PartitionMagic + Re-Lettering Windows Partitions = No Boot

T

thogek

Okay, I hate feeling stupid. And OS/boot issues make me feel stupid.

If I'm posting to the wrong newsgroup(s), then please do feel free to
redirect me...

I have a computer with dual-boot -- one Windows 2003 Server and one
Windows XP Pro -- plus about five non-bootable data partitions. Total
disk size = 80 GB.

On the Windows XP Pro partition, I have PartitionMagic 8 installed. I
recently used PartitionMagic 8 from this partition to:
+ Change some of the partition drive letters within Windows XP Pro --
of the data partitions and of the Windows XP Pro partition -- to match
those used by the Windows 2003 Server OS.
+ Reduce the size of the Windows 2003 Server partition, so as to later
be able to increase the size of some of the other partitions with the
freed-up space.

These tasks were queued up in PartitionMagic's task list, and then the
list was executed.

PartitionMagic then seemed to do its thing for a bit, then rebooted the
machine. As it came back up, PartitionMagic began executing its
changes, and eventually rebooted again. When it came back up again,
again booting into the Windows XP Pro partition, I got the following
message amongst the early Windows XP Pro startup screens:

PartitionMagic (xmnt2002.exe)
PartitionMagic is unable to read the batch file. Verify that
the System32 directory is not compressed or corrupt.

Now, I cannot boot the machine into either partition, not even in safe
mode.

Booting to Windows 2003 Server results in a blank black screen; it
doesn't look like anything's loading at all. Booting into safe mode
get as far as the loading of lots of drivers (according to the
scrolling text), but stops there; no OS load.

Windows XP Pro seems partway load, and I get a Windows XP logo floating
on a blue Windows XP background, but it hangs there. Booting into safe
mode goes through the list of loading drivers, briefly displays the
"Safe Mode" labelled screen, then displays the same Windows XP logo
floating on a blue Windows XP background, and stays there.

I suspect that having the re-lettering of the Windows XP Pro partition
in the same action sequence as any resizing attempts may not have been
such a good idea. I suspect that the "batch file" PM claims to be
unable to find is referenced in a registry value that PM planted using
the old Windows XP Pro drive letter, but is now located under the new
drive letter, thus causing the registry value to point at a location
that doesn't exist. I think. But if I can't boot the Windows XP Pro
partition, safe mode or otherwise, I can't even get in there to look at
it (or anything else), much less fix anything.

And I have no idea what's wrong with the Windows 2003 Server partition,
except that it won't load at all.

I could just drop the Windows XP Pro partition and reinstall -- there
isn't much on it anyway. But I have a lot of material on the Windows
2003 Server partition, and I'd like to know that I can get it back...

Anyone have any ideas?

(And thanks for reading this far.)

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
R

Richard Urban

It's a bit late for you to be finding this out, but the most secure way to
use Partition Magic 8.01 (you do have the latest version - right) is from
the boot floppies that you create from within the Partition Magic program.

--
Regards,

Richard Urban

aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard :)

If you knew as much as you thought you know,
You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!
 
G

Galen

In (e-mail address removed) <[email protected]> had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:
Anyone have any ideas?
Click to expand...

Well... Hmm... With your XP disk you could try recover console and then the
/fixboot command. That *might* work...

If not then you can install XP back onto the same partition that it was
supposed to be on with either a repair install or a fresh installation. From
there you can edit your boot.ini file and set your dual boot options back up
if XP doesn't do it for you automatically which is may very well do.

Galen
 
T

thogek

Galen said:
Well... Hmm... With your XP disk you could try recover console and then the
/fixboot command. That *might* work...
Click to expand...

I'm not familiar with "recover console" (perhaps being the OS-idiot
that I am)... or is that the same as the repair OS option?
If not then you can install XP back onto the same partition that it was
supposed to be on with either a repair install or a fresh installation. From
there you can edit your boot.ini file and set your dual boot options back up
if XP doesn't do it for you automatically which is may very well do.
Click to expand...

My dual-boot options menu is actually intact, allowing me to select
between Windows XP Pro and Windows 2003 Server on startup. The problem
is that neither OS selected will boot (each with a different
uncooperative behavior), as described.

Or do I misunderstand you?

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
T

thogek

My dual-boot options menu is actually intact, allowing me to select
between Windows XP Pro and Windows 2003 Server on startup.
Click to expand...

Damn, now this isn't true, either. I'm getting nothing on starting the
machine other than a plain text message that reads:

Reboot and Select proper Boot device
or Insert Boot Media in selected Boot device

Arg. It's times like this that make me think I'm in the wrong
business.

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
B

ByTor

Okay, I hate feeling stupid. And OS/boot issues make me feel stupid.

If I'm posting to the wrong newsgroup(s), then please do feel free to
redirect me...

I have a computer with dual-boot -- one Windows 2003 Server and one
Windows XP Pro -- plus about five non-bootable data partitions. Total
disk size = 80 GB.

On the Windows XP Pro partition, I have PartitionMagic 8 installed. I
recently used PartitionMagic 8 from this partition to:
+ Change some of the partition drive letters within Windows XP Pro --
of the data partitions and of the Windows XP Pro partition -- to match
those used by the Windows 2003 Server OS.
+ Reduce the size of the Windows 2003 Server partition, so as to later
be able to increase the size of some of the other partitions with the
freed-up space.

These tasks were queued up in PartitionMagic's task list, and then the
list was executed.

PartitionMagic then seemed to do its thing for a bit, then rebooted the
machine. As it came back up, PartitionMagic began executing its
changes, and eventually rebooted again. When it came back up again,
again booting into the Windows XP Pro partition, I got the following
message amongst the early Windows XP Pro startup screens:

PartitionMagic (xmnt2002.exe)
PartitionMagic is unable to read the batch file. Verify that
the System32 directory is not compressed or corrupt.

Now, I cannot boot the machine into either partition, not even in safe
mode.

Booting to Windows 2003 Server results in a blank black screen; it
doesn't look like anything's loading at all. Booting into safe mode
get as far as the loading of lots of drivers (according to the
scrolling text), but stops there; no OS load.

Windows XP Pro seems partway load, and I get a Windows XP logo floating
on a blue Windows XP background, but it hangs there. Booting into safe
mode goes through the list of loading drivers, briefly displays the
"Safe Mode" labelled screen, then displays the same Windows XP logo
floating on a blue Windows XP background, and stays there.

I suspect that having the re-lettering of the Windows XP Pro partition
in the same action sequence as any resizing attempts may not have been
such a good idea. I suspect that the "batch file" PM claims to be
unable to find is referenced in a registry value that PM planted using
the old Windows XP Pro drive letter, but is now located under the new
drive letter, thus causing the registry value to point at a location
that doesn't exist. I think. But if I can't boot the Windows XP Pro
partition, safe mode or otherwise, I can't even get in there to look at
it (or anything else), much less fix anything.

And I have no idea what's wrong with the Windows 2003 Server partition,
except that it won't load at all.
Click to expand...

The boot.ini bootstrap is probably hosed due to changing the XP
letter...
I could just drop the Windows XP Pro partition and reinstall -- there
isn't much on it anyway. But I have a lot of material on the Windows
2003 Server partition, and I'd like to know that I can get it back...
Click to expand...

If you reinstalled the server will show up as a data drive.....Grab your
stuff from there...........
Anyone have any ideas?

(And thanks for reading this far.)

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
Click to expand...

I would be safe to say that by changing your drive letter of your XP pro
install to anything other than what it was originally installed to has
hosed your machine...............when it re-booted it tries to
compensate by re-copying all installs to a folder with the newly
assigned letter....Very bizzare thing, I've seen it happen.......
 
T

thogek

ByTor said:
The boot.ini bootstrap is probably hosed due to changing the XP
letter...
Click to expand...

That's more or less my clueless guess. :-(
back...

If you reinstalled the server will show up as a data drive.....Grab your
stuff from there...........
Click to expand...

That's what I'm hoping, and if I can't get it otherwise to recover,
that's going to have to be my fallback resort. Just hoping that if I
do drop and reinstall the Windows XP OS, the Windows 2003 Server
partition data will indeed be accessible...
I would be safe to say that by changing your drive letter of your XP pro
install to anything other than what it was originally installed to has
hosed your machine...............when it re-booted it tries to
compensate by re-copying all installs to a folder with the newly
assigned letter....Very bizzare thing, I've seen it happen.......
Click to expand...

Something like that is more or less what I'm guessing. From what I do
understand, it sounds like PM placed a registry entry telling it where
in the Windows XP Pro partition to find the batch file that it should
run in the next reboot, but I screwed that up by changing the Windows
XP Pro drive letter...

Arg. Hopefully I'm making some degree of sense at this point. It's
been a very long day.

Thanks.

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
G

Guest

I HAVE DONE THE SAME THING A FEW TIMES . I EXPERIMENT ALOT TO LEARN MORE. tHE
RECOVERY CONSOLE IS THE BEST PLACE TO STAR, IF YOU DIDNT CREATE THE P.MAGIC
FLOPPYS. IT COULD BE YOU NEED TO MAP THE DRIVES OR FIXMBR, FIXBOOT,OR IF YOU
KNOW HOW REWRITE THE MASTER BOOT RECORD, OR...USE ANOTHER COMPUTER TO CREATE
THE PART. MAGIC FLOPPYS AND BOOT WITH THOSE, OR SET YOUR COMPUTER TO BOOT
FROM CD AND THE PART. MAGIC CD IS BOOTABLE!!! I HAVE DONE IT ALL OF THESE
WAYS,OHONE MORE WAY A FREE SOFTWARE LIKE ACTIVE UNERASER

http://www.uneraser.com/orderfax.htm

THAT CAN READ THE DISK IN DOS WOULD HELP YOU SEE THE PROBLEM
 
S

Stan Brown

in
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support:
It's a bit late for you to be finding this out, but the most secure way to
use Partition Magic 8.01 (you do have the latest version - right) is from
the boot floppies that you create from within the Partition Magic program.
Click to expand...

Rather tough for those of us without floppy drives.

It seems a curious oversight on the part of the PM folks, since
computers without floppy drives are increasingly common and CD-Rs
aren't hard to write. I suspect now that Symantec has swallowed PM,
it will just grow more bloated wthout actually growing more useful.
 
S

Stan Brown

in
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support:
I HAVE DONE THE SAME THING A FEW TIMES . I EXPERIMENT ALOT TO LEARN MORE
Click to expand...

That's nice, but please don't SHOUT.
 
T

thogek

Here's a new message I'm getting when I run PartitionMagic itself
(direct from the CD) to view existing partitions:

Error #1516
Partition improperly dismounted. Please refer to the online
user guide for instructions on how to resolve this issue.

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
T

thogek

I used another machine (running Windows XP Home) to create the
PartitionMagic 8 "Rescue Disks". However, attempting to boot my
problem computer using these disks yields the following uncooperative
message:

Bad or missions command interpreter
Please enter a valid filename (e.g. C:\COMMAND.COM),
or just press ENTER to retry.

Pressing ENTER just reprints the same message after a brief whir of the
drive.

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
B

Brian K

Have you checked the boot.ini for WinXP? The partition numbers may be
reversed and you could then correct the boot.ini. I find BartPE is the easy
way to do this.

Brian
 
T

thogek

Brian said:
Have you checked the boot.ini for WinXP? The partition numbers may be
Click to expand...
reversed and you could then correct the boot.ini. I find BartPE is the easy
way to do this.
Click to expand...

Clueless question:
How do I find and get at the boot.ini if I can't start up the machine?

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
T

thogek

Damn, now this isn't true, either. I'm getting nothing on starting the
machine other than a plain text message that reads:

Reboot and Select proper Boot device
or Insert Boot Media in selected Boot device
Click to expand...

Okay, I have my boot menu back.

I ran BootMagic from the PartitionMagic CD (which has a very limited
text menu interface). Initially, it said that the Windows 2003 Server
partition was not visible. I selected that partition for it to try to
boot, and it just restarted and came back to the same menu (indicating
that the Windows 2003 Server paritition now is visible), when when I
removed the CD and restarted again, I got my boot-menu again.

Of course, selecting either OS to boot has the same non-results it did
when I first posted, so I'm pretty much back where I started
immediately post-catastrophe...

I think I'm about out of ideas, short of using the Windows XP Pro CD to
drop the current Windows XP Pro partition and reinstall, and hope that
I'll at least be able to get at the data in the other partitions
thereafter.

And, in the meantime, go stark raving nuts while hoping someone has a
better idea.

Thanks.

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 
R

Richard Urban

PM 8.01 was introduced before the first floppy drive was removed from a PC
by any reputable (?????) manufacturer. You want a company to look into the
future now and know what every other company is planning to do?

--
Regards,

Richard Urban

aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard :)

If you knew as much as you thought you know,
You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!
 
B

Brian K

You should be able to boot to the BartPE CD even without a hard drive. So if
BartPE boots you will be able to see your boot.ini.

Can you boot to WinXP CD?

Brian
 
T

thogek

Brian said:
Can you boot to WinXP CD?
Click to expand...

It will boot from the Windows XP Pro CD, allowing me the option to
reinstall, or boot into Recovery Console (with limited command-line
access). So far, that hasn't done me much good (although perhaps due
to my own cluelessness).

- Tom Kiefer
thogek @ earthlink . net
 

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