Unbootable XP Pro laptop - how to copy/rescue data folders?

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The laptop will not boot in safe mode (freezes with no icons; does not
complete bootup process).

I need to rescue my documents, etc. How can I copy folders to my
windows xp pro cd drive?

What is best way?

Any free online utilities (must be able to boot it from my cd drive)
that I cna download.

I can download and burn a proggy onto my cd from my 2nd laptop - in
order to boot up the other laptop adn copy folders on the cd. I know
that I can probably buy acronis but is there a free util?

Thanks!
 
The laptop will not boot in safe mode (freezes with no icons; does not
complete bootup process).

I need to rescue my documents, etc. How can I copy folders to my
windows xp pro cd drive?

What is best way?

Any free online utilities (must be able to boot it from my cd drive)
that I cna download.

I can download and burn a proggy onto my cd from my 2nd laptop - in
order to boot up the other laptop adn copy folders on the cd. I know
that I can probably buy acronis but is there a free util?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Not wishing to pay for good software and not backing up all
important files regularly to an independent medium such as a
2.5" disk in an external USB case is a recipe for trouble.

If your laptop is networked then you ***may*** be able
to salvage your data folders by booting the laptop with a Bart
PE boot CD (http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/#download). There
are two catches here: To make a Bart PE boot CD takes
several hours and it may or may not recognise the laptop's
network adapter.
 
If you are hardware savvy - then buy a 2.5" to traditional IDE
adapter. Remove the drive from the notebook caddy and put
the adapter on and install in a desktop to retrieve files/folders.

I sometimes use a 2.5" drive to USB adapter for emergency
data recovery situations. Only downside is it's only USB1(.1)
compliant - so transfers are Dog Slow.

However, if cost is your primary concern then these devices
may not be an option as both are ~$30.
 
Thanks. I think Acronis True Image Home Ed. is my best option so far.

I see it at newegg for 29.99:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E1681279691SF

I will try that. Initially, I was just hoping to downlowd a quick tool
to make a bootable cd on which to copy the foders.
Click to expand...

The Ultimate Boot CD for Windows ( http://www.ubcd4win.com/ ) has cd
burning applications included. You may be able to use this to backup
your data. Of course you will need to have access to a working PC to
dowun load and burn the .iso file of UBCD4Win
 
The laptop will not boot in safe mode (freezes with no icons; does not
complete bootup process).

I need to rescue my documents, etc. How can I copy folders to my
windows xp pro cd drive?

What is best way?

Any free online utilities (must be able to boot it from my cd drive)
that I cna download.

I can download and burn a proggy onto my cd from my 2nd laptop - in
order to boot up the other laptop adn copy folders on the cd. I know
that I can probably buy acronis but is there a free util?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

If the hard drive is still viable, you can use Knoppix, although you
will not be able to write to your XP drive if the partition is
formatted FAT32. Here's information about that:

An easy way to retrieve Windows files is to boot with Knoppix, a Linux
distro on a live cd. You will need a computer with two cd drives, one
of which is a cd/dvd-rw OR a usb thumb drive with enough capacity to
hold your data OR an external hard drive formatted FAT32 (not NTFS). To
get Knoppix, you need a computer with a fast Internet connection and
third-party burning software. Download the Knoppix .iso from
www.knoppix.net and create your bootable cd. Then boot with it and it
will be able to see the Windows files. If you are using the usb thumb
drive or the external hard drive, right-click on its icon (on the
Desktop) to get its properties and uncheck the box that says "Read
Only". Then click on it to open it. Note that the default mouse action
in the window manager used by Knoppix (KDE) is a single click to open
instead of the traditional MS Windows' double-click. Otherwise, use the
K3b burning program to burn the files to cd/dvd-r's.

Malke
 
Will this work with only one CD/RW drive? It is a laptop which is not
bootable even in safe mode, has only one HD, CD, USB port, and no
floppy drive builtin.

I must boot from that CD Rom drive and copy to the SAME drive (the
folders which must be saved).

I can then use the restore CD's and wipe and reinstall windows, then
copy the data folders saved to the CD back to the laptop.

I must create a bootable CD which I can store/copy several folders
(from the HD) to.
 
[email protected] said:
Will this work with only one CD/RW drive? It is a laptop which is not
bootable even in safe mode, has only one HD, CD, USB port, and no
floppy drive builtin.

I must boot from that CD Rom drive and copy to the SAME drive (the
folders which must be saved).

I can then use the restore CD's and wipe and reinstall windows, then
copy the data folders saved to the CD back to the laptop.

I must create a bootable CD which I can store/copy several folders
(from the HD) to.
Click to expand...

I used it to recover data from an unbootable drive, though I found you
had to have the USB stick in place before you boot from the UBCD4Win,
it was then just a matter of using one of the file explorer apps to
copy the stuff over.

With the CD burner you may be able to start the application, remove the
boot CD, put in the blank CD and burn to that beacuse UBCD4Win sets up
a RAM drive to run stuff in.
 
Will this work with only one CD/RW drive? It is a laptop which is not
bootable even in safe mode, has only one HD, CD, USB port, and no
floppy drive builtin.

I must boot from that CD Rom drive and copy to the SAME drive (the
folders which must be saved).

I can then use the restore CD's and wipe and reinstall windows, then
copy the data folders saved to the CD back to the laptop.

I must create a bootable CD which I can store/copy several folders
(from the HD) to.
Click to expand...

As described, you can use Knoppix to retrieve Windows files but you must
have a place to store the files that is writable by Linux. That means
an external hard drive formatted FAT32 (not NTFS) or an internal
partition formatted FAT32 or a usb thumb drive. There are NTFS drivers
created by the Captive project, but they are extremely experimental
since NTFS is closed-source. If you write to an NTFS partition from
Linux you have a very good chance of hosing the Windows data.

If you can't manage this, then Knoppix will not be the solution for you.

You can create a Bart's PE instead which will be able to write to an
NTFS partition.

However, there will be no point in copying the files to the *same* drive
as you have written above because when you use the restore cd it will
replace *everything* on your hard drive and your carefully copied files
will be *gone*.

Malke
 
Sorry, I wasn't very clear.

I want to copy the files to a CD; then, after restoring the laptop's
HD, copy them back to the laptop's HD.

I was hoping to find a single, simple, bootalble utility on the net,
that I could burn into a bootable CD using my other laptop. I would
then use that bootable CD to boot up the failed laptop in order to copy
data folders onto the CD; so that I could copy them back when the
failed laptop is restored using the manuf. CDs.

Bart's CD idea is ok but seems somewhat complicated, and probably too
much work. Is there an ISO I can burn into a CD on my good laptop for
this purpose?
 
Couldn't download it successfully. Got an error mssg. every time I
tried. I'm using Firefox but not sure if that's the trouble.

Is there an alternate site where I can download Knoppix?
 
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