XP media edition: can't boot in safe mode

System is e-machines T5212, 1G RAM, 200G hard drive, plenty of free space, latest BIOS.

XP media edition (XP SP2).

I have a firewall and scan every day with AVG free antivirus. I don't particularly suspect malware.

I can boot in "normal" mode but not safe mode. In safe mode, the last driver I see loaded is agpCPQ.sys. I tried disabling that driver but the real problem is the driver that loads after that.

I read that safe mode is supposed to append to ntbtlog.txt, but it doesn't. Is there a way to run safe mode with logging enabled?

When I boot normally with logging enabled, the driver that loads after agpCPQ.sys is intelppm.sys, but I really don't know what driver loads after agpCPQ.sys in safe mode.

I would like to be able to boot in safe mode in case in the future, I want to install a rootkit remover or do a virus scan in safe mode.

Thanks for your time.

 

What actually happens when you try to boot into safe mode?

Sometimes booting to safe mode can take a very very long time (more than an hour) but it will eventually do it. The system seems to wait at a particular driver, displayed at the bottom of a screen list. Try waiting and post the result.

Studio T

 

Yes, that was it exactly. Thanks. After I boot in safe mode, it also takes a long time to shut down.

I don't remember this ever happening in win2k. I wonder if this is an XP design bug, or a problem with my motherboard.

What is disturbing is that both AVG free antivirus and the mcafee firewall both failed to start in safe (?) mode, according to the event log. They both work fine in normal boot.

Also the event log says that a bunch of network services failed to load, including tcpip. I thought that plain "safe mode" didn't enable networking? Maybe basic safe mode just disables ethernet, and the higher level network drivers are timing out?

I'll try powering off the internet modem (because I don't want to connect without antivirus and the firewall) and try safe mode with networking.

 

OK, when I boot with "safe mode with networking" that fixes the slow safe mode boot. I assume that plain "safe mode" disables some network drivers but not others, and the ones not disabled are taking a long time to load.

I need to go to the AVG forums to figure out why AVG resident shield still doesn't load in safe mode (it works in normal boot).

 

As far as i remember-(not using windows)-avg will not boot in safe mode (windows only loads the basic drivers and daemons that it needs to run) so you will have to start the prog manually once you have booted to safe mode then run your scans from the control panel of avg-

 

Anti virus does not work in safe mode period.

Studio T

 

Errr ummm yes it does you just have to start it manually once you are in safe windows.... (or perhaps you meant that the resident sheild and auto updater does not run in safe mode ...if so that is correct)

I ran all my scans in windows from anti viral to ad/malware in safe mode and caught alot of uglies
Now I sit behind a router with app armor and a firewall on a linux box- and watch windows w/ interest

 

Thanks for the comment, Petulama. I will do some testing and post the results.

Studio T

 

I believe the AVG features that didn't work in safe mode were Resident Shield and email scanner. I wasn't really concerned about the email and updater because I wasn't going to be in safe mode forever.

Resident Shield and firewall are pretty important if I want to connect to the internet. I powered off the internet modem, then booted safe mode, then manually did my virus and spyware scans, then rebooted in normal, then powered on the internet modem.