PC not booting after Win update

Hi,
I am posting for a friend.:confused

After a win xp update the pc will no longer boot up, it seems to run in a loop and he cannot get into safe mode.( we have tried but nothing) In fact the only way to turn off is to press the mains switch off

The Pc was upgraded several months ago to Win Xp at a local computer shop,(now closed!!) they have not given him a copy of the program, when we managed to get into the set-up at the start of the boot up it said Windows Xp Professional .
He had not realised that this was what had been put on.
I am running Win xp sp3 and have a disk (if this is of use)
He has not got any rescue disks. :cry

Has anyone any idea's what we can do? or is it a wipe disk and re-install my win xp?:banghead

 

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm fairly sure if your XP disk is the same version as what is installed on your friends computer, you can use the disk to access the Repair console. I've not had a lot of luck with the console, but it is an option. See this Microsoft article for some instructions on using the repair console: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330184

With XP I generally do a repair install of the operating system, which leaves personal files intact. But I'm not sure if that would be a violation of the Terms of Use or not . . . I mean, the serial key is what is unique, not the disk itself. It seems logical that if your friend has a valid serial key for his XP pro, and it is the exact same version of XP as that on your disk, it should be fine . . . but, you should check Microsoft's terms of use to be sure.

Microsoft's ERD Commander is a tool that helps repair issues with non-booting computers. See this Microsoft article for info on how to make a Boot CD using ERD: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee460919.aspx

You might also consider the Ultimate Boot CD , which has several repair tools for all kinds of windows issues. About the easiest repair is to start the System Restore function from a DOS prompt (once you manage to get that far). The Ultimate Boot CD can be downloaded here at Major geeks: http://majorgeeks.com/Ultimate_Boot_CD_d4981.html

Good luck - keep us posted on how it's going, or if you have questions about some of the repair options available to you.

 

Correction on my post . . . The ERD tool seems to not exist anymore as such. It used to be a free trial download from Microsoft, but no longer that I can find. I've not used it in years; in fact not since right after Microsoft bought out Winternals. Now MicroSoft has "MSDaRT" which I am not sure is free. Sorry for the confusion.

:-o

 

Hi Both,
Thanks for your input, the problem is that the friend had the win xp upgraded at a computer shop (now closed) he has not got either a disk or key.

"You might also consider the Ultimate Boot CD " I may have to download this program onto a flash drive and see if I can get anywhere with that. Just wondering if the program has info for its use??

Thanks both I will have a look and get back

 

Yes, that is a problem. Without a serial key there is not a lot he can do. It seems a bit hinky that this now-defunked computer shop didn't give him a key for the "upgrade". I hope he didn't have to pay much for it, because they may have stuck him with a pirated copy of XP. Any reputable shop would have given him a serial key, if not a disk also.

I believe there are some tutorials on the Ultimate Boot CD site (ultimatebootcd.com) but I can't advise how helpful they are, or their coverage. The Ultimate Boot CD is a great tool, though, and I always have a copy close to hand if I need it. You can use it to open a DOS prompt ( C:\ ) on the computer in question. To start System Restore from the C:\ prompt, type windows\system32\restore\rstrui.exe That should start the system Restore app in windows. I've seen it take quite a long time for it to start (as long as 10mins). When it does, choose a restore point from before the problem started, and follow the prompts. This usually takes care of software related crashes.


Let us know how it's going

 

Hi,
I thought I would let you know how friends problem panned out.

He took the pc to a repair shop who managed to get into the software and find out the key for the upgraded win xp program that had been put on.

The pc is now running and working fine, I have suggested that he gets an external hard drive as was reccomended to me and then he can do a complete backup of his system in case he has any further problems. Hopefully this is the correct info for him
Thanks for your input