unmountable_boot_volume

  • Thread starter Thread starter CJ
  • Start date Start date
C

CJ

I have a Dell 8300 with Windows XP Pro. During a
scheduled Norton antivirus system scan last week, my pc
shut down windows and displayed the blue error screen with
unmountable_boot_volume. Called Dell and was talked
through a boot from the operating system diskette,
recovery console, and chkdsk /r. We were up and running
again. Last night I decided to run the antivirus scan
since it did not complete last week. Bad decision. I got
another blue screen with an error I unfortunately did not
write down (had kernal in it). I powered off and back on
and now have the boot error again.

Now I can use the instructions I've printed to go through
the repair exercise again or call Dell to talk me through
it but I was wondering if anyone who has had this problem
experience it during an antivirus scan. My virus updates
seem to be current, it's just the scanning process. Could
it be a problem that developed in the software or
something that the software encounters during the scan?
Thanks
 
Are you suggesting that an anti virus program is not needed if SP-2 is
installed?
If so that is dangerously wrong since Windows XP with or without SP-2
does not include a firewall.
An anti virus application is essential.
 
Power off
Desktop:...Open the case and reseat the hard drive IDE ribbon cable at
both ends.
Laptop:... simply remove and reinsert the hard drive.
If that fails:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=297185
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=315403

Otherwise go to the website of the hard drive manufacturer and
download their hard drive diagnostics.

Do you have a hard drive overlay such as Max Blast?
Windows XP sometimes has issues with overlay software.
You may need to perform a Clean Installation without their overlay
software which is not needed anyway.
 
Thank for the suggestion to reseat the hard drive IDE
ribbon cable. I've gathered a lot of information and will
see what works. If the ribbon cable is the problem, why
would everything work normally until I did an antivirus
system scan? I've had blue screens before and rebooting
did the trick. This is the first time it didn't. System
scan on a Friday, blue screen, can't load windows, boot
from CD and repair, works fine for several days, system
scan, back to blue screen. I will continue with Norton as
I certainly don't believe all that I read but wonder why
the scan would apparently trigger the error. Have yet to
load SP-2.

Appreciate your help.
CJ
 
A scan would not cause that problem, but it could have happened at the
same time.
Simply reseating that cable seems to fix the issue a good % of the
time.
 
It would not cause it but a poor connection can have unpredictable
results such as working one time and not another.
If this is the cause, reseating the cable fixes it for good, otherwise
there is another cause.
 
Oops!
Firewall should have been antivirus.
This is what I meant to say:
"Windows XP with or without SP-2 does not include an antivirus."
 
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