file missing / can't access or read partition

I have a computer with the following problem.

When you turn on the computer, you get an HP logo and press F1 for setup and F10 for recovery.

Then the screen goes black, and says "Windows could not start, a file is missing or corrupted

windows\system32\config\system

Hit R for recovery on the first screen"

I have true image 9 and disk director 10 on a cd. They both get stuck analyizing the C: partition. From a bootable bart pe cd, I can see and read the D: partition, which is for recovery. It can't do a directory of C:. The size and format of C: is not being reported right.

How can I start Disk Director from the CD and get it to repair the partition so I can move to fixing the registry problem and the missing file?

Thanks.

 

Can you get past the HP splash screen to the flashing cursor (top left hand corner) and then press F8 ?

I suspect the easiest thing is to bung in an XP CD and goto the recovery console and repair the installation, but I suppose your system didn't come with a CD, just the wretched restore partition.

I'd say either the BIOS is misreading the hard drive parameters, the MFT is bung or the HD is on its way out.

I'd go for the first two and probably the second option as the most probable cause.

If drive 'D' is viewable, then I'm surprised Linux (the rescue CD) can't see this in some way.

Have you already made a backup /image of your drive with TI ?

When the rescue CD gets stuck - does it ever time out - like after 5 minutes or so?

Colin

 

This is someone else's computer. They never made the recovery CD. The bios seems fine and the HD is not making strange noises. I think the C: partition is messed up, and I want to try and do a repair.

Both True Image and Disk Director get keeps analyizing the C: partition and never times out, even after 5 minutes. No True Image backup has been made.

 

Too bad your friend didn't have a True Image backup. This would have been easier to fix by deleting the C partition, re-creating and reformatting it, and then restoring the backup image.

However, all is not lost (yet). Take a look at this Microsoft article: KB 307545

Unfortunately from the symptoms that you describe it sounds more like the partition itself is corrupted rather than just the Windows registry.

What happens if you take the hard drive out of your friend's machine and put it into another PC as a slave drive? Can you then see any files on the Windows partition? If this works then you can at least get the personal files off the disk before reformatting.

And if all else fails then the HP restore to factory (F10) should recover the machine, but all settings and files will be lost of course.

 

hi

your best bet to eliminate this problem would be to plug the hd in another computer and then scan it with a disk repair program like norton disk doctor if there is somthin wrong with the partition then that should sort it