winxp chkdsk is not enough

[Guest]

Hi,

I have Win Xp SP1 on my Athlon 2100+. My 80gb Maxtor HD
(with only one NTFS partition ... don't say a word, I
know I'm stupid) had a problem at a startup and since,
just before loading windows, I just get a mosaic of weird
blinking DOS caracters on the screen and doesn't do
anything else.

When I use the recovery console (from the winxp bootable
cd), I can see that all the folders and files within the
c:/windows folder are there, which is (I think) a good
sign.

But when I try chkdsk /r to fix the HD (because chkdsk /p
detects some errors) it takes a long time (well, the
first 50% goes fast, but the rest is VERY slow) but seems
to fix everything. But if I reboot, I still get the same
thing.

Worse: if I do another chkdsk /r after a chkdsk /r, it
still takes a very long time (way longer than a
chkdsk /p), so I guess it doesn't fix anything.

I also tried a fixboot and then a chkdsk /r but the
problem is still there.

I know that I do have a virus because I have Norton AV
2003 up-to-date.

What else can I do to save my data? Can I reinstall
windows xp without loosing any data (I doubt it)? Help me
please...

Thanks in advance

 

[David Candy]

Install XP to another folder then you can use that one to rescue files.

 

[Guest]

Will it let me install it? I thought you couldn't install
several times the same OS on the same partition.

 

[David Candy]

You can. You'll have problems with software installation. Not something that worries you.