Windows XP won't boot even from CD after PartitionMagic CRASH!!!!

[albertwonglosangeles]

Ok, I'm at a loss. Any thoughts will be much appreciated. Here
goes....I had one large partition on my hard drive. I decided to
create a dual boot on my machine which was running only Windows XP
Pro. I couldn't leave well enough alone, so I grab a copy of
PartitionMagic to resize my one large partition so that I could create
a second partition in order to install Windows 7. I install Partition
Magic and create the two Rescue Diskettes (so I'm not the biggest jerk
around after all) Everything was going smoothly, then a quarter of
the way through, PartitionMagic throws an error about a missing file
and starts to reboot my machine. The screen comes up with "Sorry for
the Inconvenience...." and gives me the option to boot into Safe Mode.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed at this point....NO SUCH LUCK....I see
a bunch of filenames go by like normal that end with .sys extension.
Then the computer beeps and takes me back to the "Sorry for the
Inconvenience...." screen. I decide I need to do a repair, so I
insert my XP Pro cd into the DVD drive (I've done this before after
randomly getting the BSOD one day), only this time the DVD rom drive
light goes off then BEEP it goes back to the "Inconvenience" screen.
It does this several times. I insert the CD into my other DVD-rom
drive only to get the same result. The light of the drive goes off
like its reading but then beep and back to the blasted "Inconvenience"
screen. I stick my Partition Magic Rescue disk into my floppy drive.
Caldera-Dos starts but then beep, it says Bad Command or
Filename...and something about line A20 in himem.sys already being
enabled....At this point, I'm realizing this is much more than an
INCONVENIENCE!!! My data is backed up, but I want my computer back!!!
Please help this jerk out!!! Thanks for any ideas, maybe I can learn
something from this so called "inconvenience....."

-Al

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

did you disable your anti
virals before allowing pm
to manage the disk system?

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Mick Murphy]

In your Bios/setup, have you made the CD/DVD Drive 1st in the Boot Order, so
you can boot from the XP CD?

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

In your Bios/setup, have you made the CD/DVD Drive 1st in the Boot Order,so
you can boot from the XP CD?

Hello and thanks for the responses.

Mad Mike, I DO have my both my DVD drives set as 1st and 2nd in the
boot order. This was the first thing I checked.

DatabaseBen, I did not disable my anti-viral program. The computer
was my brother's and I'm not sure that he even had one installed, but
it's likely that he did although I never saw any type of anti-viral
program load on start-up ever.

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

well, it likely makes no
difference at this time.

it is however, highly likely
that if any were enabled,
then they interfered with
the program.

partition manager is not
a reliable program, unfortunately.

first of all, it is imperative
that a disk be checked for
errors, defragged and any
trash files removed before
resizing it.

so between a dirty disk and
an unreliable program and
perhaps antiviral, the whole
process has become a disaster.

to be clear, did the crash
occur while the program was
in the middle of executing file
relocation.

or did the crash occur as the
result of the program unable
to execute the process of
analyzing and moving data?

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

well, it likely makes no
difference at this time.

it is however, highly likely
that if any were enabled,
then they interfered with
the program.

partition manager is not
a reliable program, unfortunately.

first of all, it is imperative
that a disk be checked for
errors, defragged and any
trash files removed before
resizing it.

so between a dirty disk and
an unreliable program and
perhaps antiviral, the whole
process has become a disaster.

to be clear, did the crash
occur while the program was
in the middle of executing file
relocation.

or did the crash occur as the
result of the program unable
to execute the process of
analyzing and moving data?

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DatabaseBen, I did defrag and do a disk check before kicking off
PartitionMagic (magic, what a joke!), although apparently that didn't
help. The progress bar did not get very far on PartitionMagic. I
think it might have been in the process of moving data, but I really
can't be sure if I'm recalling correctly. It all happened so fast. I
stepped away to do something else. When I got back to the computer, I
looked at the screen and made a mental note of the progress bar. Next
thing I know, it threw an error and caused a reboot, and here I am
feeling like the big jerk....

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

ok,

since the o.s. is not
bootable then you
will need to use a
winxp cd to regain
access to the computer

normally, I would
recommend using
the recovery console
and running commands
like a check disk.

I think that you should
perform a repair
installation instead to
ensure the integrity of
the o.s., in spite of any
resizing or relocation of
files that may have occurred
via pm.

here are the instructions:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/learnmore/tips/doug92.mspx



--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

ok,

since the o.s. is not
bootable then you
will need to use a
winxp cd to regain
access to the computer

normally, I would
recommend using
the recovery console
and running commands
like a check disk.

I think that you should
perform a repair
installation instead to
ensure the integrity of
the o.s., in spite of any
resizing or relocation of
files that may have occurred
via pm.

here are the instructions:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/learnmore/tip...

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DatabaseBen, the first thing I tried to do was a repair (I've done
them before), but the PC appears to read the XP cd but then ignore it
and return right back to the "Sorry for the inconvenience screen",
reboot itself, and then return right back to the "Inconvenience"
screen. Hopefully, I explained that properly in my original post.
The BIOS is set to boot from the optical drives first. I had never had
problems with either DVD drives before all this happened. Also, I
tested the XP cd in another computer and it works just fine. So, I
*think* I've eliminated the drives, BIOS, and CD's as the culprit. I
need to figure out a way to get the machine to boot from the CD and
can't figure it out. Thanks for your responses. Please let me know if
you can think of something else I might try.

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

ok,

then the recovery console
should be utilized.

boot with the cd and
select repair.

when you get to the disk
prompt run a

chkdsk
fixmbr

then exit and reboot
without the cd.

afterwards, a repair
install should be able
to proceed, that is if
you still need to do it.

-------------



--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

ok,

then the recovery console
should be utilized.

boot with the cd and
select repair.

when you get to the disk
prompt run a

chkdsk
fixmbr

then exit and reboot
without the cd.

afterwards, a repair
install should be able
to proceed, that is if
you still need to do it.

-------------

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please do pardon my ignorance. I am not trying to be cute or smug or
stupid for that matter and I do sincerely hope I am explaining myself
correctly and really appreciate your help. As I hope I have conveyed
properly already, the computer doesn't seem to recognize the XP Pro CD
AT ALLl. The drive lights up and seems to read it and then the PC
bypasses the CD totally and goes back to the options of allowing me to
boot in Safe Mode etc...I've tried the CD in another PC and it works
fine so I know the CD itself is functional. Also, I have my BIOS set
up to boot from the DVD drives first. So, this may sound like a
stupid question, but how do I get to recovery console in this case??
The computer treats the CD like it's not even there. There is not
disk prompt or anything. The computer keeps going back to the "Sorry
for the inconvenience screen...."

-Al

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

oh? no problem. sometimes
I miss a key point - sorry.

but I must say, you are very
polite and professional about
reiterating the point.

----------------

"the focus of this should be
gaining access to the system
again."

therefore, if the cd is genuine
and is bootable and the bios
is set to boot from the cd

then the system should
be able to boot from that cd.

however, if the above is not
possible, then you will have to
remove the disk and install into a
functional computer, as a slave
drive.

then use that functional o.s. as
the means to work on that
corrupted drive.

what is likely happening with the
cd method above, is that the disk
is corrupted and it simply cannot
accept any data from any cd,
though they may be bootable or
have recovery utilities.

----------

therefore, having the disk on a
functional system will enable you
to work on it and restore it to
a functional and accessible state.

------------

in addition to the recovery console
and the utilities that you can try
from a functional system on
that corrupted drive,

you might also try a partitioning
utility called disk director from
acronis.

in my opinion it is 100 percent
reliable and has additional utilities
to recover corrupted disks of
this magnitude.

one of the tools you might try
from the above is to analyze
the ntfs and see if it crashed.

if so, then it can be recovered
with that program.

---------------

unfortunately, if the utilities above
were not available, then you would
have to fdisk that disk (nuke it), and

then reinstall the o.s. from scratch
"or" restore the computer with the
manufacturer recovery disks.

the above being said, you might
want to double check with the
manufacturer and simply ascertain
an idea if that computer had a
hidden partition on its disk with
recovery utilities on it.

-------------

I wish there was a simpler
way to fix the issue, but this
is one of a tremendous magnitude
caused by a very powerful utility and
unreliable program.

it would have been easier to simply
format the drive, at least your cd
would have then been bootable.

also, if there was a backup
made of the disk before hand,
then fdisk'ing and formatting
the disk would have been an
appropriate method.

because then with a formatted
and functional disk, you could
have restored the data.

-----------------

after this, you will be somewhat
of an expert on issues like these.


--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

oh? no problem. sometimes
I miss a key point - sorry.

but I must say, you are very
polite and professional about
reiterating the point.

----------------

"the focus of this should be
gaining access to the system
again."

therefore, if the cd is genuine
and is bootable and the bios
is set to boot from the cd

then the system should
be able to boot from that cd.

however, if the above is not
possible, then you will have to
remove the disk and install into a
functional computer, as a slave
drive.

then use that functional o.s. as
the means to work on that
corrupted drive.

what is likely happening with the
cd method above, is that the disk
is corrupted and it simply cannot
accept any data from any cd,
though they may be bootable or
have recovery utilities.

----------

therefore, having the disk on a
functional system will enable you
to work on it and restore it to
a functional and accessible state.

------------

in addition to the recovery console
and the utilities that you can try
from a functional system on
that corrupted drive,

you might also try a partitioning
utility called disk director from
acronis.

in my opinion it is 100 percent
reliable and has additional utilities
to recover corrupted disks of
this magnitude.

one of the tools you might try
from the above is to analyze
the ntfs and see if it crashed.

if so, then it can be recovered
with that program.

---------------

unfortunately, if the utilities above
were not available, then you would
have to fdisk that disk (nuke it), and

then reinstall the o.s. from scratch
"or" restore the computer with the
manufacturer recovery disks.

the above being said, you might
want to double check with the
manufacturer and simply ascertain
an idea if that computer had a
hidden partition on its disk with
recovery utilities on it.

-------------

I wish there was a simpler
way to fix the issue,  but this
is one of a tremendous magnitude
caused by a very powerful utility and
unreliable program.

it would have been easier to simply
format the drive, at least your cd
would have then been bootable.

also, if there was a backup
made of the disk before hand,
then fdisk'ing and formatting
the disk would have been an
appropriate method.

because then with a formatted
and functional disk, you could
have restored the data.

-----------------

after this, you will be somewhat
of an expert on issues like these.

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for the detailed reply. I can't imagine being anything but
professional and polite to someone who is helping me out of sheer
helpfulness.

I think I'm starting to understand. Just to be clear, when you say the
"disk is corrupt", you are referring to the hard disk, correct? If so,
I think I see where you are going. I have heard of Acronis before and
will definitely give it a try. Hopefully, I don't screw things up
further. I do want to give it shot and learn a little since I've
already dealt with the misery of it all....might as well come full
circle with this. Thanks again! I will update this post after my
attempt and maybe I can help someone else. If you think of anything
else, please post your ideas!

-Al

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

you're welcome.

we will all be standing
by to ascertain your
results.

----------------

unfortunately, the issue you
have brought fourth has not
been the first.

I believe that there is a site
out there that is deliberately
luring people to download a
fatal program.

if you can provide the link
you utilized, I will analyze
the what and where and
get its makers involved.


--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[albertwonglosangeles]

you're welcome.

we will all be standing
by to ascertain your
results.

----------------

unfortunately, the issue you
have brought fourth has not
been the first.

I believe that there is a site
out there that is deliberately
luring people to download a
fatal program.

if you can provide the link
you utilized, I will analyze
the what and where and
get its makers involved.

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, this is what I've gotten around to doing. I removed my hard disk
drive from my machine and put it in a SATA enclosure and connected it
to another machine via USB. When I browse the drive in question from
Explorer there doesn't seem to be much on it. It doesn't appear that
any of my data is on it at all. I used Acronis Recovery Expert to
search for deleted partitions on my the now external HDD and Acronis
says it found no deleted partitions. Where do I go from here??? Is
all my data gone??

 

[db ´¯`·.. >]

I'm familiar with disk doctor
but not 'recovery expert', or
at least I don't think that I
do.

I know in disk doctor there
is an option to scan the disk
and if there is any data, though
you can't see any from the
explorer, a window will be
provided with files and folders
it found.

then the disk doctor will provide
the option to recover the data,
but only after a license is purchased.

------------

from past experience utilizing
older partitioning software,
a critical aspect of these softwares
was to update the master file table.

if the update failed, then data is
still on the disk, but not cataloged
in the master file table.

perhaps, the above information
can provide you with some
clues.

----------

another aspect with partitioning
is what is known as ntfs crash.

off hand, I am not sure if there
is a correlation between a
crashed mft and ntfs.

perhaps, they are the same
problems, just named differently.

----------------

remember, what you want to
avoid is using the command
fdisk or format.

these commands will fix the
disk, but at this time you want
to try to use tools to recovery
what is still there.

-------------

incidentally, have you checked
with the makers of partition
manager and see what they
recommend?

perhaps, partition manager has
a method to undue what it
did, via a utility built in.

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
- Database Developer
- Accountancy
- Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[christine.nguyen]

I'm familiar with disk doctor
but not 'recovery expert', or
at least I don't think that I
do.

I know in disk doctor there
is an option to scan the disk
and if there is any data, though
you can't see any from the
explorer, a window will be
provided with files and folders
it found.

then the disk doctor will provide
the option to recover the data,
but only after a license is purchased.

------------

from past experience utilizing
older partitioning software,
a critical aspect of these softwares
was to update the master file table.

if the update failed, then data is
still on the disk, but not cataloged
in the master file table.

perhaps, the above information
can provide you with some
clues.

----------

another aspect with partitioning
is what is known as ntfs crash.

off hand, I am not sure if there
is a correlation between a
crashed mft and ntfs.

perhaps, they are the same
problems, just named differently.

----------------

remember, what you want to
avoid is using the command
fdisk or format.

these commands will fix the
disk, but at this time you want
to try to use tools to recovery
what is still there.

-------------

incidentally, have you checked
with the makers of partition
manager and see what they
recommend?

perhaps, partition manager has
a method to undue what it
did, via a utility built in.

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
 - Systems Analyst
 - Database Developer
 - Accountancy
 - Veteran of the Armed Forces

"share the nirvana" - dbZen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~





...

read more »

Hi there. For everyone's benefit and for the sake of those who tried
to help, I wanted to post my final "solution." I removed the HDD and
used a SATA enclosure to connect it to another machine. It looked
like the PartitionMagic crash really hosed the partition. I tried to
repair it to no avail. However, using a particular program called
"Power Data Recoery," I could see that all my data, files, and folders
were still there on the drive and managed to pull them all off. I
formatted the disk, put it back into my other machine, and reinstalled
XP on it, and replaced all my old files. I had a hell of a time
finding all the proper drivers for my hardware once the disk was wiped
clean. The machine is a couple of years old and was my brother's (who
no longer has anymore documentation or CDs for it). A website called
www.instantfundas.com and www.pcidatabase.com helped figure things out
in that regard. So, as of right now, everything's back to normal. I'm
missing a few programs that I had, but overall I learned so much and
managed to recover most everything. Note to self: NEVER USE
PartitionMagic again!!

Thanks everyone,
Al