Missing Operating System

I forgot my Windows administrator password and got locked out of my desktop. I created a bootable USB flash drive from two different programs - Ultimate Boot CD and Windows Pass Key - to try to reset the password.

But I can use either one, because I get a "missing operating system" error.

I don't know what's causing this, because the operating system is still there. If I don't use the bootable USB drive, I can still get to the Windows sign-in screen. I just can't log in.

I've run Dell Diagnostics to see if there is something wrong with the computer, but everything seems okay. What can I do to get the bootable USB flash drives - either one - to recognize the operating system?

I changed the boot sequence, and that setting is fine, although I'm not sure whether I should use UEFI or Legacy to boot. I also tried changing the SATA setting to RAID, ATA, and AHCI, as well as reloading the BIOS defaults, but none of that helps.

Can anyone suggest something that I can try? Thank you.

 

this should work : chntpw (Offline NT Password & Registry Editor) is a Windows password removal utility that can be run from a CD-DVD or a USB drive.
https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/chntpw_bootable_cd_image.html

but read this to make sure you understand the process
http://www.chntpw.com/guide/

good luck with it.

 

Thanks so much! I tried it, and the program loaded, but got stuck at the second screen. See attached screenshot.

The last six lines of text are what appears after hitting enter from the first screen. Are you able to decipher what this means, and what I should do at this point?

By the way, I have a Virtual Box partition on this machine. I'm wondering if it might have something to do with that?

 

The screenshot didn't upload.

 

virtual box should have no effect on what you are trying to do. it is just a file on your hard drive.

basically, you want to reset/clear the admin password.
the program seems to be working as intended since you hit enter and you got to the partition information.
usually, in these cases, a default is selected, because most people all want to do the same thing... clear the admin password.
and if i am reading things right.... there are all of those screens and choices, but the program does not ask you to save anything until the very end, so you can work your way through all of the screens without damaging anything.

type 1 and press Enter -> for windows partitiion
type 1 and press Enter -> to select password reset (SAM)
type 1 and press Enter -> to edit data
a list of users is presented -> find the RID # for administrator, in the example it is 01f4
so type 1f4 and press enter to choose the user to edit/clear -> the RID # for your admin account will probably be different.
type 1 and press Enter to clear/blank password
then type q to quit user selection
then type q to quit program
then answer y (yes) to save changes
and in theory, because the admin password is now blank, you just reboot the computer and you'll get to the desktop.

it has probably been a good 15 years since i had actually used this program. but that is the basic premise.

good luck with it!

 

Sorry, here is the screenshot...

 

I think i was unclear when I said "stuck", previously. I meant the program itself gets stuck or hung up.

 

Did you read this guide?
http://www.chntpw.com/guide/
I'm uploading a PDF version you should print or view on another PC.

 

Yes, I did read the guide. I was using it with the program as I went along. Unfortunately, I couldn't get past the first screen. I did see some different boot options on that first screen, but none of the choices seemed to match the problem I was having.

 

Also, I tried the other boot options, but they all end with error message, "Could not find kernel image."

 

I'm still stuck, if anyone else has any ideas. I am confident the program that was proposed above will work, if I can figure out how to get past that first screen. One thing I did notice on the program author's page was that every Windows operating system except 10 was mentioned, and since the creation date of the program is dated, maybe that means there might be some incompatibility with Windows 10.

I am going to keep looking for a solution on my own, but again, would appreciate if anyone else has any ideas. If not, that's okay, I will report back once I determine a solution. Thanks again everybody for your help.

 

well, hmmm... after reading through these pages
https://www.howtogeek.com/116569/ht...e-boot-feature-works-what-it-means-for-linux/
and
https://www.howtogeek.com/56958/htg-explains-how-uefi-will-replace-the-bios/

the only thought i have now, deals with

which i kind of ignored initially...

it appears that UEFI and secure boot gets in the way of many linux distributions and makes it hard to install on windows computers. since the NT password changer lives on top of linux, try using "Legacy" to boot the computer. the legacy setting should allow linux to see your hard drive, and let the program work. you might also need to figure out how to turn off secure boot.

theory and reality can be at odds with each other, but it is something to try.
good luck with it.

 

I've been booting in Legacy, and secure boot has been off, and I still can't get the program to run. It won't run with UEFI boot either. At this point, I just wish I knew whether the problem was the chntpw program itself, a BIOS setting, or something else wrong with my computer, so I knew where to focus my efforts. All I know is that the "missing operating system" and "boot the kernel" messages must somehow be related to what's going wrong.

 

Chntpw doesn't work for Windows 10.

Try this.
http://www.chntpw.com/reset-forgotten-windows-10-password/

 

Hey, thanks a lot! Going to check that out tomorrow morning!

 

A couple additional brief questions:

1) I don't have Windows installation DVD/CD. I originally downloaded Windows from Dell's website five years ago when I purchased the desktop. What Dell offers me now on their website is a Dell OS Recovery Image for Windows, in order to reinstall Windows. Can I use that for the purposes of just booting Windows, as instructed at the chntpw link above, without actuall reinstalling the system? Here is the Dell link:

https://www.dell.com/support/articl...s-recovery-image-in-microsoft-windows?lang=en

2) I seem to be getting caught with in all my efforts - chntpw and otherwise - with Linux-related issues. Is Linux even relevant if I am just working with Windows 10?

 

I believe you will find the Dell recovery may only re-install- if you want to save data use a normal iso,
W10 x32 bit download iso,

https://software-download.microsoft...1549054506&h=7848d6c3b61b55e8aa34cdd9459b62a6

W10 x64 bit

https://software-download.microsoft...1549054506&h=b0a31e50b00b602b2a8c94a5b1a02572

 

I'm downloading the ISO above right now, and will try that first.

Also, something I think I failed to mention, and may be complicating things, is that before all this went bad, I changed advanced startup options to boot in safe mode, because I was trying to repair something else on my computer that went wrong due to a Windows update. So, every time my computer boots, and I get to the Windows login screen, it is in safe mode. And safe mode only lets you use a type in password, whereas the non-safe mode Windows login screen lets you use a picture password, which is what I have been using for a long time - that's why I don't remember my Windows (type-in) password.

 

I downloaded the ISO above, and then followed the instructions at the chntpw link that Eldon recommended for Windows 10. It let me create a test account, and from there I was able to go back into Safe Mode and turn off Safe Mode via msconfig.

Then, I could get to the regular login screen, where I used task manager to switch accounts, and I was able to use my picture password again to get into my old account.

The only problem is, once I logged in, the system got stuck on "Preparing Windows..." for a long time.

In the midst of this process, a message popped up that "The recycle bin on drive C: is corrupted for this device. Do you want to empty it?" 1,122 items, although there is never more than 15 or 20 items in my recycle bin because I empty it regularly.

Then, the system went back to the blank dark screen, where it has been for over an hour now.

So I went back to the test account, where I could get into Command Prompt, and I tried to run System Restore. I got an error message that System Restore does not appear to functioning correctly on this system.

I then tried the system file checker but got the error message, "System Resource Protection could not start the repair service."

So I am basically out of options at this point. I don't know what to try next. Should I go try to go back into safe mode and run System Restore from there, or is there a better option?

 

well, i do feel your pain. [ to such an extent that i switched my home computers to apple products many years ago ]
this page looks like it could be helpful.
How to Do a Repair Install of Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade
https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/16397-repair-install-windows-10-place-upgrade.html

does the test account give you a normal windows desktop? as one would expect? maybe just start using that.
or buy a new hard drive, reinstall windows on that, and attach your old hard drive externally until you can recover your files.

from what i have seen over the years, linux is only relative to windows computers as a way to recover files from systems like yours that windows has corrupted. there are a ton of linux distributions that are purposely built for "disaster recovery".
when i first switched over to macs, i looked for linux distributions to help recover from mac problems, and i did not find any. that puzzled me for a bit, but i think i understand now... but that's a whole different topic and i won't bore you with it, because it won't help you with your problem.

anyway, good luck with it.

 

As you have the Windows 10 disc/usb/iso, now, you can get to a command prompt -I would suggest using the DISM image repair. SFC /SCANNOW failure shows corrupted Windows image.
https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/7808-use-dism-repair-windows-10-image.html
I would go to ……….. 5. To Use DISM /RestoreHealth Command
In the command prompt, copy and paste Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
The on-line may be easiest , as the next options need more thought (options 6,and 7)
Otherwise, If you wish, if you can get into safe mode again, then it can be worth trying system restore from there, as it sometimes succeeds, where other ways fail.

The symptoms that you describe can , also, often be a clue to a failing hard drive. So, worth noting 'harmless' suggestion, to copy from present hard drive, if all else fails.

 

I'm hoping not to have to reinstall all my apps, so I'm holding off on resetting the system.

I have run sfc /scannow, and there are no integrity violations. And when I run bootrec /fixmbr, to repair the master boot record, it completes successfully.

But when I run chkdsk, there are a few errors found. See attached screenshot.

Also, I did try your suggestion to use the DISM /RestoreHealth Command, as in #5, with Command Prompt, but it said "DISM does not support servicing Windows PE with the /Online option."

So I went to #6, where it says to find the install.wim file. As I recall, though, when I made the boot disk, I think that file did not copy because it was too large. I'm assuming now that I need to have that?

In addition to the above steps, I tried uninstalling recent Windows Quality Updates, which did not work, and I tried System Restore from various restore points, and none of those worked. See attached screenshots.

Are there other Troubleshooting/Advanced Repair Options I should try?

One of the reasons I know the system is still there, and seems fine, is because when I boot up, my blue tooth speakers in my home say out loud, "ready to connect", when they are recognize the computer system becoming active.

Also, when I run Troubleshoot, it always ask me to pick a system, and it lists Windows 10 as the only option.

Additionally, when boot to the login screen, I get my personalized home screen that I use for my picture password. But, as I have said,once I log in, Windows wants to set up again.

From some or the research I have done, the gist of what getting to my personalized home screen means, as I take it, is that all my files and everything on the computer is fine, including my profile, but that for some reason, Windows isn't recognizing that profile when I log in.

At this point, now that I am out of Safe Mode, I don't understand why I don't get a picture password login option when I boot the system from the hard drive. It seems that would at least let me into the system to repair it.

 

Did you try using the downloaded disc, to get to command prompt ? in safe mode.....
I see you used CHKDSK first did you also use CHKDSK /F ito actually fix ?
Corrupted profile.....Use the W10 downloaded disc......
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...in-win10/6cf9628d-6cfc-4263-b391-08f8f21eee17

 

No, I will try that next.

One point for clarification: anytime it says disc, I can always substitute USB, as long as I boot from that, correct?

And should I get a larger USB flash drive so I can include that install.wim file now?

The really ridiculous thing about this all is that this all started with the latest Windows critical update preventing my USB drives from being recognized by the system.

 

If you can get into safemode-Go to search -type in winver - this will give you the version you have (there are a few, and the dism command might not work, if wrong version is used- so if latest version , 1803, or, 1809 then Microsofts own site would give that version, if earlier, we have to root around for it- There is a small program that might find the others. Let me know.
For the computer to recognise the usb, it must be in a slot when starting up, and it should then show.
It seems the install.wim file is now install.esd, -.....As I said the easy way is on-line method. If you have the iso on the pc , then you may be able to mount the iso (right click, mount) and then it may see the file. Otherwise you may have to copy the install.wim (install.esd) file to desktop from the mounted iso, and then get the path right for the

 

I ran chkdsk /f. It kept telling me the volume was in use by another process. When I listed the volumes, the one I was looking for - "Boot" - wasn't there. Finally, it asked me if I wanted to "force a dismount on this volume". I said yes, and it said it fixed everything.

I ran it again to make sure, and it said it found problems again. I could get chkdsk /f to run again, so I ran chkdsk /r . That process is still going, and looks like it will take another 21 hours or so, so it looks like I won't be able to try anything else for a while.

I don't understand chkdsk /f , though. Does f stand for "fix" or the f drive? Because some instructions I saw, said to actually use chkdsk c: /f , for example, to fix the c drive. I had to look for further instructions, because when I ran ran just chkdsk /f , I was getting warning messages that the " /f parameter was not specified.

Regarding install.wim , do I need that file, in general, for using the OS image boot disk? It was the only file that didn't copy, because it was so big, and since I didn't have a larger flash drive, I just decided to try without it for the time being. I mean, it's not preventing me from accomplishing anything else, is it?

 

As you have the usb connected, I would say run CHKDSK C:/R,as it could be confused., Yes, C: is usually your present hard disk. (correct parameter)
A full explanation is always best via Microsoft,

if you want to know all the actions look here
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/chkdsk
Did CHKDSK /R work ,when you last waited for it?​

Try with usb, command prompt admin, and see if check health will work by typing in Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
If that will work, then you will not need ADK (another story)
You need the complete download to get that install.wim for the repair. then if using option 6, you can try again. (It contains all the actual operating system (about 3.5gb)
I have something to do for the family- so, I will pm you, later.

​

 

Yes, CHKDSK /R worked.

Having read up today on CHKDSK, in general, though, I decided to run everything again, together. So, right now, I am running CHKDSK C: /F /R /X .

I will get another USB flash drive big enough to add the install.wim file, and plan on running the DISM repair next, since I can't use the Online option.

Also, I ran Dell Diagnostics again last night, and all hard drive and memory tests passed.

What is ADK, by the way?

 

Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit.

 

Thanks. CHKDSK, as listed above, is finished and said, "Windows has finished scanning the file system and found no problems. No further action is required."

What would be the best next step? Is it still worthwhile running DISM repair, and possibly ADK, or not necessary at this point?

 

But unfortunately, I did get a message below the above that says, "Failed to transfer logged messages to the log event with status 50", which, I take it, can be a big problem, unless it is because my hard drive is read only - which I think it is.

Does that seem correct?

 

Do you have important files on the disk?

 

Yes, but most of them are backed up in Google Drive.

I do save files to the disk regularly, though. Doesn't that mean the drive isn't really read only?

Maybe my Avast security is interfering.

I used DiskPart, and it says my hard drive is Healthy. Although when I tried a command to vlear ReadOnly, it said the command didn't work.

 

As CHKDSK reported errors on second run, after fixing, it could well indicate the hard drive has bad sectors, and I would consider replacing it, if problems are not resolved soon.
Keep trying, as you are, and just note that if you purchased a replacement hard drive, it is relatively easy to copy your original, using Partition Wizard, in another computer with an external enclosure. You ca also do as Harmless said, and copy your data, using an external enclosure, and another computer.
To look for coa's, and other details of your installed programs, you can use Baleac advisor in safe mode
http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/belarc_advisor.html,and
Should it become an option, come back with a new thread, and you may get more help

 

Windows didn't report any errors on the second run - said it "found no errors" - it just said it "failed to transfer logged messages..."

And I don't know if that was because of the boot up media or the drive.

To clarify, is the concept of a drive being writable, as simple as meaning that you can save files to it, for example in a download, pictures, or documents folder, and that if the drive is read only, you wouldn't be able to do that?

I ask that because I went into DiskPart, and while it said the drive was HEALTHY, I still tried a command to clear ReadOnly. The response was that the command was not successful. I don't know if that means it couldn't do it, or that the drive was not ReadOnly in the first place.

I'm off to Best Buy to get a larger flash drive, then will try the DISM repair.

 

I followed the instructions linked above to repair the OS image using DISM, but keep getting the message, "DISM does not support servicing Windows PE with the /Online option." All of the instructions at that link require the /Online option.

I do now have the install.wim file, and I do know the index number for the right edition of Windows in that file, but I cannot figure out how to run DISM.

Also confusing is the discrepancy between X drive and C drive, when trying to use the proper syntax in commands.

If anyone is able to help me figure out how to properly use DISM at this point, I would greatly appreciate it.

 

The "x" drive is the pe mode for pre-installation windows environment. It is for repairing windows or setting up a new installation(s). So in that case your "c" drive is in an 'offline' state. How are you starting the 'pe' mode?

 

I have been starting it with a Windows 10 ISO file on a USB flash drive.

I am out of options at this point. Since I cannot get DISM to run, I am probably going to hire someone to repair the computer.

Then, I am done with Windows permanently. Their critical update effectively ruined my perfectly good operating system.

Maybe, Chrome OS would be a better choice.

Microsoft is a worthless company.

 

Can you get into safe-mode, without using a startup disk? With nothing attached to the computer?
I ask because it was not quite clear previously.
If you can, and you can get on-line, then it may be possible to use the on-line option for restore health.
If you cannot get into Windows safe-mode, with nothing attached (usb/card etc then the stuck update may be the one that has been messing up several computers.
Write protected is ,as I understand it, a problem, or, sometimes a little switch on the usb/card.- I have never heard of it on a hard drive- so just be sure to refer any repair to C: on the hard drive.
Thee only other way that I have seen a stuck update cured, was by repeatedly restarting the computer, so that it forced the update to resume-
This would give you a black screen, and you have to wait for up to 10 minutes to half an hour , sometimes , before it will 'break through and force the update to continue