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re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 12:29 am Posted by chicagojoel (12 messages posted) Sounds like you need to put a windows startup disk in so you can check the partition and run scandisk. For troubleshooting you need an XP bootdisk(s) Let the floppy load up cd drivers etc. and when the command prompt comes up type diskpart and hit enter. Once in diskpart, just manipulate your way to the partition menu and make sure that the C is still set as the active partition. If C is NOT active, and in almost all cases it should be, then set it as the active partition--or know why it should not be your active partition--and exit diskpart, then reboot you computer. If C is already set as active, then see if you can run chkdsk. If these two programs sound familiar they are...they both harken back to win NT --their win98 counterparts were fdisk and scandisk. If XP finds errors and offers to fix them, let it. If the bootdisk and diagnostics don't get you going, you can enter you bios/cmos and check that, but I doubt that has changed. However, some systems will only boot from an A drive unless you enter bios and tell them to boot off the cd drive. Under a worst case scenario, you could bootup on the xp cd and attempt diagnostics and or a reinstall that way. Also, new machines will boot off the XP cd if you have it in the drive on booting up. The xp cd, if it's like 2000 PRO, will offer to repair the previous install. The problem you are having sounds a lot like a corrupted file, and XP will find and fix it for you. On Saturday, July 19, 2003 at 11:12 pm, Barbara wrote: >My computer is on a black screen the says it needs system start-up disk, can anyone >help me? >I am on my old computer to try and find help. >If you can help me please e-mail me at eor@saber.net >Thanks, >Barbara [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 1:32 am Posted by Barbara (6 messages posted) My computer won't let me do anything except start up the 6 disks I downloaded and I only hit enter and if I hit anything else it like I didn't do anything. It won't command to anything and no disks except those 6 start-up disk and then it wants the CD and I don't have that one. I have been trying to get windows to open even in safe mode so I can have my windows go back and start last month as this one has it which is why I bought the stupid thing. Barbara On Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 12:29 am, chicagojoel wrote: >Sounds like you need to put a windows startup disk in so you can check the partition >and run scandisk. For troubleshooting you need an XP bootdisk(s) > >Let the floppy load up cd drivers etc. and when the command prompt comes up type >diskpart and hit enter. Once in diskpart, just manipulate your way to the partition >menu and make sure that the C is still set as the active partition. If C is NOT >active, and in almost all cases it should be, then set it as the active partition--or >know why it should not be your active partition--and exit diskpart, then reboot you >computer. If C is already set as active, then see if you can run chkdsk. If these >two programs sound familiar they are...they both harken back to win NT --their win98 >counterparts were fdisk and scandisk. If XP finds errors and offers to fix them, >let it. > >If the bootdisk and diagnostics don't get you going, you can enter you bios/cmos >and check that, but I doubt that has changed. However, some systems will only boot >from an A drive unless you enter bios and tell them to boot off the cd drive. Under >a worst case scenario, you could bootup on the xp cd and attempt diagnostics and >or a reinstall that way. Also, new machines will boot off the XP cd if you have >it in the drive on booting up. The xp cd, if it's like 2000 PRO, will offer to >repair the previous install. The problem you are having sounds a lot like a corrupted >file, and XP will find and fix it for you. > [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 8:40 am Posted by Dan Sarandrea, MCSE (4310 messages posted) Barbara, The six downloaded floppies are intended to start the computer so that setup can run from the XP CDROM. MS has made those floppies available to accommodate people whose systems cannot boot from the CDROM. There is a side benefit to the floppies, as they include XP's Recovery Console, which is an "emergency toolkit" for when the computer won't start in XP. However, your computer purchase should have included an emergency copy of the Operating System in one of these forms: 1. A genuine MS OEM XP CDROM. 1a. A genuine MS Retail XP CDROM (very unlikely, but not impossible). 2. A manufacturer-supplied recovery CDROM. 3. A manufacturer-supplied recovery partition, which would contain the same data as the recovery partition. Major computer sellers such as Hewlett-Packard, Compaq, Sony, Toshiba, Dell, Gateway, etc, use some form of recovery disk or partition. The word "recovery" has been tossed about a lot, so let's clarify. a. MS calls the emergency repair program it inlcudes on its CDs the Recovery Console. It is a compact version of the XP operating system that can only be accessed by typing commands. You use Recovery Console to type commands to fix broken files, rewrite certain configuration files, or copy files from the MS XP CDROM to the hard drive, for example b. Manufacturer recovery disks and partitions contain the XP operating system, but it can be stored in different formats. Some manufacturers supply a disk that is a very slightly modified version of the MS XP CDROM, which has individual files on it that are written to the hard drive in an specific order by the Setup program--when it's done XP is installed. Other manufacturers use an imaging method---their disks (or partition) contain a "picture" of the hard drive after the operating system is installed, and their software simply "copies" the "picture" onto the hard drive. The good part about this method is it is very fast---the bad part is that the process erases the hard drive of any existing information before the new "picture" is copied onto the drive, so anything you installed or any documents, pictures, music or emails you had on the drive will be erased. The point of all this is to say that the six floppies were never intended to install the XP operating system. To repair or replace your XP, you will need either CDROMs or a recovery partition. If you purchased from a major seller, read he system documentation or call tech support to find out how to use their recovery disk/partition to reinstall XP. [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 8:32 pm Posted by chicagojoel (12 messages posted) I have used windows 98 bootdisks on all versions of windows in order to get to the command line and have cd support. I was here 10 minutes ago and was about to tell you use it and run chkdsk from dos. I decided to try before suggesting it to you. It does work, but the floppy, and I guess XP as well needed scandisk. Anyway, I ran scandisk on my C drive, found no errors. It offered surface scan as well. If I were in your shoes, that's what I'd do--run scandisk by booting up off a win98 bootdisk. (It's only one disk and super fast by comparison the the 6 XP needs.) If the scandisk program finds errors, say yes and let it fix them. If it doesn't find errors, run the surface scan that it will offer--hopefully your problem isn't the surface. Lastly, in a worst case scenario you will have to buy a replacement recovery cd from your cpu maker, although when I lost mine, during a move, I was surprised to find that they sell them on eBay. You'll have to call microsoft and tell them what happened, but as far as I know they make a limited charge for a new registration--all this assumes you have a key sticker or owners manual with the 25 character key to provide to them. If all this sounds a little daunting--booting into dos, etc. Don't let it spook you. Here's a link to ease your worries http://www.pcdon.com/page82.html this is probably one of the easiest to understand pages on scandisk that I've seen in a while. The main thing is that Don tells how to get your problem fixed. On Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 1:32 am, Barbara wrote: >My computer won't let me do anything except start up the 6 disks I downloaded and >I only hit enter and if I hit anything else it like I didn't do anything. >It won't command to anything and no disks except those 6 start-up disk and then it >wants the CD and I don't have that one. I have been trying to get windows to open >even in safe mode so I can have my windows go back and start last month as this one >has it which is why I bought the stupid thing. >Barbara > > [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 8:55 pm Posted by chicagojoel (12 messages posted) Ooops! I forgot to tell you that once you see the A:\ prompt, type C: and hit enter/return and this will put you on drive C. THEN, you type scandisk, and hit enter/return. On Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 8:32 pm, chicagojoel wrote: >I have used windows 98 bootdisks on all versions of windows in order to get to the >command line and have cd support. I was here 10 minutes ago and was about to tell >you use it and run chkdsk from dos. I decided to try before suggesting it to you. > It does work, but the floppy, and I guess XP as well needed scandisk. Anyway, I >ran scandisk on my C drive, found no errors. It offered surface scan as well. If >I were in your shoes, that's what I'd do--run scandisk by booting up off a win98 >bootdisk. (It's only one disk and super fast by comparison the the 6 XP needs.) > If the scandisk program finds errors, say yes and let it fix them. If it doesn't >find errors, run the surface scan that it will offer--hopefully your problem isn't >the surface. Lastly, in a worst case scenario you will have to buy a replacement >recovery cd from your cpu maker, although when I lost mine, during a move, I was >surprised to find that they sell them on eBay. You'll have to call microsoft and >tell them what happened, but as far as I know they make a limited charge for a new >registration--all this assumes you have a key sticker or owners manual with the 25 >character key to provide to them. If all this sounds a little daunting--booting >into dos, etc. Don't let it spook you. Here's a link to ease your worries >href="http://www.pcdon.com/page82.html">http://www.pcdon.com/page82.html this >is probably one of the easiest to understand pages on scandisk that I've seen in >a while. The main thing is that Don tells how to get your problem fixed. > > [Reply or follow-up to this message] re: Windows XP start-up disk. HELP!!!! Monday, July 21, 2003 at 11:55 am Posted by chicagojoel (12 messages posted) A couple other things about your boot problem. If you try the 98 disk and have keyboard functionality, then maybe the 6 discs from XP has a corruption. If you can get booted into the XP recovery console with the discs, which as Dan pointed out is the place to fix things, then try the F8 solution that the page at his link is directing you to do. http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm#How%20to%20access%20Last%20Known%20Good%20Configuratio If none of this works and the win98 disk makes your keyboard functional, then you might try to use that method to poke around. For example, try C:\>scanreg /restore even if this doesn't work, XP may intrepert your need and offer a solution. ALSO, try the old tricks of holding down the windows button or continuously hitting F8 during the attempt to boot or holding it down. On Sunday, July 20, 2003 at 1:32 am, Barbara wrote: >My computer won't let me do anything except start up the 6 disks I downloaded and >I only hit enter and if I hit anything else it like I didn't do anything. >It won't command to anything and no disks except those 6 start-up disk and then it >wants the CD and I don't have that one. I have been trying to get windows to open >even in safe mode so I can have my windows go back and start last month as this one >has it which is why I bought the stupid thing. >Barbara > > [Reply or follow-up to this message] Tip: Use one of the [Reply or follow-up to this message] links above to add a message to this thread Search this forum Start a new thread on a different subject Report abuse of the forum Return to the Windows XP Discussion Forum