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Posts Tagged Windows XP

How to Perform Repair Installation of Windows XP

Aug 26

Posted by Admin in Troubleshooting | No Comments


Repair installation of Windows XP means replacing all the system files with original files on the Windows XP installation disc. Since all these files are restored, you will lose any Windows Updates or Service Packs that you have installed after the computer was set up. However, if you are using a disc that has the Service Pack files on it, you will have a service pack installed system after the repair installation.

To perform Repair Installation, follow the steps below:

  1. The computer must be set to boot from CD/DVD drive. For this, you need to enter BIOS and set the first boot device in Boot Priority / Sequence to CD/DVD drive.
  2. Once done, you need to insert the Windows XP installation disc in the CD/DVD drive and restart the computer.
  3. While rebooting, you will see a prompt on the screen to “Press any key to boot from CD”
  4. When you get this prompt, press any key on the keyboard.
  5. This will initiate a booting process from CD. The setup will load a lot of files before taking you to a screen with some options to select. You will not be able to use your mouse on this screen. The selection has to be made using the arrow keys on the keyboard.
  6. Press the “Enter” key when you get the message to “Press Enter to setup Windows XP now”. Do not press “R” since this will take you to Recovery Console.
  7. You will get a License Agreement prompt. On this screen, press the “F8” key on your keyboard to accept the license agreement.
  8. Now you will get an option to select the Operating System installation that you want to repair. Select the correct option (usually there is only one installation, unless you have a dual boot set up) and press “R” to initiate the Repair Installation.
  9. Follow the instructions to complete the process
  10. The computer will reboot once the process is complete.
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Tags: boot, installation, Microsoft, Repair, Windows XP

NTLDR Missing or Corrupt: Solution

Aug 26

Posted by Admin in Troubleshooting | No Comments

 
NTLDR is an abbreviation for NT Loader. This is the boot loader for all Windows based Operating systems on NT technology, like Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. It is run from the primary hard drive, but can be executed from a removable media like a CD-ROM. This requires boot.ini file to be present to function properly.

 

This error usually appears in the following formats:

“NTLDR is Missing

Press any Key to Continue”

 

“NTLDR is Missing

Press Ctrl Alt Del to restart”

 

There are various causes for this error message:

  1. PC is booting off a CD-ROM or USB drive or any external drive/device
  2. Corrupt files and file configuration
  3. Corrupt sectors on Hard Drive
  4. BIOS problems

 

Solution

  1. Restart the computer to check if the problem still occurs. If this is intermittent, there is a high probability that the connection to the hard drive is loose.
  2. Check if you have a floppy drive or CD/DVD in the CD/DVD drive. If you have any, try booting the computer without these disks.
  3. Check the settings in BIOS. You should check for detection of Hard Drive on the BIOS Screen. A sample screen looks like below:

 BIOS1

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bios2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Make sure that you have something listed against IDE Primary Master / Hard Drive / First Boot Device, depending on the BIOS that you have.

 

4. If the above steps don’t help (in most cases they don’t), try to extract and restore the booting files from Windows installation Disc. If you don’t have the disc, you can borrow the disc from someone else. This does not violate the piracy norms set by Microsoft. To do this, follow the steps below:

  • Set the First Boot Device in BIOS to CD/DVD drive. Enter the Windows installation disc in the drive and restart the computer. You will see a prompt to “Press any key to boot from CD”. At this prompt, press any key on the keyboard to boot from CD.
  • On the selection screen that comes after the setup has loaded all the files, press “R” to go to recovery console. You may be prompted to enter your administrator password on the screen here.
  • The next screen will look like a command prompt, with a black screen and blinking cursor. On this screen type the following commands:

                                                                                       i.      Copy d:\i386\ntldr c:\

                                                                                     ii.      Copy d:\i386\ntdetect.com c:\

 

Here, d: refers to the CDROM drive and c: refers to the partition in which Windows is installed on your machine.

  • If you get a prompt to replace the existing file, press “Y” to confirm
  • Once this is done, take the Windows disc out of the drive and type “exit” to restart the computer.

 

This should replace the existing corrupt files with a set of new files. On restart, your computer should boot properly without any error message.

 

 5. If these steps also don’t resolve the issue and you still get the same NTLDR missing message, boot from the Windows installation disc and go to the recovery console prompt again (As explained in first few steps above). On the recovery console, follow the steps below:

  • Type “bootcfg” and press Enter
  • You will get a prompt to “Add installation to Boot List?” after you press Enter key. Type “Y” to say Yes and press Enter key again
  • You will get another prompt to enter the name of the installation. On this prompt, type “Windows XP Professional” or “Windows XP Home” depending on the version of OS that you are using and press Enter.
  • You will get another prompt to enter OS Load Options. On this screen type “/Fastdetect” and press Enter Key again.
  • Now take the Windows installation disc out of the drive and type “exit” to restart the computer.

These steps will reconfigure the Boot.ini file on your computer.

 

6. If you are still getting the NTLDR missing message, you will need to go to the Recovery Console again and attempt to fix the Boot Sector on the hard drive. This command will rewrite the boot sector information. To do this, follow the steps below:

  • Go to the Recovery console as described earlier
  • On the command prompt, type “FIXBOOT” and then press the Enter key
  • Once the process is over, take out the Windows installation disc and type “Exit” to restart the computer.

This should resolve the issue if the issue is with Boot Sector information on hard drive.

 

7. If you still face the NTLDR Missing message, the problem could be with the Master Boot Record (MBR) on the hard drive. To fix this, follow the steps below

  • Boot to the Recovery Console as described above
  • On the command prompt, type “FIXMBR” and press Enter key
  • This will rewrite the existing MBR on your hard drive. Please note that if you have installed any recovery software, it will not function in pre boot state if you perform this step.
  • Once the process is over, take out the Windows installation disc and type “Exit” to restart the computer.

 

8. If the problem still exists, you will have to perform Repair Installation of Windows.

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Tags: boot, bootcfg, console, corrupt, Error, fixboot, fixmbr, MBR, Microsoft, missing, NTLDR, Recovery, Repair, Windows XP

Apple Boot Camp: Blue screen on updating drivers for Windows XP

Aug 14

Posted by Admin in Apple | No Comments


As you would probably know, Boot Camp Assistant enables installation of and execution of Windows XP on Apple Mac machines. You can use this application to install hardware drivers. It allows users to copy Mac drivers on a CD and install them for use on Windows XP. These drivers allow users to use Mac built in function on Windows XP, such as Graphics, USB, audio, bluetooth and ethernet. Boot Camp requires system software updates to install updated drivers. However, sometimes you may get a Blue Screen (Microsoft trademark of serious issues) and you may not be able to update the drivers. If you encounter such issue, follow the steps below to resolve the issue at hand.

  1. Restart Windows XP
  2. Tap the F8 key on the keyboard while the computer is booting up
  3. It will take you to Windows Startup Options screen
  4. From this screen, select “Last Known Good Configuration” and press “Enter”
  5. Select the Operating System that you want to boot into
  6. It should take you to the Desktop screen of Windows XP
  7. Restart the computer again in Normal mode
  8. Now reinstall drivers from the Mac Drivers disk.

Please note that these steps have been tested only on Boot Camp 1.1.2

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Tags: Apple, Blue Screen, Boot Camp, drivers, Mac, macintosh, Windows XP

Automated System Recovery: Windows XP

Aug 13

Posted by Admin in Operating System, Windows XP | No Comments



Automated System Recovery (ASR) feature in Windows XP allows users to create backups to be prepared for a complete system crash situation. This helps in rebuilding the system from a scratch.

Microsoft recommends users to create ASR disks regularly to be prepared in case the system fails. This is the last resort after Safe Mode and other troubleshooting steps have failed.

The ASR wizard backs up system state, system services and other components of the Operating System. The restoration through ASR can be accessed by tapping F2 key when prompted.

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Tags: backup, boot, Recovery, restore, system, Windows XP

Unmountable Boot Volume – Windows XP

Aug 12

Posted by Admin in Windows XP | No Comments


Exact Error Message:

STOP 0×000000ED (0xaaaaaaaa,0xbbbbbbbb,0xcccccccc,0xdddddddd)
UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME

(Note: aaaaaaaa, bbbbbbbb, cccccccc, and dddddddd are hexadecimal numbers)

Following are the situations in which you might get this error message

1. UDMA Hard Disk Controller issues

  • You are using UDMA on a 40 wire cable (Which is meant for DMA).
  • The basic input/output system (BIOS) settings are configured to force the faster UDMA modes.

UDMA stands for Ultra Direct Memory Access. This is an improvement over DMA (Direct Memory Access).

UDMA requires 80 Wire 40 Pin cable to connect. whereas DMA requires a 40 wire cable to connect.

 

     2.    The file system is damaged and cannot be mounted

 

Solution:

There are 2 troubleshooting sequences you can try:

  1. Try and Repair the Volume

Warning: You might lose some data in the process of repairing the Volume. Also these steps involve changes in BIOS, if you are not comfortable doing them do not try them!!.

In order to repair the volume, you will have to boot to Recovery Console. You would need either of following to boot the computer to Recovery Console:

  • Startup Disk for Windows XP
  • OS Installation disk for Windows XP

You would also need the Administrator Password to access Recovery Console.

Once you have either the Startup Disk or OS installation disk handy, perform following steps:

  • Change the boot sequence to either Floppy or CD in BIOS, depending on what you are using (Startup Disk – Floppy, Installation Disk – CD)
  • Boot the computer using Startup Disk or CD and press R to select Repair option on Welcome to Setup

       5183-500-275

  • You will be prompted for Administrator Password, once you enter it you will be inside Recovery Console.
  • Type chkdsk /r and press Enter.
  • This will run the repair on the Volume, it will take some time to let it be for a while.
  • Once the repair is complete, check if it has found any errors or not. Restart you computer and check if the issue is resolved.
  • If you are still getting the same error message, boot to Recovery Console again and type fixboot and press Enter.

Restart your computer and check if it works. If it still does not work, in all probability issue is with HDD cable and BIOS settings. move to next troubleshooting sequence.

  

      2.    Check the HDD Cable and BIOS settings

If repairing the Volume does not help, you can try to change a setting in BIOS and check the HDD cable you are using.

Try following:

  • In the BIOS settings for your computer, load the ‘Fail-Safe’ default settings, and then reactivate the most frequently used options, such as USB Support
  • Check your Hard Disk connecting cable. If you are using a 40 wire cable, change it with a 80 wire cable.

 

Hope this helps !!!!

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Tags: boot, boot issues, unmountable, unmountable boot volume, unmountable_boot_volume, unmountable_boot_volume Windows XP, volume, window, window xp, windows, Windows XP

Can I upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7?

Aug 12

Posted by Admin in Windows 7, Windows XP | No Comments


Yes!!!!! You can.

But here is the catch, Microsoft has not provided option to directly upgrade to Windows 7 from Windows XP. There are various options of getting Windows 7 on the computer, but almost all of them would result in you losing your data and your programs.

There is but one way by which you can atleast preserve your data.

Even though, Upgrade is not an option in the setup if we are running it on Windows XP, however we can migrate files and settings from old installation to new one. In order to accomplish this you will have to use Windows easy transfer. You will basically have to transfer the data using this utility to a removable media and then transfer it back once the installation is done. You will however lose all the installed programs and will have to install them back!!!!.

 Following is the summary of the activites involved:

  • Move your files/data using Windows Easy Transfer onto an external media (External HDD, Flash Drive).
  • Install Windows 7 (Remember to choose Custom Installation – Upgrade).
  • Move the files/data back on the computer using Windows Easy Transfer.

Now, this seems elementary, but this might not be a smooth sail throughout.

Ensure that your computer meet the minimum system requirements for Windows 7 and also run a compatibility check.

In order to get a step by step details of the upgrade process, visit following link:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd446674%28WS.10%29.aspx

Also, you will find Screen Shots of the installation steps at BlogsDNA:

http://www.blogsdna.com/3217/step-by-step-guide-to-upgrade-windows-xp-to-windows-7.htm

 

Microsoft has also released video of how data migration can be simplified through User State Migration Tool (USMT) version 4.0. Click here to watch the video. (You will have to install Microsoft SilverLight for this)

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Tags: howto, Microsoft, Upgrade, USMT, Window 7, Windows 7, Windows XP, XP

Windows XP Mode (XPM) in Windows 7

Aug 12

Posted by Admin in Windows 7, Windows XP | No Comments


The biggest failure cause of Vista was its inablility to provide flexibility to users to run applications that work with Windows XP. To overcome this basic flaw, Microsoft has provided a Windows XP virtualization in Windows 7. This is called the “Windows XP Mode”.

This feature will be available in Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate editions, but not in Home Edition. This will deprive common users of this feature if they upgrade to the basic version of Windows 7.

This is not all. This feature requires lot more than just a higer version of the Operating System. It requires a processor which supports hardware based virtualization. This would mean that if you intend to use this feature and you have an old system, in all probability, this won’t work unless you upgrade your hardware.

Please ensure that your read through all the details before upgrading to Windows 7.

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Tags: compatibility, Windows 7, Windows XP

Windows XP upgrade to Windows 7: Data Migration Issues

Aug 12

Posted by Admin in Windows 7, Windows XP | No Comments


As mentioned in earlier blog post, Windows XP is not a valid upgrade path for Windows 7. Microsoft has maintained this stance and is agressively making an attempt to control the damage with over 60% of PC users still on Windows XP.

An average Windows XP user would have been using the same system for about 4 years or more. This means a lot of emails, documents, pictures, movies, etc. With a clean installation of Windows 7, How can a user migrate all this information the way a user is used to looking at these files?

Microsoft has attempted to respond to this need through their User State Migration Tool (version 4.0). This tool is primarly used for enterprise level deployment of an upgrade while ensuring that all data is kept safe. Microsoft has also released a video for the summary of the process. Click here to download the video.

However, Microsoft has ignored the degree of complexity that is required to use this tool by an average user. With focus at enterprises who have dedicated and skilled workforce to write scripts and automate backup and resoration, the tool will not be handy for a common user. It requires command line and scripting knowledge. To top it all, there are some noted issues with USMT 4.0. There are IT professionals who are troubled by data not getting recovered completely.

There is an immediate need of a tool that can seamlessly provide this assistance to home and small business users to manage data migration. Microsoft must provide this to Windows XP customers.

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Tags: backup, data, Microsoft, migration, Windows 7, Windows XP