BSOD on XP startup..

[mb26]

i have a laptop which is giving a BSOD (or, just restart) on startup. it doesn't usually come up with a message, but when it has done (once /twice) its litterally flashed up for 1/10th of a second so i have no idea what it says.
Is there anything i can do to fix it, other than reinstalling? (xp pro)
edit: all the options; safe mode, last good, etc, do the same

If i do have to reinstall, i think the CD is sp0 or sp1; so is it possible to slipstream sp2 onto it? or (i'm guessing not on this one) use the legit key on an XP pro sp2 CD? ..installing it 'clean' to SP2 is a much better solution IMO.

please bear in mind its a laptop with a non-M$ XP disc; i cant' remember if its restore-disk like or normal install.. but its a toshiba if that helps any.

knoppix works on it, and the HDDs are accessible (althou read only.. its a fairly old CD, not sure if they have NTFS write support yet..). the CMOS battery has also gone, but i have re-saved the bios and have kept it plugged in since.. so that shouldn't make a difference to this (?).

[GaryRouth]

Hi mb26

Let's see if we can get it to display the message screen longer. See if you can boot into Safe Mode (tap the F8 key during startup), right-click on My Computer, select "Properties", "Startup and Recovery", and uncheck the box "automatically restart on error".

Hopefully that will let us see what the error message says = which should help with trouble-shooting.
___________________

If the graphical mode of Safe Mode doesn't work, try choosing "Safe Mode with Command Prompt" from the Safe mode menu. Log on as Administrator when prompted, and from the command prompt, type the following command ---
REG /QUERY HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Crashcontrol /v Autoreboot

You should see a value of either 1 or 0. 1=true (autorestart is "on"); 0=false (autorestart is "off"). If it is set to 1, then type the following ---
REG /DELETE HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Crashcontrol /v AutoReboot
--- and then type ---
REG /ADD HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashContron /v AutoReboot /t REG_DWORD /d 0

This will turn off the automatic restart on error.
___________________

We'll take it from there, once we know the error.
. . . Gary

[macko72]

For slipstreaming XP with SP2: http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase...slipstream.asp

[jayb1234]

Check this ,this and this.

I don't know if you can slipstream SP2 into the process or not.

However you should try to troubleshoot the problem first before you reinstall, it is likely to be something that can be corrected without redoing the OS.

Try memtest86+ and the hard drive makers diagnostics for starters.

If you can get the error message too that would help narrow the cause down.

[mb26]

GaryRouth;

Originally Posted by mb26 all the options; safe mode, last good, etc, do the same

that includes "Safe Mode with Command Prompt". Is there any way to view/edit the registry (on an NTFS hdd) with a boot floppy/ (if necessary) cd?

and, "is it possible to use the legit key on an XP pro sp2 CD?"

i will try memtest (and perhaps hdd diagnostics).. but it doesnt' seem that likely since it works on knoppix.

[macko72]

There is you can use recovery console if you have it !!!

NTFS and XP, 2000, or 2003:
The Recovery Console will not let you move files around that are not within the Windows folder; so you will need to make two repairs to complete the restoration.

What we are going to do is to install a Registry that was created the last time you installed Windows. The Windows installation program made a set of backups for you. However, they have not been updated since you last installed Windows. This set of Registry files is pretty basic, and none of the software that you have installed since then is going to be in the Registry. Further on, we'll discuss how you can bring this basic registry up to date.

First, you will need to get to the Windows\ System32\ folder in Recovery Console. Here you will find all your Registry files. You will need to locate the files (these files will have no extension) Default, Sam, Security, Software, and System. Rename them to something like Default.xxx so that they are available later.

Now you will need to go to the Windows\Repair folder, where you will find the backup files that Windows installer made for you. Copy the files Windows\Repair\Default, Sam, Security, Software, and System to the Windows\System32\Config folder and reboot. You will be back in Windows.

Now the problem you will have is getting your old Registry information back. If you have Windows 2000 or 2003 then scroll down to the Registry Drill section. Users of XP can continue reading.

If you have XP, Windows makes current backups of the Registry in the System Volume Information folder on the Windows Drive. This is a hidden folder, so you will need to remove the hidden attribute. Use the View Folders option in the Windows Explorer to view Hidden Files and Folder.

The Registry backup files can be found in the sub folder _restore{FB57....., The {FB57... can be anything that looks like {D86480E3-73EF-47BC-A0EB-A81BE6EE3ED8}. Then it will have a sub folder of RBx, the x is a number. The RBx folder will also have a subfolder "Snapshot". Example: C:\System Volume Information\_restore{D86480E3-73EF-47BC-A0EB-A81BE6EE3ED8}\RP1\Snapshot. In here you will find files named:
_REGISTRY_USER_.DEFAULT
_REGISTRY_MACHINE_SECURITY _REGISTRY_MACHINE_SOFTWARE
_REGISTRY_MACHINE_SYSTEM
_REGISTRY_MACHINE_SAM

Copy each of them to a temp folder in the Windows folder, like C:\Windows\newreg . Rename each file to remove the _REGISTRY_MACHINE_ part. Your new files will have names like SOFTWARE and SAM.

You will need to reboot to the Recovery Console and move the files from C:\Windows\Newreg to C:\Windows\System32\Config and then reboot back to Windows. You should be back up and running Windows again with little or no lost information in the Registry. You can recover any information that is not in the new Registry using Registry Drill. http://www.easydesksoftware.com/news/news20.htm