Repairing Windows XP

**Anorak** · 11-16-2006, 02:50 PM

XP Repair install

1. Boot the computer using the XP CD. You may need to change the boot order in the system BIOS so the CD boots before the hard drive. Check your system documentation for steps to access the BIOS and change the boot order.

2. When you see the "Welcome To Setup" screen, you will see the options below :
This portion of the Setup program prepares Microsoft Windows XP to run on your computer:
To setup Windows XP now, press ENTER.
To repair a Windows XP installation using Recovery Console, press R.
To quit Setup without installing Windows XP, press F3.

3. Press Enter to start the Windows Setup.
To setup Windows XP now and Repair Install , press ENTER. do NOT choose "To repair a Windows XP installation using the Recovery Console, press R", (you Do Not want to load Recovery Console). I repeat, do not choose "To repair a Windows XP installation using the Recovery Console, press R".

4. Accept the License Agreement and Windows will search for existing Windows installations.

5. Select the XP installation you want to repair from the list and *NOW* press R to start the repair. If Repair is not one of the options, END setup. After the reboot read Warning#2!

6. Setup will copy the necessary files to the hard drive and reboot. Do not press any key to boot from CD when the message appears. Setup will continue as if it were doing a clean install, but your applications and settings will remain intact.
On the first repair option, bypass and press C to continue, go through a couple of okies, then you will come to a repair menu.
This is the one you want

Guess which dip-poo pressed the first R by mistake this afty, luckily I could still do a roll back, and my files came back \O/
I hate Winders, but I hate Linux even more............

**Brandon Sheley** · 11-16-2006, 05:09 PM

nice article on how to fix XP.. I added an image to make it look a little better

**eric** · 11-16-2006, 11:55 PM

I'd say *format c* install linux

**Brandon Sheley** · 11-17-2006, 10:01 AM

I want to install Linux and dual boot xp and linux again
is that what you do eric ?

**eric** · 11-17-2006, 11:11 AM

Well let me explain my long long history lol
Once upon a time I started to fool with computers. those were the days of AppleII, Commodore64, Spectrum zx to play... who remembers those days... gosh supreme luxery was a tape steamer on the zx to load and safe games....

Then in 1988 I started a company with father and brother and we opted for the MacIntosh Se .... those little machines with 4 mb ram and 40 mb drives still run believe it or not, not for production but they still boot....

I have been following that path till OS 9 when I moved about 1200 km south and didn't have enough money to bu me another Mac so I ended up with a PC (gosh windows 2000 and all the fun off crashes, blue screens, incompatible drivers name it, I had it all). 3 years ago I was so fed up with all this Micro****** (self imposed ***) I erased all and installed Fedora 4... Honestly, I struggled hell with it to make all work on my laptop... But at least it hardly crashed... then came the alternative program search part .. and slowly on I ended with Fedora 6. I started to play web hosting and had to learn a lot more and way quicker with a lot of help.. and now am running most servers on Centos or RH EL. Never ever had windows since except at daytime work... and believe me everyone knows how I love that

Since 3 months now I migrated back to an Imac and OSx ..
I don't want to start a war of pro and cons but for me I finally have what I want and what I expect from a computer.

I do use Parallels to run simultaniously my mac and Fedora 6 if I need to simulate things from servers or to test something before launching production wise. No need to re boot or anything, Fedora runs as virtual machine... I have also XP this way but except when I installed never started it again.

What can I advice you to have dual boot. First have xp and then just launch the dvd for a linux distro, it'll handle all to set it next to xp, set the loader so you can choose what at boot (grub most probably). Linux is very mature these days and is going quick in development. I prefer KDE as Gui though some prefer Gnome to mention 2 biggest, there are a few hundred others...
Most material is recognized from start except winmodems (56 k I mean) to get most of it terminal is still the way to go. If you really want to learn, a book is still very handy to learn since the structure is somewhat weird from a windows point of view and at start you're at a complete loss where things are. Dependencies are the head breaker in Linux but that has been handled pretty nicely on RH alikes via YUM, it does what is needed to get it going.

One thing I won't hide, it is very hard to take linux of the drive once it is installed since it changes boot part and without grub windows can't start anymore. It can be done if you know how (neding xp install cd for it) and repair boot sectors is the way to follow.
If you have another machine, even less powerfull , install linux on there, it runs a lot, and I mean a lot lighter then windows. If you don't push gui to hard it runs on a 486.with 64 mb ram...

And since you'll blow your first linux for sure by messing so hard, at least you don't mess the drive with xp on it

that's my advice,
I once did dual boot but won't do that again

**Anorak** · 11-19-2006, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric

I'd say *format c* install linux

Now now Eric !

Can you actually work that stuff ? WoW /gives medal to Eric {impressed}:trustme:
I tried Mandriva ? on a dual boot, why ? I dont know, thought it would give me extra security on my comp.
So usually I fire up, go the loo, or make a cup of tea, until my winders login appears,,,,,, however Linux has got there first. Plus a kid that didnt press up/down fast enough.
I'm used to dos commands, and even managed to get net connected on Linux, little else, so yes, very interested in the pro's.
Took forever to remove it, few clicks via the linux forum helps did the trick, however, I still have a partition that I dont want.

Ubuntu that works off cd, doesnt install, so novices can get the feel of LInuX.

Eric did you have one of those comps with a cassette tape that fired it up and remember the 5.1/4 cardboard floppies loooool those were the days, and a 9 something to connect to dialup. My first "top range" comp was a 486/100, been running a 3.06 for 3/4? yrs now and its still going strong,,,,, apart from software cockups

**Brandon Sheley** · 11-19-2006, 04:55 PM

my first PC was a 386 I remmeber when we got the 486 and I thought it was so bad ass. We used Xtree to get to allt he files.

I installed Linux SUSE on a dual boot and it worked fine, I need to reinstall it so I can play some more..

to fix a partition space you can use fdisk in the command prompt

**eric** · 11-19-2006, 11:36 PM

I always advice to install linux on an old machine and not as dual boot. It is normal you mess up the full thing the first months since you have no clue what it is, how it works etc. And since windows can't live alone once in dual boot except if you're perfect in restoring boot sectors.... Once you're ok with linux, no harm to let both live on the same machine.

**Brandon Sheley** · 11-20-2006, 09:22 AM

Thats what I'll do with this machine I'm using now. Once we get a new PC, I'll use the old one for linux.. I guess I could use a old motherboard I have that had win98se on it, I don't know if I have an extra HDD, I think I sold them all.

**Anorak** · 12-07-2006, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric

I'd say *format c* install linux

ERIC !!! You bloody Voodoo'd me LMAO
I'm famous for catching anything thats going :/
Had THREE whole comps fired up last week \O/ didnt last long.
Always I like to double check with on-line scans - don't you bloody hate fake alerts, ust because they want you to buy their software,,
so now Iv'e got a *supposed* dialer, and bugger knows how many trojans. All Iv'e done is update my Mozzie, oh and some messenger thing. ekk and been in flea bay :/
kk, turned off "system restore", unchecked "hide extensions for all known files" and unchecked "hide protected operating system files", is still saying system volume information is locked.
Anyways reading destructions on this one {my dinkey Sony}, while on command prompt on my main, slow going :/

Bad plan, is to run Agnitum on stealth mode !
Crypt j
Tequila Bandita 1.3b2
Back otifice
Sepro C & E
Downloader 122
Win32.Sober J
Ultimate Rat 2.1 ap
Zlob,

to name but a few... did I want to delete them ?
YES.
Except it sort of cleaned out my system files as well and ended up dead as a dodo, with NTLDR is missing please press alt ctrl del

Easy one that, is a little util on the net that restores the file [not lol] because I lost the raid sata driver thing, and my second drive took over, installing itself as my boot drive. Comp management couldnt even see my boot drive. Helps on Micra$haft was totally useless, says you cant change a boot volume. I found a novel way - I unplugged it !!
Managed to eventually fire up into safe ? cant remember how, but did have to copy the i386 folder from this laptop over to my main,a back up of my drivers, and it worked as far as it accepted the drive and I booted into windows. And my second drive has gone back to where it belongs.

Still messing, trying to repair my registry now.......
Yes it would have been faster to format, but guess who never did a full backup before I started to play, and is some important files I
didnt want to loose :/ And i couldnt use syst restore, because I'd turned it off.

Oh and then my modem/router blew up again! Guess, I'm having real FuN. Been offline for days, wasnt ignoring anyone, anytime I go wol, be advised Iv'e blown up again.

Have a lovely Christmas everyone, if I dont catch you before I get my hammer out

Least Iv'e sent you all to sleep lmao. Dont believe this my new backup has just bombed out

**Anorak** · 12-12-2006, 03:48 PM

Lost
a 200 << good old Max, right on guarantee. saved a 200 & 120 gig << going in my cctv recorder.
Lost a Sony dvd hmmmmm havnt checked g/tee on that one.
Gone for West Digi drives this time.

dare I say my 3.06 has given me at least 3 years, now looking for a fella called Intel

Post fast 44% of something M$ coming down ~ reboot

**Brandon Sheley** · 12-13-2006, 05:41 PM

my PC is 1.67 Ghz

do you think I should upgrade ?

I did add more RAM and another HDD

oh, I bought a cheap video card too, cuz I thought I wanted to use a TV screen as a 2nd monitor, well I quickly noticed the pixel rate isn't the best of a TV

Now if I had a Hi Def TV, it would be a different story.