error when booting: missing file \windows\system32\config\system

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From: Kyle (snyderkb_at_clarkson.edu)
Date: 09/04/04 

Date: Sat, 4 Sep 2004 08:54:23 -0700

When my mom tried booting her Compaq computer with
Windows XP Home, a message came up that said that Windows
could not boot because "\windows\system32\config\system"
was missing. We tried doing the correction that Microsoft
Knowledge Base Article 307545 said to do, but when we
tried copying from the repair file, it said that the file
could not be copied. I also have Windows XP Home on my
laptop. If I took the system file from my computer, could
I use that for my mom's computer to replace the missing
one? We called a few places (circuit city, where we got
the computer, and compaq) and both said that we would
have to either start from scratch and lose three years of
data, or have a professional come in and restore windows
for like $300. I was wondering if I could just copy my
system file and put it on my mom's computer, or does each
computer have a unique system file? I just don't want my
mom spending a ton of money if I can fix it. Also, if
anyone has any knowledge in this issue, please e-mail me
or respond to this message. Thank you, everyone.

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