Verifying DMI pool data NTLDR is missing winxp

Lady_K

Daughter is getting this message when trying to boot her xp pc, she cannot start the pc or start in safe mode either. She says somehow she can get to a list but out of that list the only thing she can get into is the bios. She rang to ask me so I thought best to ask on here if anyone knows how to fix it as she can't get on the net from there as its her only pc

Donnie

Does she have a Floppy Disc drive? If not, she would need to create a bootable CD.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/320397

bcupdate2

fwor

Unfortunately the "NTLDR is missing or corrupt" usually means that the hard disk is either dead or badly corrupted. I've seen the latter happen on a PC which had the mains switched off while running, so it may be recoverable - but it's more likely to be a drive failure.

One way to check for this is to create a Linux bootable CD and boot the laptop from that. The latest version of Ubuntu, for example, has a Disk Utility that will show the SMART status for the hard drive, which will give you information to show whether it is failing.

Donnie

If she has a compatible XP Disc, she can create a new MBR by running a Repair Install.

Lady_K

She doesnt have a floppy drive or a windows xp cd.

I had to create a boot up cd a couple of years ago when I was given a pc that had a password on it that no one could remember would that boot up cd work?

fwor

As long as the BIOS is configured to boot from CD before HDD, it should boot from your CD, but it won't have the tools to help much.

She could try downloading SystemRescueCD, which has a utility called TestDisk on it. This can repair many of the problems that you may encounter with a corrupt hard disk, though it obviously won't help if the drive has failed completely.

Lady_K

Thanks sounds like she should try the system rescue cd.

Does this mean she will have to set the bios to boot with cd, then use my boot up cd, then try the system rescue repair cd and if it repairs it then switch back in the bios to hardisc boot up?

Just a bit confused by it being ubunto does this mean if it repairs it she wont be on winxp anymore?

Also if this doesnt repair it will she be able to save any files or pictures she might have saved on the pc? and would a reformat then possibly fix it

gaming_guy

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fwor

Lady_K wrote: »

Thanks sounds like she should try the system rescue cd.

Does this mean she will have to set the bios to boot with cd, then use my boot up cd, then try the system rescue repair cd and if it repairs it then switch back in the bios to hardisc boot up?

Almost. SystemRescue can be burnt as a bootable CD, so your CD won't be needed.

SystemRescueCD is actually based on Gentoo linux, and tbh I find it quite difficult to understand and use - it's not really for the inexperienced user.

I'd start by downloading the current version of Ubuntu, boot it up as a LiveCD (as gaming_guy says, choose "Try Ubuntu") and see if it can see the content of the hard disk. If so, she can transfer off any data she needs to keep to a pendrive before trrying to fix the problem. If not,the drive is probably dead.

Lady_K

Just shows how important it is to back things up. If the drive is completely gone she will be really upset as she had a baby 6 weeks ago and all the photos and vids are on that pc plus all other family stuff so I'm keeping my fingers crossed it will work.

I didnt like ubunto either after seeing it on a friends laptop but it will be iseful in this case, will let you know how it goes, Thanks

Donnie

If creating a bootable CD containing bcupdate2 is beyond your capability, possibly the most simple way of fixing this is to obtain the correct Windows XP disc. But you can continue with the System Rescue Disc as suggested if you have already created it. The utility to use is TestDisk.

Otherwise;

Download RC.ISO from here.
Now burn this ISO image to a CD and boot your computer with it. You can use ImgBurn for this. Guide.
Once the CD is created, place it in the defunct computer.
Then reboot the broken PC with that CD in the CD-ROM drive.
Make sure the PC is set to run from the CD as the primary boot device.
NOTE: You do this by setting your PC to boot to the CD-ROM in BIOS (enter bios by pressing f1, f2 or del key during memory count up, then search for boot order, and set the CD as the first boot device)
When the PC boots, it will boot from the CD...after the first several screens load, you will be given a choice to choose R for Recovery Console. You will be asked to log in.
NOTE: For Windows XP Home, there is not password, just hit ENTER. For Windows XP pro, ask whomever set up the machine what password they used.

Next: Running "ChkDsk"
At the Recovery console C:\WINDOWS prompt, type
chkdsk /r
Press ENTER
Let this scan run UNINTERRUPTED until completion (30 mins or so depending on the drive)
Report any errors in your next reply
Once the scan is complete, Type exit, and then press ENTER to quit Recovery Console.
Your computer will now restart




You may need an XP Disc, you can be guided to a link if you know which version is needed.

Then you can follow these instructions:

1. Insert the Windows XP bootable CD into the computer.
2. When prompted to press any key to boot from the CD, press any key.
3. Once in the Windows XP setup menu press the "R" key to repair Windows.
4. Log into your Windows installation by pressing the "1" key and pressing enter.
5. You will then be prompted for your administrator password, enter that password.
6. Copy the below two files to the root directory of the primary hard disk. In the below example we are copying these files from the CD-ROM drive letter, which in this case is "e." This letter may be different on your computer.

copy e:\i386\ntldr c:\
copy e:\i386\ntdetect.com c:\

7. Once both of these files have been successfully copied, remove the CD from the computer and reboot.