safe mode vs diagnostic startup

[Guest]

Currently I'm trying to resolve a lockup at XP boot at the travelling blue
square stage. The system will boot in any safe mode, but will lock up in
normal mode if dianostic startup is enabled in msconfig. It seems that thats
a pretty fine difference and should point me to the source of my problem.
I've also tried the boot logging option from f8, but the log is only written
to on a successful boot to safe mode - is this perhaps also a symptom?

 

[Guest]

Obviously you would like to avoid System Restore from Safe Mode, and are
looking for a solution within the current registry. The safe mode success
implies a problem with some device driver. You could try disabling one at a
time in devmgmt.msc.

 

[Guest]

It seems that I'll be able to solve the lockup with device mgr - I disabled a b
unch and was able to boot in normal mode. Now, it's just a process of
elimination...
Just for my understanding - device drivers (just 3rd party? non-essential?)
don't load in safe mode, but do when Diagnostic Startup is selected in
msconfig. Correct?

Thanks for your prompt help, Mark.

 

[Guest]

Msconfig in Vista (SFC) would have done a better job. Your diagnostic startup
probably had something hitting the advanced form of the video.

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Mark L. Ferguson

It seems that I'll be able to solve the lockup with device mgr - I disabled a b
unch and was able to boot in normal mode. Now, it's just a process of
elimination...
Just for my understanding - device drivers (just 3rd party? non-essential?)
don't load in safe mode, but do when Diagnostic Startup is selected in
msconfig. Correct?

Thanks for your prompt help, Mark.

 

[Guest]

Ummm... OK. (?) Just to clarify the answer to the original question for me
(safe mode vs diagnostic startup in msconfig) - is the difference between
them just a matter of which drivers load? Or are there other factors?
Thanks again...

 

[Mark L. Ferguson]

The diag mode has a list of thing you can choose to disable, but drivers are
not one of those things. It's more about autoruns.