restored image of C doesn't boot

For anyone who would like to create a BootIT NG CD....

Unzip the downloaded file
Double click makedisk.exe
choose Mouse support enabled
choose VESA Video
In the Select Target screen, choose your CD burner drive. Click finish.

It's more like a 5 minute job.

When you boot to the CD, for Setup click Cancel as you don't want to install it to your HD.

 

The bootcfg /rebuild process from the XP CD worked!!! I'm actually posting this from my Dell Lattitude. The restored contents of the drive appear to be completely functional. Even SQL Server starts fine. Although I've been confident all along about the image file and that I'd get to it somehow, I didn't expect to learn so many different things along the way. I've got a library of great articles and tips for the "next time." I don't know how to thank all of you who hung in there and kept suggesting things to do and try. That really helped to banish the despair and frustration that is so much a part of these these situations. In the 20 years I've been programming, I've never had a disk crash before. I have had my development machine stolen in what police eventually determined was "industrial espionage." However, I wasn't able to restore from that backup that had made on a Colorado tape system.

I do have the BootItNG disk and am now wondering whether I could do something with the "bonus 20 GB partition" I got out of this deal. I don't really need it and have already lost almost a full week's work on the current project so I think I'd better just let that go for now. Don't be greedy <g>.

Here's the boot.ini

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Windows XP Professional"
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn

It clearly shows the location of the original XP installation as Partition(2) where the newer/current entry shows it as Partition(1). I guess the original disk must have had a hidden partition that I didn't know about. Could that have been created when I upgraded to XP? I think there was a change from FAT16 to NTFS somewhere along the line too.

Thanks again Brian, and all of you who helped out. Your input kept me sane throughout all of this.

 

That's the best news today. Your OS working.

Yes, your original OS must have been Partition(2) due to the Dell Utility partition in slot 1. No hurry, but when you have time you could edit boot.ini to

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINNT="Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn

Sure. When you have time create a partition.

I'm really pleased it worked out. I've seen lots of boot.ini problems, usually the "hal.dll is missing" type but yours was a first.

 

Gee, leave it to me to be the first... I did edit the boot.ini right away to remove the duplicate OS--the only difference in my version and yours is the name. Hopefully that's not significant. Is this is how a dual boot system works though? If/when I get a machine with Vista on it, I'll still need an XP partition. A CAD program I use occasionally isn't being upgraded to run under Vista.

I was thinking a few minutes ago that this experience has a familiar ring to it, akin to "dll hell" that we programmers sometimes find ourselves in. Is that "hal.dll" as in "I'm sorry, I can't let you do that...."

 

The Microsoft way of dual booting works like this. This way is best avoided.

I'm avoiding Vista for quite some time but this is a good video on installing Vista in a dual boot situation.

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/kb/article.php?id=299

I remember that.