Re: can't stop xp pro reboot loop

Hi Anna,
i guess you thought i'd fallen into the bermuda triangle. i opened the pc
cabinet, and decided against removing the hard drive and trying it in a
enclosure (it looks like there's 3 hard drives in this thing, in addition to
the dvd, cd burner and misc other things. i took it to a repair shop, and
was told i had multiple viruses (over 900 viruses, malware, and spyware). i
don't know how that's possible, i run ad-aware almost everyday, and
periodically run spy-bot, and apparently mcafee isn't all it's cracked up to
be. anyway, the gremlins are suppose to be gone (i just got it back an hour
or 2 ago). my xp prof, 64 bit is now installed, so now there's no question
that i'm legal. now to download the 64 bit drivers.
again, thank you very much for all your help.

--
sandy j


"Anna" wrote:


"sandy j" <sandyj@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:0292E715-0238-450B-9173-5AC6AAB38717@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi,
I hope there is hope for me..I was reading an article on AOL's
home page. Before I could really get into it, AOL closed, and the
computer started a reboot.
I can get as far as the desktop, then the reboot starts. I've tried
'safe mode' and still the desktop closes before I can do anything.
I saw a similar problem here, and tried the suggested fix (using
'safe mode w/networking' and still couldn't get to 'my computer'
to complete the rest of the instructions, before the reboot started.
I have 2 files I would really like to retrieve from the hard drive.
Do I have a chance of getting them? (Anyone responding, please
don't get too technical)

Thanks

--
sandy j


Hi Gerry,

thank you for your help...
(SNIP)
the computer was built by a friend, he upgraded and gave this to
me. the software was already installed, but he included a
bootable windows xp professional cd. i tried last known good
configuration, and restore before my post.
again thanks for any help you can provide..

--
sandy j


Hi Patrick,

thanks for your reply.

i tried rebooting in safe mode as adminstrator. i really don't feel
comfortable doing the instructions that suggest i move the hard
drive
to another computer and the reference to changing something in the
"root" is a little more my expertise allows. to make changes in the
root, i would need real specific instructions.


Hi Ben,

thank you very much for your quick response to my query?

as you suggested, i used a winxp bootable cd. pressing the f8 key
i was able to change the reboot setting. I didn't see a screen that
would allow me to select a repair option, to complete the rest of
your instructions. When I booted w/o pressing the f8 key i went
to the desktop, then the reboot loop. Is there a step I'm missing?
should i wind up in dos to complete your instructions?


"Anna" wrote:
sandyj:
Since as you've indicated in your initial post that there are only two
files that you *really* want to save from your problem system, it
would be best >> >> at the outset if, as Patrick has suggested, you
(or someone) could install
your HDD in another working system, hopefully access the contents of
your
drive and then copy the two files to some removable media, e.g.,
floppy disk,
flash drive, CD, etc. At least you would have the two files that are
important to you. Of course all this assumes the HDD is non-defective
and
data from it could be accessed while it's connected as a secondary HDD
in
a working system.

But you've indicated that you're not comfortable with undertaking the
preceding so we'll let that pass and go on from there.

We're going to assume that the problem you're experiencing is *not*
due
to some hardware-related problem. Rather we'll assume that the problem
arises as a result of your XP operating system (OS) that for one
reason or
another has become corrupted. Hopefully up to the time that the
problem
arose you've been using some kind of an anti-malware (anti-virus)
program to >> >> avoid contamination from that end.

Since you've been able to access the Recovery Console as "db"
suggested,
I trust you've been able to invoke the commands "db" has suggested. I
would
hope that by doing so your problem would be resolved. If so, fine -
but I
have the feeling that is not the answer to your problem.

If it's not...

Fortunately you've been able to boot to the XP OS installation CD and
arrive at the "Welcome to Setup" screen. I assume you accessed the
Recovery Console by pressing the "R" key, right?

Assuming that your problem remains after invoking the commands "db"
has
suggested, it would probably be worthwhile for you to undertake a
Repair
install of the OS. I realize you've never done this before but it's
not a
complicated nor terribly difficult process to undertake. By & large it
would be quite similar to fresh-installing the XP OS on your system
but all
your programs & data would be retained in the process. This Repair
install
that I'll generally describe is *not* the "repair" process you
followed by
pressing the "R" key at the "Welcome to Setup" screen. Unfortunately
Microsoft used the same term to describe two completely different
procedures.

So do this...

1. Boot again to your XP OS installation CD and at the "Welcome to
Setup"
screen press the Enter key.

2. The following screen will reflect your currently installed OS. Note
the option indicating you can repair the installed OS by pressing the
"R"
key.
Do so.

3. The repair process will continue just about the same way you would
be
making a fresh install of the OS. Along the way you will need to enter
your Product ID, so have that handy.

Hopefully this repair process will resolve your problem and you will
have
a bootable, functional system again with all your programs & data
intact.
Needless to say there's no guarantee here since it's conceivable there
are other issues (hardware and/or software) present other than a
corrupted
OS that are causing the problem(s) you're experiencing.

Assuming the repair install is successful...

If you carried out that process with an XP OS installation CD
containing
SP2, then work with the system for a few days to ensure all is well.
Then
install SP3 on your system.

If you used a pre-XP-OS-SP2 version to carry out the repair process,
install SP2 on your system, then work with it as explained above.

And, of course, use your anti-malware, anti-virus program(s) to ensure
your system is malware-free.
Anna


"sandy j" <sandyj@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:F49996FE-D441-4753-B9D1-67C003A93223@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi Anna,

thanks for the greatly appreciated, detailed response. i tried to
follow
your instructions with the win xp bootable cd i have but received
messages stating some .dll's weren't copied correctly. this is the
only
win xp 32 bit cd i have. i do have a win xp 64 bit that i was going to
install after i copied the files i'm trying to retrieve. also, i
haven't
had
a chance to download the new drivers i will need for the 64 bit.
if i use the 64 bit so i can follow the instructions you were nice
enough
to provide, will that cause a problem?
thanks again for your help
--
sandy j


"Anna" wrote:
sandyj:
I'm virtually certain that you would *not* be able to undertake a Repair
install of your present XP OS using a Win XP Pro x64 edition installation
CD.

There are times when it's useful to repeat the Repair install of the OS
when the initial undertaking has to be aborted for one reason or another.
We've even found it, i.e., the Repair install, to be successful on a
third
attempt after the first two failed.

I suppose it's possible that the XP installation CD you're using has
become
defective because of some physical event and that's causing the problem
re
the inability to copy certain files from the CD. We've found this to be a
very rare occurrence unless the CD has been physically abused. But it is
possible. If you could get your hands on another CD that is the identical
version of the XP OS edition installed on your PC you could give that a
try.

The problem here are those two files which you've indicated are very
important, if not crucial, for you to retrieve. When you undertake
operations such as chkdsk /r or a Repair install, there's a danger that
these processes (when they fail) will cause further corruption of the
system
to the point where it becomes harder & harder (if not practically
impossible) to retrieve data from the affected drive. It's something to
keep
in mind when one is particularly concerned with (at the minimum)
retrieving
data from the system.

That is why we generally recommend at the outset that the user *first*
attempt to retrieve data (if at all possible) by connecting the affected
drive as a secondary HDD in another working system and attempt to access
its
data through that means. Or better yet, use a disk-cloning program to
create
a clone of the affected drive so that you always have a duplicate copy of
the problem drive to work on.

But you have indicated that you're not comfortable with connecting your
problem drive in another system. Obviously you have another PC at your
disposal. Is there any chance you could simply uninstall the problem HDD
from your desktop machine, install it in a USB external enclosure and
simply
connect it to your other PC as a USB-connected device? Then try to access
its contents?

Anyway, the Repair install, needless to say, is not always successful for
a
variety of reasons. It may be that the system is so corrupted that the
Repair install simply cannot correct the situation. And it's possible
that a
hardware issue may be the cause of the problem you're experiencing. A
prime
suspect in this kind of case is the hard drive. It may simply be
defective.
You might want to check out the disk by using a HDD diagnostic utility
that's generally freely available from the website of the disk's
manufacturer. The downloaded program will allow you to create a bootable
floppy disk or bootable CD which will test the disk to determine if it's
defective.

Assuming it's not a hardware issue causing the problem and the Repair
install is unsuccessful in the end, you may have no recourse but to
simply
fresh-install the OS with the consequent loss of your programs & personal
data.
Anna


"sandy j" <sandyj@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:D9E1D785-26F8-48C3-9A46-0FF4F6A600B3@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi Anna,

thanks for your suggestion, removing the offending hard
drive and inserting it into an enclosure. i have a enclosure,
but i don't know if the hard drive is compatible. at this
point, if it's compatible, i can't make it any worst. i
have a feeling, the problem is my security software. when
the computer first rebooted, i received error that referenced
the security software and i was on the internet when the
computer went into reboot mode. if that's the case, will i be
able to access anything on the offending hard drive?
thank you again for taking so much time to give such detailed
responses.
--
sandy j


sandyj:
Well, all you can do is try. As you say no harm should come to the data on
the drive even if you're unsuccessful in accessing its data while it's
connected as a USB device in an external enclosure. I assume the enclosure
you're referring to is a USB external enclosure.

Whether you will be able to access the drive's data you won't know until you
try it. Naturally this will not solve your problem of resurrecting the disk
so it's a bootable, functional drive once again. But I'm sure you understand
this. Hopefully at the minimum you'll be able to access the folders/files
that are important to you and copy them to some removable media, e.g. CD,
flash drive, etc.

Let us know how things turn out.
Anna



.

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