Re: XP Pro won't boot, safemode won't help, recovery console doesn't h
- From: "Anna" <myname@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2007 11:27:28 -0400
"Paul Yeoman" <Paul Yeoman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:EDD041CB-7CDE-4035-96C2-0A9C3AF283BD@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi all, I have a desperate problem with my XP Professional system not
booting.
Background info: Win XP Pro installed on a 300GB SATA drive, file system
is
NTFS. When trying to boot it gets to the standard Windows logo and after
~20
secs it flashes up a BSOD (for well under a second so I can't read it)
and
restarts.
I've tried all the various options accessed via the F8 key plus all the
safe
mode options. In safe mode it gets to loading mup.sys and then restarts
(I
am informed that this doesn't mean that mup.sys is the problem).
I tried to do a repair install but that option wasn't there (only a
complete
new install, which AFAIK would wipe the drive). I can access the
recovery
console using the CD, but I can't do much with it. For example, the Dir
command is unable to enumerate the files, ChkDsk won't run, and FixBoot
tries
but fails, saying that the boot sector is corrupt. The Map command lists
the
disk, but shows its drive letter as '?'.
BTW, it takes well over half an hour to even access the recovery console,
as
the system takes ages at the "examining disk" stage. Maybe this is
because
it's an SATA disk?
The BIOS definitely recognises the disk though. No hardware changes have
taken place and no hardwar errors are reported (via SMART monitoring,
etc).
The only software change was some Windows auto-update which I installed
(July
14th 07), though I can't say for sure that it's relevant to this.
Now I also have another, 60GB standard IDE disk in my machine which I use
as
backup. This has XP Pro installed on NTFS. If I change the boot order
in
the BIOS I can boot into this installation and it can see my main disk in
'My
Computer'. However it won't allow me to access the disk - it says
something
to do with 'I/O Error'. I have installed the driver (viasraid.sys) which
should allow me to access the SATA disk.
Anyway, despite having a backup drive, I haven't used it regularly thus
there is no backup of the last few months - data I *need* to get at. I
would
imagine that the data is still intact, seeing as the disk can be accessed
and
the OS does start to load.
To summarise: Main install of WinXP Pro on SATA disk won't boot,
safemode
etc no help, recovery console no help, disk can be seen but not accessed
via
other WinXP Pro on same machine. What can I do?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Paul
"Pegasus (MVP)" <I.can@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23dBnqe4xHHA.3724@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
This is probably the best post on this type of subject I have
read for a long, long time. Unfortunately the quality of your
post does not make it any easier to resolve your problem.
I suspect the key lies in the "I/O Error" you mention. If this
was my machine then I would boot it with a Bart PE boot
CD, then try to access the problem disk. Since it takes a
fair amount of effort to create such a CD, you might want
to copy one from a friend.
If this does not work then you may have to ask a data
recovery company to assist.
I suppose you're aware of the urgent need for you to review
your backup philosophy. A 2.5" USB disk would be a
low-cost but highly effective backup medium that you could
use each week for an automated backup run.
"Paul Yeoman" <PaulYeoman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:895DD232-A463-42A3-ABCC-4ADD18708FAF@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Thanks for the fast response, Pegasus.
I've had a quick look into the Bart PE software and I'll try it out when
I
get home tonight.
And yes, my backup policy does need revising ;-) I've had a look into
online storage and I'll see about the USB disk idea too. So far I've
only
been making backups as and when I think to do it.
One thought occurred to me just now - might the master/slave state of my
SATA drive affect whether it can be read from the other drive? Seeing as
it's my main drive I suppose I'd have the jumpers set to 'master'. Also
it's
managed by a RAID chip (I think) so it's not on the same IDE connector as
the
other drive.
I'm hoping that the files are accessible because to get as far as it does
it
must at least recognise the presence of the OS, and it gets through
loading a
good number of drivers before giving up.
Cheers,
Paul
"Pegasus (MVP)" <I.can@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23PoCGK5xHHA.4736@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
If you had IDE disks then you could play with jumpers to change
the master/slave configuration. You could also boot the machine
with a Win98 boot disk, run ntfsdos.exe and access your data
files in this way. However, since your disk is a SATA disk, these
options are not available to you.
Your reasoning about the recognition of the file system is sound,
hence a Bart PE boot might save you. Unfortunately it takes
time to make one.
"Anna" <myname@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23shQE6%23xHHA.5888@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Paul:
Let me add a few thoughts to Pegasus's suggestions in the event you're
unable to immediately resolve your present problem following his
recommendation...
1. While this will not resolve your problem at this point, do download the
HDD diagnostic utility from the website of the manufacturer of your SATA
HDD and check it out. The fact that the disk is recognized in the BIOS and
no SMART negative reports have been forthcoming are *not* absolute
indications that the drive is non-defective. It's quite possible that a
defective drive is at the root of your problem. At least try to ascertain
this one way or another at the outset.
2. We're assuming, of course, as you infer, that prior to this problem
occurring the system booted without incident and functioned without any
problems at least insofar as your SATA boot drive was concerned. (It's not
clear whether you had previously experienced any problems re your
secondary PATA HDD although I take it that since it apparently boots
without incident, there's no problem with that drive.) But that the
problem arose "out-of-the-blue" so to speak - notwithstanding the
incidental installing of some recent MS critical updates. That's right,
isn't it? The system worked just fine until one day this problem just
arose?
3. Was (is) the XP installation CD you were using to undertake a Repair
install of the OS the same CD (or a slipstreamed one) that was used to
install the OS in the first place? Is this an OEM machine? I assume this
is a desktop machine, right? When you do boot to the XP installation CD
that you're using with *only* your SATA HDD connected, there's no
indication that the system cannot detect an installed HDD is there?
4. You've indicated that you were able to access the Recovery console even
though it took an inordinately long time to do so and then you invoked the
dir & chkdsk commands but that neither would run. What precisely happened?
Any error messages or just nothing?
5. Assuming your SATA HDD is non-defective, have you checked it out to
ensure that its data cable (as well as its power connector) is securely
fastened both to the disk and the motherboard's SATA connector in the case
of its data cable? Have you tried connecting the drive to another one of
the motherboard's SATA connectors?
6. What happens when you boot to your PATA HDD with the SATA HDD
connected? Have you accessed Disk Management to see if the SATA HDD is
listed there? If it is, any drive letter assigned or can you assign one if
not assigned? Is the SATA HDD listed in Device Manager in the "Disk
drives" section?
Anna
"Paul Yeoman" <PaulYeoman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:9801FDE9-6063-4263-BCCF-1D913BA69C11@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Thanks for all your suggestions, Anna. Much appreciated.
Here's the rundown:
1. Yup, Ive downloaded Seagate's diagnostic tools. Just need to put them
onto floppy disk and I'll use them tonight.
2. Yes, that's right. No problems at all until a couple of days ago it
just refused to boot. SMART is turned on in the BIOS but I never got a
warning message.
3. Yes, the CD I'm using is the same one from which the OS was originally
installed. The system is one which I built myself and has gradually
changed over the years. When I try and boot with *only* the SATA HDD
connected, it still attempts to load Windows and fails as described in my
first post (suggesting to me that the boot sector is intact?)
4. I can't remember the exact error messages in Recovery Console but it
didn't just silently fail. It took a few minutes for each command to
retun. Dir responded with something like "unable to enumerate drive
contents" and chkdsk said "unable to access volume", or something along
those lines.
5. Yes I tried with a spare SATA cable and also using the other connector
but with no luck. Both data and power cables were securely connected.
6. Booting into my other HDD I *am* able to see the SATA disk in
explorer. In the disk management tool it is listed but with no drive
letter, although it doesn't complain of any problems. Any attempt to
actually access the drive result in a simple 'I/O Error' message.
In addition, last night I checked things out with Bart-PE (thanks
Pegasus). This was also able to see the drive but unable to perform any
action on it (be it chkdsk or whatever). All operations attempted on the
disk failed with one access error or another but the most interesting was
the message "getVolSize() failed". I also tried using MS Diagnostics and
Recovery toolset but it was unable to mount the drive.
In the end I got fed up and tried to reinstall XP onto the drive (bear in
mind that I was very angry, hot and sweaty after many hours of toil) and I
found that it still couldn't do anything. It was unable to format and
also unable to delete the existing partition (listed as unknown), although
setup was still able to recognise the drive.
I've searched online of course for the various messages I received and it
looks likely that it is in fact a hardware fault (in an 8-month old
drive - grrr). Odd though; as the system clearly recognises that it's a
bootable disk and manages to load a number of drivers before failing.
Paul
Paul:
It certainly *sounds* like a defective HDD, but maybe not. It will be
interesting to see what the results are when you check it out with the
Seagate HDD diagnostic utility.
I don't suppose you have another machine at your disposal to at least
temporarily install the SATA HDD just to see if the Repair option would be
available using that machine with your XP installation CD?
The fact that the Repair option is unavailable on your present system from
the retail or non-branded OEM version of the XP installation CD that you
have, i.e., the same CD you used to install the OS, is an ominous sign when
combined with the fact that you're unable to even fresh-install a copy of
the XP OS onto that disk.
Anyway, please keep us posted should this problem be resolved one way or
another.
BTW, if & when you do post another message, indicate the make & model of
your motherboard and your Seagate SATA HDD.
Anna
.
- References:
- Prev by Date: Re: Re: two windows xp operating systems
- Next by Date: Re: Trouble setting up Windows Home Edition
- Previous by thread: Re: XP Pro won't boot, safemode won't help, recovery console doesn't h
- Next by thread: Re: XP Pro won't boot, safemode won't help, recovery console doesn
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
