Added Reflect recovery environment to boot option. How do you change timeout time in Win XP?

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by allizomeniz, Jan 2, 2016.

  1. allizomeniz

    allizomeniz Registered Member

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    Hey all. I added the Reflect recovery environment to my boot options in Win XP. Now I'm trying to change the length of time it waits before it automatically boots to XP. Default is 10 sec but I'd like to change it to 5. I attached a picture that shows the boot.ini tab in msconfig. In Win 7 and Vista I changed the Timeout value to 5 and this took care of it. But in XP something's different. The Timeout value is 30 sec. but at boot it only waits 10 sec. I changed 30 to 5 but it still defaulted to 10 sec. Anyone have any idea how to change this in XP? Thanks.

    msconfig.jpg
     
  2. kronckew

    kronckew Registered Member

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    i've thrown out my operating manual for the stanley steamer car over a century ago when i upgraded to the model t. likewise with XP. i do seem to recall it's the same as with the current win10 (and win8,7,vista,95) right click the desktop 'my computer' icon, wade thru the context menu to properties, then select advanced settings in the new window, pick the 'advanced tab from the new new window. pick startup... at the bottom, swing a live cat thre times around your head by the tail, and say the lords prayer backwards three time, to get something resembling this:

    Capture 001.jpg

    the time to display... can be changed just under the operating system dropdown box (which you can use to select which OS is the default, you'd normally leave that as winxp, not macrium's winpe.

    do NOT edit bcd code directly. boot.ini is ok to edit tho.

    i'm surprised your vintage pc is still running, hard to find parts for the old gal i suspect. i imagine it's rather vulnerable to infection. you'll need to let her retire while she has some dignity left and upgrade to one of them newfangled win10 thingamabobs sooner rather than later. it won't be as hard as you think to move her to a nursing home and go out with a new model. if you want, you can tart her up to look and act like your old antique, just more reliable, secure, and faster, tho you'll need to get rid of those old 16 bit corsets and bustles.

    if this don't work, hopefully you were entertained & one of the other antique owners that has one of these holy relics still working may be able to help better.

    p.p.s. - winxp is still better than the operating system we had back on the ol' css merrimack. ;)

    p.s. - a couple of deadly items to try at your own risk (make at least an incremental backup 1st so you can do a full system disk restore if needed - hopefully you have a bootable cd drive & a macrium recovery disk, otherwise you may need to upgrade to win10 sooner than you think.) :

    from a command prompt: (subst. your desired time for the number '2') 1st is for A boot.ini based windows, second for a bcd based boot track.


    bootcfg /timeout 2

    or

    bcdedit /timeout 2

    i seem to recall windows changed from using boot.ini to the boot config database (bcd) somewhere around xp time so your timeout=30 and other stuff in the boot.ini may have been replaced by the newer boot track & may need a bcd editor instead. i use easybcd editor, a third party one, if needed. microsoft's bcdedit util is rather cryptic & hard to grasp unless someone finds a gem of wisdom like the line above.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2016
  3. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    Great memory, Wayne! :D (much better than mine... I needed my trusty VM)

    Windows XP: My Computer/Properties/Advanced/Startup & Recovery/Settings
     
  4. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    As Allizomeniz has already found out... turns out Reflect does not use the XP BOOT.ini method of control when adding its Recovery Media, it uses its own method (BCD-like) of which I know not what it is.

    Using the Macrium Forums, I have submitted a question concerning this issue.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2016
  5. kronckew

    kronckew Registered Member

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    it's possible that a winxp system may have been retrofitted onto a HD that had been system formatted with vista or above, thus using a bcd mbr loader rather than a boot.ini one. i've looked thru the macrium options & faqs & can't find anything where you can set the timing from macrium's end. my little grey cells are straining but exhausted at this point. macrium has a boot repair option from a recovery cd that allows repairing or recreating the boot environment, but no sign of a timing setting. an adventurous user could try easybcd to just LOOK at their system to see if it has a bcd mbr rather than a boot.ini one. as usual. should this not work, the Secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions. This disc will self-destruct in five seconds. Good luck. caveat emptor.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2016
  6. allizomeniz

    allizomeniz Registered Member

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    Thanks all for the support. Frog, you're right. Even going the My Computer>Properties route didn't help; that's just an alternative way of editing boot.ini. Maybe someone in the Macrium Forum has a solution. I'll just hang tight.
     
  7. allizomeniz

    allizomeniz Registered Member

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    I went ahead and tried bcdedit /timeout 5, worked like a charm. Thanks for the feedback guys, I learned something today. :thumb:

    P.S. This XP computer (Dell) works just fine. The only thing I don't like about it is it can only handle 1 gig of memory, other than that no problems at all. The motherboard will die eventually, til then, onward and upward. :p
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2016
  8. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    The test I ran in the VM was done on an XP system built with an NTLDR-type MBR. Macrium is doing this in a strange way on XP systems. Also, I found a BOOTMGR file in the ROOT partition on the Macrium loaded XP system... maybe they are doing some sort of BCD private thing.

    I don't really have the time to chase it down at the moment... maybe later.
     
  9. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    You might wanna give that 1gB limit a nudge up and see what happens. I have come across lots of XP-based hardware with specced limits of 1gB and 2gb and have found many to work at twice the density (unless you're dealing with the ol' HIGH vs LOW memory density issues.
     
  10. allizomeniz

    allizomeniz Registered Member

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    I installed a 1 gig stick and it recognized it and is using it! Many thanks for this suggestion, I only regret I'm just now finding out about it. Now I might try another gig. :)
     
  11. allizomeniz

    allizomeniz Registered Member

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    It's confirmed. 2 gigs works in a Dell Dimension 2400. :thumb:
     
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