missing or corrupt file

[Guest]

I have a WinXP computer that won't boot. The message I get is this: “Windows
could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
windows\system32\config\system†and then it proceeds to tell me to go to the
Recovery Console. Yet when I use a bootable floppy (with basics for
booting---boot.ini, ntdetect.com, ntldr), I get a different error message:
“Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
<windows root>\system32\hal.dllâ€.
My question is, which file is truly causing the problem and how can I fix it
without destroying all of my data on that drive?

 

[Guest]

I have a WinXP computer that won't boot. The message I get is this: “Windows
could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
windows\system32\config\system†and then it proceeds to tell me to go to the
Recovery Console. Yet when I use a bootable floppy (with basics for
booting---boot.ini, ntdetect.com, ntldr), I get a different error message:
“Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
<windows root>\system32\hal.dllâ€.
My question is, which file is truly causing the problem and how can I fix it
without destroying all of my data on that drive?

http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_h.htm
http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[Will Denny]

Hi

Please try the following link to Kelly's web page:

"HAL - Hardware Abstraction Layer"
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_h.htm

--

Will Denny
MS-MVP - Windows Shell/User
Please reply to the News Groups


"Harold E. Schumacher, Jr." <Harold E. Schumacher,
(e-mail address removed)> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

 

[Guest]

Thank you for your help. Can you tell me why I would get 2 different error
messages? When I try to boot from the floppy, I get the "HAL" message and
when I try to boot direct from the C drive, I get the
"windows\system32\config\system" message. Is the "HAL" problem causing the
"windows\system32\config\system" message?

 

[Alex Nichol]

"Harold E. Schumacher, Jr." <Harold E. Schumacher,

Yet when I use a bootable floppy (with basics for
booting---boot.ini, ntdetect.com, ntldr), I get a different error message:
“Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
<windows root>\system32\hal.dllâ€.

That indicates that the line in [Operating Systems] in the boot.ini is
damaged, so it is looking in the wrong place for the 'windows' folder.
Hal.dll just happens to be the first file it looks for.

Set the BIOS to boot CD before Hard Disk. Boot the XP CD and, instead
of Setup, take the immediate R for Repair. Assume any password
requested is blank, and TAB over.
Give:
ATTRIB -H -R -S C:\Boot.ini
DEL C:\Boot.ini
(thus deleting the old one)
BootCfg /Rebuild