Windows Xp Won't Boot, Need Help Or Advice

[livinthailandos]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

[dave_boo]

Ummh, if you want to keep Windows and yet still want to experiment with Linux, why don't you shrink your Windows partition and install Linux on the free space? This option will allow you to boot into Windows from the Linux boot screen.

Alternatively you can fix Windows using a thumbdrive.

[Guest Reimar]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

Just try the following if your Windows XP CD is the same you was using for the initial installation:

1.) Boot from the XP CD;

2.) ignore the first option for repair;

3.) use the 2. Repair option for to repair by pressing R (that option is shown in the lower Screen)

If the 2. Repair option didn't appears, that means that the CD isn't the one used for the initial installation. In this case you've only 2 choices: new and clean installation or restart the computer!

If the 2 Repair option appears and you use it, it will delete the existing Windows but keep Driver, Settings, Programs and Data, and re-install Windows.

Good luck.

[livinthailandos]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

Just try the following if your Windows XP CD is the same you was using for the initial installation:

1.) Boot from the XP CD;

2.) ignore the first option for repair;

3.) use the 2. Repair option for to repair by pressing R (that option is shown in the lower Screen)

If the 2. Repair option didn't appears, that means that the CD isn't the one used for the initial installation. In this case you've only 2 choices: new and clean installation or restart the computer!

If the 2 Repair option appears and you use it, it will delete the existing Windows but keep Driver, Settings, Programs and Data, and re-install Windows.

Good luck.

Have other question for you then, I have a program that uses SQL Server for my database program, will it still keep the database intact

[Guest Reimar]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

Just try the following if your Windows XP CD is the same you was using for the initial installation:

1.) Boot from the XP CD;

2.) ignore the first option for repair;

3.) use the 2. Repair option for to repair by pressing R (that option is shown in the lower Screen)

If the 2. Repair option didn't appears, that means that the CD isn't the one used for the initial installation. In this case you've only 2 choices: new and clean installation or restart the computer!

If the 2 Repair option appears and you use it, it will delete the existing Windows but keep Driver, Settings, Programs and Data, and re-install Windows.

Good luck.

Have other question for you then, I have a program that uses SQL Server for my database program, will it still keep the database intact

If the 2. Repair option works: YES!

[dcpleland]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

Hey there livinthailandos -

I'm with you on option 5, and daveboo's advice may be best way if you're a linuxnewbie - which is totally OK. Or go mac, it just may be "the linux we've been waiting for". For each user, it depends entirely on what you're doing with the computer.

If you're surfing, doing web email, and making letters-spreadsheets-presentations-databases, linux will do it all and not waste your time. Cheap as well, just get an hp or toshiba laptop (maybe others?) for great compatibility, and load on Xandros linux with firefox and OpenOffice and printer drivers (hp printers are great with linux), and you should be set.

Generally the advice is to keep moderate security up, medium firewall settings, and defrag your HDD every month, you should be happy camper. I've been doing it for years. Why do microsoft's work for them? Why pay through the nose for Apple?

[h90]

Is there anything important on the PC?

Any tries to recover WinXp may result in a bigger risk to loose this data, if important things on it:

a) Important but not extrem important: go to the next computer shop and let them plug in your HD and copy everything to DVD, should costs 100-500 Baht.

if that does not work or you think the HD is broken or the things on it are very important, send the HD to a recovery service. There is an excellent Russian guy in Phuket who helped me twice already.

c) if nothing important install XP new, anyhow a fresh install is quicker

[ianwuk]

Before you tell me search google I have done that already. My opinions are the following

1. put boot.ini and 2 other things onto a floppy disc and put it in, But this computer has no floppy drive at all. I suppose I can take out the hard drive and put it into another computer that has a floppy drive but, on the back on the hard drive does not have the typical pin or pimm on the back that most hard drives I have seen have

2. I use a windows xp cd unforuntely guess what my luck is its a pirated cd and won't repair any computer since its pirated but it will format a hard drive how nice

3. I go looking for a usb floppy drive or external floppy drive that should be extremely exciting to look for.

4. I use a knoppix cd and get all my information off this computer and reformat it. Buy a real copy of windows xp only 5500 baht only to be screwed when windows 7 comes out for sale

5. I give up any hope of wasting time on windows and just install linux as the best alternative

so any of you computer smart people can give me some idea what to do would be useful

2. I have never bought a pirated version of XP (or Vista or Windows 7) that does not allow you to repair the installation. Sometimes you cannot for example use an XPMCE CD to repair XP Pro.

Have you tried the obvious of booting in Safe Mode and using System Restore?

3. Just put a bootable version of XP onto a memory stick, save your data and then format it.

4. I've never bought a real version of Windows since Windows 98

5. I would recommend using the Ubuntu LiveCD (just boot off it and it runs straightaway - no installation) so you can see if you really like it.

Good luck.

Ian