HP Laptop System / Win XP Crash

[GreenNeub]

Hey guys, I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this so I apologize if I'm in the wrong place. My brother's HP Pavillion dv5000 laptop wouldn't start up this morning. After a quick flash to the HP logo boot screen, a black screen appears with the writing

"Windows\System32\Config\System could not be found. You can attempt to repair the file by using the original set-up cd. Press 'r' at the first screen to start repair."

Ummm, so yeah. We've done the repair once, got the same message, so I'm trying the repair again just for kicks. My brother has university notes and assignments on the computer. Does anyone know how to rescue the data on this laptop? I'm pretty new to all this computer tech stuff. Can someone help me out here or give me directions on what to do or where to go from here??

[glc]

If all you want to do is recover data, remove the hard drive and use an adapter to connect it to a working computer. Here is an example of an adapter:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=2020&cat=HDD

There's a lot more to doing the repair than what that screen told you. You are probably going to have to do a nondestructive (standard) system recovery at startup, here is the procedure:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/g...bph07145&lc=en

You need to recover your files first.

There is a good chance that the hard drive is developing bad sectors when you get that message. You should determine the brand of the drive and run manufacturer's diagnostics. They are freely downloadable from the manufacturer's website and are designed to run from a boot disk or CD. The only exception is a Toshiba hard drive, there are no diags available, but Hitachi's diags will work on Toshiba drives for basic testing.

[GreenNeub]

I do have the ultimate bootdisk. Are there any diagnostics on there that can tell me what type/brand of drive I have?

I already ran the system recovery with the set-up disk, but now when I try to start the computer, it goes to the HP logo screen and then a black screen with a cursor in the left hand corner and stays there. Any other tips? Or is the easiest approach just to get the ide/sata cable adapter, hook it up to my desktop, transfer the files, and get a new harddrive for the laptop?

[glc]

Start with the Hitachi Drive Fitness Test. It can identify any brand drive and run basic diagnostics.

Read the HP article and see if you can do a recovery at startup.

Geeks just went out of stock on that particular adapter, but they still have these:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...20-OTB&cat=HDD

The drive has to be removed from its carrier and the connector adapter has to be removed, then it will plug right in to the adapter.

[GreenNeub]

Okay GLC, I followed the instructions on the cd that came with the adapter. When I'm in windows xp on my desktop, it shows that the usb connection found....hard drive found...something about an ATA/Atapi bridge and your new hardware is ready to use. But then the hard drive itself doesn't show up in My Computer as a separate harddrive. How do I transfer files from the laptop drive to my desktop drive?

[GreenNeub]

Oh....my....God. The Power switch was set to OFF on the Power Adaptor Cable. No wonder nothing was happening with the hard drive. Looks like it's working fine now. Got access to his lost files. Thanks a lot for your help GLC.

[glc]

When you get the files off, then you can put the drive back in the laptop and run diagnostics. If you have the UBCD, Hitachi DFT can ID and do basic tests. If the basic tests fail, order a new hard drive. If they pass, then use the correct brand of diags and run a full/extended test. If it fails, order a new drive. If it passes, follow the instructions in the HP article for a destructive recovery.