Spontaneous reboots

I used the CAPSLOCK Disable program http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4073 to disable the Capslock key. This worked just fine until I attempted to turn it back on last night.

I re-enabled the key and when I rebooted it was still disabled. The machine rebooted just fine. Sooooooo ...

I re-enabled it again and, for good measure, re-enabled it again just to make sure it took and when I rebooted the machine all hell broke loose. The machine keeps rebooting at the XP Home page over and over. It goes to the screen where it says Windows did not shut down correctly and times out to the last good boot screen.

I have tried to boot in safe mode but get the same result. Nothing so far has worked. I keep my virus definitions up to date and everything was fine until I did the double re-enable trick with the CAPSLOCK Disable program which writes to the registry.

Any suggestions on how to get this thing booted long enough to install my registry backup?

 

Question:

Could I boot from a Linux disk and get to my registry backup from there or is this thing on its way to the nearest repair shop?

 

You might do the windows system restore (not the full, death-penalty restore) to a recent date just prior to installing the capslock program. I am pretty sure that the restore process just works on system files, not data. Maybe someone can confirm.

 

A question. You said that you can not get into normal mode or safe mode? What about safe mode with command prompt (console)?

Does the computer continously reboot?

 

Theefool,

I have tried every selection available at the screen to no avail. It reboots regardless of the choice made. If I make no choice, it times out, starts to boot, gets to the Windows XP screen and reboots back to the screen that tells you that the program did not terminate normally. If I just leave it alone, it will continally cycle through time-out, boot, go to Windows XP screen, reboot to previous screen.

 

I cannot get to the restore function in the System Tools because I cannot reboot the machine. I could use the restore disks that were made after I bought the machine but they are for a destructive restore.

A friend of mine said he would try to make a boot disk for me and I can try to get in that way. Other than that, I will have to take it somewhere to get it worked on.

I have checked my partitions and they are all there.

 

By the way, When the unit starts and the choice of <F!> Setup and <F10> System Restore appears the <F10> does not work. Only the <F1> works. I can get to the setup menu but nowhere else.

 

Problem solved.

A friend cam eover who is a principle engineer at a major disk drive manufacturer and bing bang done.

Note to self:

Next time, highlight the selection about booting using the last known good boot record.

 

Last known good boot record??? Or last known good?

If the later, I have never seen this work, otherwise, I'd suggest this. Perhaps I will in the future.

Thanks for the info. It is always helpful for a reply like yours that EXPLAINS what one did to fix the problem, instead of just saying that the problem was fixed.

 

Wow i never seen that setting actually get me out of any jam before and it did for you. But interesting outcome....
-the new tech guy

 

Actually, the damned thing is positioned so that it doesn't actually look like a selection.

The default is "Start Windows normally" and is at the bottom of the list. There is a blank line above that and the next selection above the blank line is "Last known good configuration (your most recent settings that worked)". Then there is another blank line and above that is "Safe mode", "Safe mode with networking", and "Safe mode with command prompt". So it looks like this on the screen:

"Start Windows normally" is highlighted by default.

Now, if one wants to go to the top of a list on a computer screen, one has two choices: Go up four times or go down once. I went down once so I never went past the "Last known good configuration (your most recent settings that worked)" so I never realized it would highlight as a selection. I simply thought it was a delineator between the two sets of choices.

So it all comes down to basic operator error. What more can I say except to apologize for taking up time and bandwidth needlessly. I can assure everyone that I won't need this lesson again.

By the by, it did work flawlessly and everything is exactly as it was before.

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions.

 

Hey i know what those options are and it is ok that you asked for help! That is what this entire community is here for. Actually we never had a problem fix itself in that matter even more baffleing, WINDOWS fixed it!!! which almost never happens and it needs third-party support. So we both win here.
-the new tech guy

 

Having more guts than brains, I decided to try the CAPSLOCK Disable program http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4073 again to see if it was what caused my problem. IT WAS.

I launched the caps restore option and VOILA! there went my registry. I had backed it up to make sure and the previous fixed worked again -- flawlessly.

So now I have to try to get a mesage to the admins that this program is kerflooey.

For the curious among us, the contents of the "disable_CAPS.reg" file is:

The contents of the "restore_CAPS.reg file is:

I am going to reinstall the files to see what happens and I'll let ya know.

 

Overwrote the old restore_CAPS.reg file with no effect. I assume there is something VEEEEEEERY wrong with the file.

Anyone know what to do to restore the capslock key without nuking my machine?

 

Thanks, CP. I don't have any type of keyboard manager program running that I am aware of. In fact, I didn't know there was such a thing outside of Windows kbd.exe.

When I first downloaded the program from MajorGeeks it seemed to work well but when I tried to reinstate the key after a couple of months BLAM! The nice thing is that it is a repeatable error which -- thank God -- has a repeatable cure.

I will try some of the things you suggest and see what happens -- hopefully not from a borrowed computer.

By the by -- the problem manifested itself after I double clicked, and accepted, the "restore_CAPS.reg" file twice.

 

Well, I tried the http://www.brainsystems.com/capsunlock/ and it didn't work either.

If the Scancode Map is hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,1d,00,3a,00,00,00,00,00 -- what is the code I need to get this thing back on track? Can I simply delete the entry from the registry or will it bomb the unit?

 

CP,

I have the keyboard (model 5107) that came with the unit (HP Pavillion 504n). I think I'm going to try deleting the registry entry and see what happens. I have a couple of
downloads going right now so I will try it tonight and get back with you all.

 

CP,

Well, I backed up the registry and then went in and deleted the offending entries and I'VE GOT A CAPSLOCK FUNCTION!

My next action after that was to delete the offending program.

All better! Now I need to take the capslock key off of the keyboard again because that never caused me any problems. When I need it, I will just use a pencil like I was doing before.

 

Hey... My friend also have the same problem. But all options were selected and the cycle just went on! Any other solutions ?

 

Define "all options were selected".

What screens does he get? I was getting the screen which comes up when there is an improper shutdown of the computer. I described that screen in post #11 http://forum.majorgeeks.com/showpost.php?p=709368&postcount=11 . Is that screen available? It will time out and attempt to start the compoter normally if no other selection is highlighted.

Can he get to the safe mode screen by pushing F8 repeatedly when he starts the machine?