system32\config\system file missing or corrupt

[Richard]

I am running XP pro. Upon start up I get this message:
can't start because \windows\system32\config\system file
is missing or corrupt. It says I can repair with original
installation cd but I can't seem to figure out what to do
to fix this problem. My computer will not even boot into
safe mode with this problem. Anyone know how to fix?

 

[Chris Lanier]

How to Recover from a Corrupted Registry That Prevents Windows XP from
Starting
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=307545

 

[Jym]

Following the instructions on the MS article will get you back flying.
Jym. http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307545

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

I can verify from personal experience that this method works:

How to Recover from a Corrupted Registry that Prevents Windows XP from
Starting
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307545


Bruce Chambers

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[Michael Funaro]

Ok, we all know how to fix this problem by now BUT what is causing the
problem.??? So we don't have to keep doing this. Thanks, Mike

 

[Guest]

Everybody here is giving the same solution which is the right one. In response to Michael Funaro's post, the reason you are getting this error is that one or more of the 5 registry hives in Windows is corrupted. The steps in the knowledge base article that is being referred, although are not fun nor simple, are walking you through doing a manual "system restore" to restore the registry to a known working registry. As long as system restore is enabled on your computer, Windows will make snapshots of the registry and store them. Following the article, you will restore one of those working snapshots of the registry to get Windows up and running again. Have fun and good luck with the fix!

----- Michael Funaro wrote: -----

Ok, we all know how to fix this problem by now BUT what is causing the
problem.??? So we don't have to keep doing this. Thanks, Mike