XP Crashed - How can I copy my data from the RAID 1 drives?

[Guest]

I have had XP Pro SP2 running on one computer for a little over a year. About
2-months ago I stared getting spy ware infections. 4-times I spent hours on
the phone with the folks in India.

Intel SE7505VB2
(2) Xeon 2.80 HD’s – SATA RAID 1
XP SP2
McAfee
Ad Aware
Spy Bot
Zone Alarm

Today, everything was fine until I turned off my computer to go have dinner
and when I returned the computer would only start in safe mode. Any attempt
to start in normal mode would just cause the computer to restart.

Called MS Tech Support – they had me disconnect one drive and try to restart
the computer – not a good idea! Short story, now I can not get the computer
to boot even to safe mode – I guess thanks to Bill Gates, I’m screwed.

I guess I have to order a new XP SP2 CD, since I have my original XP CD and
someone said don’t even try connecting to the internet until you get SP2 and
all your security software installed on your new HD. Of course all my
security software is on the RAID drives…

So, here is the question: Once I get the system running, or how should I get
the system running, so I can connect and copy data from the old RAID drives?

I sure hope someone can help.

 

[Steven L Umbach]

Are you using RAID1 for the system drives or for just data drives? RAID1 is
mirroring which protects from hardware failure but not data or operating
system corruption or malware related problems. If you have a hardware
problem with one hard drive or controller refer the documentation of the
motherboard for how to proceed when one drive or controller is down. If you
disconnected one drive and that did not work try connecting the one you
disconnected and disconnecting the other to see what happens. You should be
able to extract data from your hard drives or at least the functioning one
by placing it as a slave/secondary drive to a computer with a working
operating system that can access NTFS files or try creating a BART's PE disk
and booting from that.

As far as XP Pre Service Pack 2 you can safely use and install from that
install disk. But pre SP2 does not enable the built in firewall by default.
If you are using an internet router to protect your network you should be
safe from internet threats but to be sure I would do the new install
disconnected from the network and then enable the built in firewall before
connecting back to the network. That will also help protect your new install
if you have other computers on your network. Of course you want to take
steps to try and prevent the same problems all over again. Be sure to review
the link below on Microsoft basic security advice for home users and the
related links to malware and spyware. One important thing to emphasize is
that it is really a bad idea to be logged onto your computer with an account
that is a local administrator when you do not need administrator powers
particularly for browsing the internet, using chat programs, and opening
email. --- Steve

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxpsp2/Default.mspx
--- Protect Your PC
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/ --- Bart's PE. This should be in every power
users toolbox. You can use it to scan your system for malware and edit the
registry in addition to everything else it can do.

 

[Steven L Umbach]

I should have also added that if you have any files encrypted with EFS that
unless you have previously exported your EFS certificate and private key to
a password protected .pfx file that you have access to then the only way you
will be able to access your EFS files is from the operating system that you
used to encrypt the files. Also if you find that you are denied access to
non encrypted files from another operating system make sure you logon as an
administrator, take ownership of the folders/files you can not access, and
then grant your user account full control to them as described in the links
below. --- Steve

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308421
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/810881

 

[Guest]

Steve,

I created a PART PE disc and booted the system - and I loaded the RAID
driver when prompted - when I try to run chkdsk it says on the C: drive
(rememeber, it is 2-drives / RAID 1) it says "Cannot open volume for direct
access"....

Something tells me I am fried

 

[Guest]

Steve,

You might all see my post "RAID 1 - serious question"

 

[Guest]

Something tells me I have to find a way to have only 1 of the RAID discs
connected, and get the computer to think it is NOT a RAID disc?????

 

[Guest]

I swapped the RAID drives - and I get this message:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the
origial setup CD-RM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start the repair.

I don;t know if I should give this a try?

 

[Steven L Umbach]

That would be a good assumption. If the motherboard has a non RAID
controller in it try connecting one of the drives to that either in your
computer or in another computer with a working operating system to see if
you can access your data which you might be able to do since RAID1 does not
use striping but just mirrors the other disk. Remember RAID is used for
redundancy of data availability and performance and is not to be substituted
for normal backup procedures. If you have a manual for your motherboard or
can go to the website for the motherboard manufacturer you should be able to
find a full manual and FAQ section that may have helpful information. You
may also want to post in the Microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware
wsgroup. --- Steve

 

[Steven L Umbach]

That will initiate an upgrade/repair install. That can often, but not
always, fix problems but if successful will require that you first install
your service pack if not included on the install disk, and then all critical
security updates from Windows Updates when done. An upgrade/repair install
will not format the system drive [be sure to NOT accept any option to
format] and should preserve your data and applications. The links below have
more info on the repair install. Since you have BART's PE you could also try
booting from it and then renaming \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM to
system.old and then going to the windows\repair folder and copying the
system file there to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG to see if that helps. If that
works you may need to reinstall some applications because they may no longer
be registered in the registry. Since you first saved the original system
file to system.old you could always restore it if need be and then attempt
the upgrade/repair install.. --- Steve

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[Guest]

To my utter amazement - this silly computer has restarted and I am typing
this on it.... I feel like I am in the twilight zone!

I deleted the RAID set and know have 2-more drives than I had before (the
raid was partitioned). OF COURSE, the first thing I did was BACK-UP all the
data I was cringing about loosing!

I have no clue... none whatsoever! This is the strangest thing I have ever
seen!

I believe I am going to start over, now that my data is safeky copied to
DVD's, even though I know this will be a mind boggling task. I was thinking
of using this brand new IDE Drive I purchased today, because I thought I was
screwed, and using IT only for the OS and programs, and store data on the
remaing 2 former RAID 1 drives.

I am completely open to suggestions.

Thank you

That will initiate an upgrade/repair install. That can often, but not
always, fix problems but if successful will require that you first install
your service pack if not included on the install disk, and then all critical
security updates from Windows Updates when done. An upgrade/repair install
will not format the system drive [be sure to NOT accept any option to
format] and should preserve your data and applications. The links below have
more info on the repair install. Since you have BART's PE you could also try
booting from it and then renaming \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM to
system.old and then going to the windows\repair folder and copying the
system file there to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG to see if that helps. If that
works you may need to reinstall some applications because they may no longer
be registered in the registry. Since you first saved the original system
file to system.old you could always restore it if need be and then attempt
the upgrade/repair install.. --- Steve

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

I swapped the RAID drives - and I get this message:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the
origial setup CD-RM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start the repair.

I don;t know if I should give this a try?

 

[Steven L Umbach]

Well that is good news that you were able to access your data. As far as
using RAID1 it might make sense to keep the OS on regular drive and then use
RAID1 for data if you want or don't use RAID at all and maybe even take the
new drive back for a refund. From personal experience I know my son has had
a number of problems with the RAID that is built into some of the
motherboards he has used and I don't use it myself. If I wanted RAID I would
buy an Adaptec RAID controller and use SCSI drives. You might also want to
post on the hardware newsgroup for feedback on hardware configuration. ---
Steve

To my utter amazement - this silly computer has restarted and I am typing
this on it.... I feel like I am in the twilight zone!

I deleted the RAID set and know have 2-more drives than I had before (the
raid was partitioned). OF COURSE, the first thing I did was BACK-UP all
the
data I was cringing about loosing!

I have no clue... none whatsoever! This is the strangest thing I have ever
seen!

I believe I am going to start over, now that my data is safeky copied to
DVD's, even though I know this will be a mind boggling task. I was
thinking
of using this brand new IDE Drive I purchased today, because I thought I
was
screwed, and using IT only for the OS and programs, and store data on the
remaing 2 former RAID 1 drives.

I am completely open to suggestions.

Thank you

That will initiate an upgrade/repair install. That can often, but not
always, fix problems but if successful will require that you first
install
your service pack if not included on the install disk, and then all
critical
security updates from Windows Updates when done. An upgrade/repair
install
will not format the system drive [be sure to NOT accept any option to
format] and should preserve your data and applications. The links below
have
more info on the repair install. Since you have BART's PE you could also
try
booting from it and then renaming \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM to
system.old and then going to the windows\repair folder and copying the
system file there to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG to see if that helps. If
that
works you may need to reinstall some applications because they may no
longer
be registered in the registry. Since you first saved the original system
file to system.old you could always restore it if need be and then
attempt
the upgrade/repair install.. --- Steve

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

in
message news:[email protected]...

I swapped the RAID drives - and I get this message:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or
corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the
origial setup CD-RM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start the
repair.

I don;t know if I should give this a try?

:

I should have also added that if you have any files encrypted with EFS
that
unless you have previously exported your EFS certificate and private
key
to
a password protected .pfx file that you have access to then the only
way
you
will be able to access your EFS files is from the operating system
that
you
used to encrypt the files. Also if you find that you are denied access
to
non encrypted files from another operating system make sure you logon
as
an
administrator, take ownership of the folders/files you can not access,
and
then grant your user account full control to them as described in the
links
below. --- Steve

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308421
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/810881


Are you using RAID1 for the system drives or for just data drives?
RAID1
is mirroring which protects from hardware failure but not data or
operating system corruption or malware related problems. If you have
a
hardware problem with one hard drive or controller refer the
documentation
of the motherboard for how to proceed when one drive or controller
is
down. If you disconnected one drive and that did not work try
connecting
the one you disconnected and disconnecting the other to see what
happens.
You should be able to extract data from your hard drives or at least
the
functioning one by placing it as a slave/secondary drive to a
computer
with a working operating system that can access NTFS files or try
creating
a BART's PE disk and booting from that.

As far as XP Pre Service Pack 2 you can safely use and install from
that
install disk. But pre SP2 does not enable the built in firewall by
default. If you are using an internet router to protect your network
you
should be safe from internet threats but to be sure I would do the
new
install disconnected from the network and then enable the built in
firewall before connecting back to the network. That will also help
protect your new install if you have other computers on your
network.
Of
course you want to take steps to try and prevent the same problems
all
over again. Be sure to review the link below on Microsoft basic
security
advice for home users and the related links to malware and spyware.
One
important thing to emphasize is that it is really a bad idea to be
logged
onto your computer with an account that is a local administrator
when
you
do not need administrator powers particularly for browsing the
internet,
using chat programs, and opening email. --- Steve


tp://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxpsp2/Default.mspx
--- Protect Your PC
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/ --- Bart's PE. This should be in
every
power users toolbox. You can use it to scan your system for malware
and
edit the registry in addition to everything else it can do.


"Karl in Scottsdale" <[email protected]>
wrote
in
message I have had XP Pro SP2 running on one computer for a little over a
year.
About
2-months ago I stared getting spy ware infections. 4-times I spent
hours
on
the phone with the folks in India.

Intel SE7505VB2
(2) Xeon 2.80 HD's - SATA RAID 1
XP SP2
McAfee
Ad Aware
Spy Bot
Zone Alarm

Today, everything was fine until I turned off my computer to go
have
dinner
and when I returned the computer would only start in safe mode. Any
attempt
to start in normal mode would just cause the computer to restart.

Called MS Tech Support - they had me disconnect one drive and try
to
restart
the computer - not a good idea! Short story, now I can not get the
computer
to boot even to safe mode - I guess thanks to Bill Gates, I'm
screwed.

I guess I have to order a new XP SP2 CD, since I have my original
XP
CD
and
someone said don't even try connecting to the internet until you
get
SP2
and
all your security software installed on your new HD. Of course all
my
security software is on the RAID drives.

So, here is the question: Once I get the system running, or how
should
I
get
the system running, so I can connect and copy data from the old
RAID
drives?

I sure hope someone can help.

 

[Guest]

I think I will be putting RAID 1 to sleep, permanently; and I know I will
actually GET to sleep tonight, unlike last night.

Since I was able to capture all my important data - whew - I decided to
delete the RAID and formatted 1 drive and am now in the middle of 48 Windows
updates! Once I get everything back to normal, or as normal as it can get, I
will format the second drive and use IT solely for data storage - and keep
backing-up to DVD's.

And, yes, the new HD will be going back to FRY's Electronics tomorrow – I’m
going to enjoy a steak with the refund.

This was all a close-call, and I am thankful that I was able to get my data
- goes to show you how important back-ups are. My last one was a month ago!
This computer was near perfect up until about 2-months ago when I started
getting spy ware and malware attacks – ever since then I’ve been getting
strange behavior and unusual errors – so reformatting and starting over was
in the back of my mind – I was just avoiding the task.

Now my next trick is to find a really good firewall – I had Zone Alarm
before but of course those nuts have a problem getting their software to work
with McAfee… right now Windows firewall is running and I will stay off the
internet until I get something stronger.

Thanks for your help, Steven,

Karl

Well that is good news that you were able to access your data. As far as
using RAID1 it might make sense to keep the OS on regular drive and then use
RAID1 for data if you want or don't use RAID at all and maybe even take the
new drive back for a refund. From personal experience I know my son has had
a number of problems with the RAID that is built into some of the
motherboards he has used and I don't use it myself. If I wanted RAID I would
buy an Adaptec RAID controller and use SCSI drives. You might also want to
post on the hardware newsgroup for feedback on hardware configuration. ---
Steve

To my utter amazement - this silly computer has restarted and I am typing
this on it.... I feel like I am in the twilight zone!

I deleted the RAID set and know have 2-more drives than I had before (the
raid was partitioned). OF COURSE, the first thing I did was BACK-UP all
the
data I was cringing about loosing!

I have no clue... none whatsoever! This is the strangest thing I have ever
seen!

I believe I am going to start over, now that my data is safeky copied to
DVD's, even though I know this will be a mind boggling task. I was
thinking
of using this brand new IDE Drive I purchased today, because I thought I
was
screwed, and using IT only for the OS and programs, and store data on the
remaing 2 former RAID 1 drives.

I am completely open to suggestions.

Thank you

That will initiate an upgrade/repair install. That can often, but not
always, fix problems but if successful will require that you first
install
your service pack if not included on the install disk, and then all
critical
security updates from Windows Updates when done. An upgrade/repair
install
will not format the system drive [be sure to NOT accept any option to
format] and should preserve your data and applications. The links below
have
more info on the repair install. Since you have BART's PE you could also
try
booting from it and then renaming \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM to
system.old and then going to the windows\repair folder and copying the
system file there to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG to see if that helps. If
that
works you may need to reinstall some applications because they may no
longer
be registered in the registry. Since you first saved the original system
file to system.old you could always restore it if need be and then
attempt
the upgrade/repair install.. --- Steve

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

in
message I swapped the RAID drives - and I get this message:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or
corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the
origial setup CD-RM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start the
repair.

I don;t know if I should give this a try?

:

I should have also added that if you have any files encrypted with EFS
that
unless you have previously exported your EFS certificate and private
key
to
a password protected .pfx file that you have access to then the only
way
you
will be able to access your EFS files is from the operating system
that
you
used to encrypt the files. Also if you find that you are denied access
to
non encrypted files from another operating system make sure you logon
as
an
administrator, take ownership of the folders/files you can not access,
and
then grant your user account full control to them as described in the
links
below. --- Steve

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308421
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/810881


Are you using RAID1 for the system drives or for just data drives?
RAID1
is mirroring which protects from hardware failure but not data or
operating system corruption or malware related problems. If you have
a
hardware problem with one hard drive or controller refer the
documentation
of the motherboard for how to proceed when one drive or controller
is
down. If you disconnected one drive and that did not work try
connecting
the one you disconnected and disconnecting the other to see what
happens.
You should be able to extract data from your hard drives or at least
the
functioning one by placing it as a slave/secondary drive to a
computer
with a working operating system that can access NTFS files or try
creating
a BART's PE disk and booting from that.

As far as XP Pre Service Pack 2 you can safely use and install from
that
install disk. But pre SP2 does not enable the built in firewall by
default. If you are using an internet router to protect your network
you
should be safe from internet threats but to be sure I would do the
new
install disconnected from the network and then enable the built in
firewall before connecting back to the network. That will also help
protect your new install if you have other computers on your
network.
Of
course you want to take steps to try and prevent the same problems
all
over again. Be sure to review the link below on Microsoft basic
security
advice for home users and the related links to malware and spyware.
One
important thing to emphasize is that it is really a bad idea to be
logged
onto your computer with an account that is a local administrator
when
you
do not need administrator powers particularly for browsing the
internet,
using chat programs, and opening email. --- Steve


tp://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxpsp2/Default.mspx
--- Protect Your PC
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/ --- Bart's PE. This should be in
every
power users toolbox. You can use it to scan your system for malware
and
edit the registry in addition to everything else it can do.


"Karl in Scottsdale" <[email protected]>
wrote
in
message I have had XP Pro SP2 running on one computer for a little over a
year.
About
2-months ago I stared getting spy ware infections. 4-times I spent
hours
on
the phone with the folks in India.

Intel SE7505VB2
(2) Xeon 2.80 HD's - SATA RAID 1
XP SP2
McAfee
Ad Aware
Spy Bot
Zone Alarm

Today, everything was fine until I turned off my computer to go
have
dinner
and when I returned the computer would only start in safe mode. Any
attempt
to start in normal mode would just cause the computer to restart.

Called MS Tech Support - they had me disconnect one drive and try
to
restart
the computer - not a good idea! Short story, now I can not get the
computer
to boot even to safe mode - I guess thanks to Bill Gates, I'm
screwed.

I guess I have to order a new XP SP2 CD, since I have my original
XP
CD
and
someone said don't even try connecting to the internet until you
get
SP2
and
all your security software installed on your new HD. Of course all
my
security software is on the RAID drives.

So, here is the question: Once I get the system running, or how
should
I
get
the system running, so I can connect and copy data from the old
RAID
drives?

I sure hope someone can help.

 

[Steven Umbach]

Glad you are on the track to recovery and a clean install is a great idea after
experiencing the type of problems you have seen seeing knowing you have had
problems with malware. If you have any imaging software such as Ghost now would
be a great time to make a couple image backups of your system partition while
you know it is clean. I usually do a couple such as one with just the operating
system installed with service pack and critical security updates installed and
then another one that includes my core applications.

As far as personal firewalls go I believe that the Windows Firewall does a great
job for its intended purpose. For those that want something more advanced the
free for personal use Zone Alarm is very good. The problem with personal
firewalls is that they can easily become too complex. In any case for any user
with cable/DSL connection I consider an internet router/hardware firewall to be
a must. --- Steve

I think I will be putting RAID 1 to sleep, permanently; and I know I will
actually GET to sleep tonight, unlike last night.

Since I was able to capture all my important data - whew - I decided to
delete the RAID and formatted 1 drive and am now in the middle of 48 Windows
updates! Once I get everything back to normal, or as normal as it can get, I
will format the second drive and use IT solely for data storage - and keep
backing-up to DVD's.

And, yes, the new HD will be going back to FRY's Electronics tomorrow - I'm
going to enjoy a steak with the refund.

This was all a close-call, and I am thankful that I was able to get my data
- goes to show you how important back-ups are. My last one was a month ago!
This computer was near perfect up until about 2-months ago when I started
getting spy ware and malware attacks - ever since then I've been getting
strange behavior and unusual errors - so reformatting and starting over was
in the back of my mind - I was just avoiding the task.

Now my next trick is to find a really good firewall - I had Zone Alarm
before but of course those nuts have a problem getting their software to work
with McAfee. right now Windows firewall is running and I will stay off the
internet until I get something stronger.

Thanks for your help, Steven,

Karl

Well that is good news that you were able to access your data. As far as
using RAID1 it might make sense to keep the OS on regular drive and then use
RAID1 for data if you want or don't use RAID at all and maybe even take the
new drive back for a refund. From personal experience I know my son has had
a number of problems with the RAID that is built into some of the
motherboards he has used and I don't use it myself. If I wanted RAID I would
buy an Adaptec RAID controller and use SCSI drives. You might also want to
post on the hardware newsgroup for feedback on hardware configuration. ---
Steve

To my utter amazement - this silly computer has restarted and I am typing
this on it.... I feel like I am in the twilight zone!

I deleted the RAID set and know have 2-more drives than I had before (the
raid was partitioned). OF COURSE, the first thing I did was BACK-UP all
the
data I was cringing about loosing!

I have no clue... none whatsoever! This is the strangest thing I have ever
seen!

I believe I am going to start over, now that my data is safeky copied to
DVD's, even though I know this will be a mind boggling task. I was
thinking
of using this brand new IDE Drive I purchased today, because I thought I
was
screwed, and using IT only for the OS and programs, and store data on the
remaing 2 former RAID 1 drives.

I am completely open to suggestions.

Thank you


:

That will initiate an upgrade/repair install. That can often, but not
always, fix problems but if successful will require that you first
install
your service pack if not included on the install disk, and then all
critical
security updates from Windows Updates when done. An upgrade/repair
install
will not format the system drive [be sure to NOT accept any option to
format] and should preserve your data and applications. The links below
have
more info on the repair install. Since you have BART's PE you could also
try
booting from it and then renaming \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM to
system.old and then going to the windows\repair folder and copying the
system file there to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG to see if that helps. If
that
works you may need to reinstall some applications because they may no
longer
be registered in the registry. Since you first saved the original system
file to system.old you could always restore it if need be and then
attempt
the upgrade/repair install.. --- Steve

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

in
message I swapped the RAID drives - and I get this message:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or
corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM 32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the
origial setup CD-RM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start the
repair.

I don;t know if I should give this a try?

:

I should have also added that if you have any files encrypted with EFS
that
unless you have previously exported your EFS certificate and private
key
to
a password protected .pfx file that you have access to then the only
way
you
will be able to access your EFS files is from the operating system
that
you
used to encrypt the files. Also if you find that you are denied access
to
non encrypted files from another operating system make sure you logon
as
an
administrator, take ownership of the folders/files you can not access,
and
then grant your user account full control to them as described in the
links
below. --- Steve

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308421
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/810881


Are you using RAID1 for the system drives or for just data drives?
RAID1
is mirroring which protects from hardware failure but not data or
operating system corruption or malware related problems. If you have
a
hardware problem with one hard drive or controller refer the
documentation
of the motherboard for how to proceed when one drive or controller
is
down. If you disconnected one drive and that did not work try
connecting
the one you disconnected and disconnecting the other to see what
happens.
You should be able to extract data from your hard drives or at least
the
functioning one by placing it as a slave/secondary drive to a
computer
with a working operating system that can access NTFS files or try
creating
a BART's PE disk and booting from that.

As far as XP Pre Service Pack 2 you can safely use and install from
that
install disk. But pre SP2 does not enable the built in firewall by
default. If you are using an internet router to protect your network
you
should be safe from internet threats but to be sure I would do the
new
install disconnected from the network and then enable the built in
firewall before connecting back to the network. That will also help
protect your new install if you have other computers on your
network.
Of
course you want to take steps to try and prevent the same problems
all
over again. Be sure to review the link below on Microsoft basic
security
advice for home users and the related links to malware and spyware.
One
important thing to emphasize is that it is really a bad idea to be
logged
onto your computer with an account that is a local administrator
when
you
do not need administrator powers particularly for browsing the
internet,
using chat programs, and opening email. --- Steve


tp://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxpsp2/Default.mspx
--- Protect Your PC
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/ --- Bart's PE. This should be in
every
power users toolbox. You can use it to scan your system for malware
and
edit the registry in addition to everything else it can do.


"Karl in Scottsdale" <[email protected]>
wrote
in
message I have had XP Pro SP2 running on one computer for a little over a
year.
About
2-months ago I stared getting spy ware infections. 4-times I spent
hours
on
the phone with the folks in India.

Intel SE7505VB2
(2) Xeon 2.80 HD's - SATA RAID 1
XP SP2
McAfee
Ad Aware
Spy Bot
Zone Alarm

Today, everything was fine until I turned off my computer to go
have
dinner
and when I returned the computer would only start in safe mode. Any
attempt
to start in normal mode would just cause the computer to restart.

Called MS Tech Support - they had me disconnect one drive and try
to
restart
the computer - not a good idea! Short story, now I can not get the
computer
to boot even to safe mode - I guess thanks to Bill Gates, I'm
screwed.

I guess I have to order a new XP SP2 CD, since I have my original
XP
CD
and
someone said don't even try connecting to the internet until you
get
SP2
and
all your security software installed on your new HD. Of course all
my
security software is on the RAID drives.

So, here is the question: Once I get the system running, or how
should
I
get
the system running, so I can connect and copy data from the old
RAID
drives?

I sure hope someone can help.

 

[Mark]

Try barts cd or UBCD to retrieve your data