Need help restoring winxp installation.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Not thinking this time lol.
  • Start date Start date
N

Not thinking this time lol.

Ok, my old computer crashed and I thought it I could just
reinstall win2k on my hdd by putting it into another cpu
and installing win2k. The other cpu already had winxp
running on it. Now the cpu with xp will not boot into xp,
and I keep getting messages saying a file from win2k is
corrupt or missing.

Even when I get to the menu and choose to boot xp, it
still thinks xp is win2k because I keep getting that same
file missing error. I've also tried to use the winxp disk
to boot from and then go and repair the boot sector using
the repair console; it didnt work.

I hope someone can help me,
Thanks,
ME
 
Hi,

You likely replaced the boot files with the Win2000 versions. Copy ntldr and
ntdetect.com from the I386 folder on the WinXP CD to the root of the boot
drive, then run bootcfg /rebuild from the command prompt.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone
 
Thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately it still does
not work. I copied the files and ran the bootcfg /rebuild
command with no problem.

But when I try to reboot, I now have 3 OS listings to
choose from: 1)The new listing I got from using bootcfg
from above, 2)Windows 2000, and 3)Windows XP (the original
one.)

But when I try to choose either option 1 or 3, it still
proceeds to load win2k where you see the graphic bars
going across the bottom of the screen for win2k, and I get
an error message:

"Windows 2k could not start because the following file is
missing or corrupt: \Windows\system32\config\system"

Any ideas?

Again, thx for your help,
ME
 
Hi,

Sounds like you really mangled the WinXP installation, the error message
indicates a corrupt registry. You will need to run a repair operation.
Follow these steps to do a repair install which should preserve your data,
settings, and programs:

1. Insert the Windows XP CD into your computer's CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM
drive.
2. Restart your computer. If you have to, change the BIOS settings to start
from
the CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart your computer again.
3. At the "Welcome to Setup" page, press ENTER.
4. Press F8 to accept the Licensing Agreement.
5. Use the arrow keys to select the installation of Windows XP that you want
to
repair, and then press R to start the automatic repair process.
6. When Setup is completed, activate Windows XP.

Note that you will need your Product Key for this procedure, so have it
handy before you begin.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone
 
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