could well be a recoverable one.
The devil is in the details. The fact that the computer manufacturer
chooses to not include a real installer CD, makes this a bit harder
than it has to be.

Paul

 

[Jose]

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on laptop it says
windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says to install SETUP CD-ROM the
problem is I cann't find CDs that came with laptop.Can I download CDs offthe
internet or how do I go about getting them? Please help thank you.

You should first verify the integrity of your file system. It makes
little sense to try to do anything with a corrupted file system.

No CDs from Dell or Microsoft required.

Eliminate or repair possible file system corruption from a power
failure,
ungraceful shutdown or aborted restart.

Have any of these events occurred?

You should first boot your PC into the XP Recovery Console using a
bootable
XP installation CD or a bootable CD with the XP Recovery Console on
it.

You can make a bootable Recovery Console CD by downloading an ISO file
and burning it to a CD.

The same XP Recovery Console commands can be run from the bootable
Recovery Console CD.

The bootable ISO image file you need to download is called:

xp_rec_con.iso

Download the ISO file from here:

http://www.mediafire.com/?ueyyzfymmig

Use this free and easy program to create your bootable CD:

http://www.imgburn.com/

It would be a good idea to test your bootable CD on the computer that
is
working.

You may need to adjust the computer BIOS settings to use the CD ROM
drive
as the first boot device instead of the hard disk. These adjustments
are
made before Windows tries to load. If you miss it, you will have to
reboot
the system again.

When you boot on the CD, follow the prompts:

Press any key to boot from CD...

The Windows Setup... will proceed.

Press 'R' to enter the Recovery Console.

Select the installation you want to access (usually 1: C:\WINDOWS)

You may be asked to enter the Administrator password (usually empty).

You should be in the C:\WINDOWS folder. This is the same as the
C:\WINDOWS folder you see in explorer.

RC allows basic file commands - copy, rename, replace, delete,
cd, chkdsk, fixboot, fixmbr, etc.

From the command prompt window run the chkdsk command on the drive
where
Windows is installed to try to repair any problems on the afflicted
drive.
Running chkdsk is fine to run even if it doesn't find any problems.

Assuming your boot drive is C, run the following command:

chkdsk C: /r

Let chkdsk finish and correct any problems it might find. It may take
a long
time to complete or appear to be 'stuck'. Be patient. If the HDD
light is
still flashing, it is doing something. Keep an eye on the percentage
amount to
be sure it is still making progress.

Remove the CD and type 'exit' to leave the RC and restart the
computer.

You do not have to adjust the BIOS again to boot on the HDD since the
CD will
not be present.

 

[HeyBub]

I have a Inspiron 2200 laptop it has Windows XP when I torn on laptop
it says windows could not start because the following file is missing
or corrupt \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM. Then it says to install
SETUP CD-ROM the problem is I cann't find CDs that came with
laptop.Can I download CDs off the internet or how do I go about
getting them? Please help thank you.

You cannot download installation CDs from the internet. They don't exist as
legitimate entities. For love or money.

In the case of Dell and some others, you can make restore CDs from
information contained in a hidden partition on the hard drive. In your case,
since you can't boot the machine, you'll have to remove the hard drive and
install the drive in a working system to be able to make the restore disks.

 

[Peter Foldes]

Kevin

Download a live distro from Linux named Knoppix and use that to boot your system.
You can also use their Ubuntu but Knoppix is better known to me to work.
Once booted then fix your issue as per instructions