last known configuration

  • Thread starter Thread starter Debbie Graham
  • Start date Start date
D

Debbie Graham

Is there a way to repair it? I had to use it yesterday and it made things
worst, had to do a system restore. The Last Known Configuration was asking
me to validate windows, my graphics driver was messed up. It's the same
configuration that it has been even when I used it about 6 months ago. It
used to work great, now it's a piece of crap, heaven help me if my system
restore doesn't work, then I'll really be messed up.


Debbie
 
"Last known good" is not a backup, and should not be confused with a
backup. With a backup, you can save and restore your entire configuration.

The Last Known Good Configuration feature restores certain registry
information and driver settings that were in effect the last time the
computer started successfully. Use the Last Known Good Configuration
feature when you cannot start Windows XP /right after you make a change
to your computer/. If you cannot start your computer because of driver
issues, or changes made to registry keys Last Known Good saves, then
starting your computer with Last Known Good may fix the problem.

Using LNG at other times can be a disaster, since you may end up with an
incompatible mix of configuration settings.

Something else to keep in mind: Only make one major change to your
computer at a time. Then test your computer (which may include a
restart) and if all is well, then go on to make another major change.
This makes it much easier to isolate which change you made is causing a
problem.
 
No I'm saying my LNG isn't really a last known good configuration, a lot of
things are missing and wrong. Like I said after it rebooted then got to my
desktop my graphics driver was missing, it was asking me to validate
windows. It was just a mess. I need it updated or something, it's useless
to me the way it is now. Also my repair folder is empty, I don't think
that's normal, right? How do I fix that?




Debbie Bailey & Thom: http://debsfelinefine.110mb.com/FelineFine.htm
 
Debbie said:
Is there a way to repair it? I had to use it yesterday and it made
things worst, had to do a system restore. The Last Known
Configuration was asking me to validate windows, my graphics driver
was messed up. It's the same configuration that it has been even
when I used it about 6 months ago. It used to work great, now it's a
piece of crap, heaven help me if my system restore doesn't work, then
I'll really be messed up.
Click to expand...

Why did you need to use LKGC in the first place?

What happened six months ago and how did you resolve it?

When you refer to "system restore," are you referring to Windows XP
System Restore or the act of restoring your PC to its original
fresh-from-the-factory condition?

What is the make and model of your PC? What method did the PC
manufacturer provide you to reinstall Windows? XP installation CD,
recovery CD, or recovery partition? If you have an actual XP
installation CD, you *may* be able to perform a Repair install.

Have you backed up all your data? If not, that is your first order of
business!

Once you sort this all out, you should seriously consider regularly
cloning or imaging your hard drive to avoid this type of situation in
the future.
 
Debbie Graham said:
No I'm saying my LNG isn't really a last known good configuration, a lot
of things are missing and wrong. Like I said after it rebooted then got
to my desktop my graphics driver was missing, it was asking me to validate
windows. It was just a mess. I need it updated or something, it's
useless to me the way it is now. Also my repair folder is empty, I don't
think that's normal, right? How do I fix that?
Click to expand...

To update it, you boot successfully.

As to the repair folder, if it's the one I suspect you mean, you generally
don't want to use the registry there, because it is the original
post-install registry and knows nothing of any installed applications or
user accounts.

Sounds like your system may have some significant problems, and I would
suggest that your immediate concern should be to ensure that you have a
current and valid backup of *all* your data.

Can you get into Safe Mode and run System Restore?
 
answers below where you asked the questions

Debbie
Daave said:
Why did you need to use LKGC in the first place?
Click to expand...

no idea why I had to use it, just rebooted pc and that blue screen came up
giving me the options to start windows
What happened six months ago and how did you resolve it?
Click to expand...
no idea on that one either, and I resolved it by doing what I did this time,
picked a restore point and ran it.
When you refer to "system restore," are you referring to Windows XP System
Restore or the act of restoring your PC to its original
fresh-from-the-factory condition?
Click to expand...

no the xp system restore
What is the make and model of your PC? What method did the PC manufacturer
provide you to reinstall Windows? XP installation CD, recovery CD, or
recovery partition? If you have an actual XP installation CD, you *may* be
able to perform a Repair install.
Click to expand...

oh heck this pc has been rebuilt about 3 times already. It really isn;t a
brand, I bought the parts and had a tech install most of them. I had win 98
originally on it, then I upgraded to xp, not a full install an upgrade.
Couldn't perform a repair because the repair folder is empty, BUT I just
fixed that by doing this
http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/update-repair-folder-xp-using-ntbackup/
Have you backed up all your data? If not, that is your first order of
business!
Click to expand...

oh yeah I have dvd's of the drives backup
 
Debbie Graham said:
answers below where you asked the questions

Debbie


no idea why I had to use it, just rebooted pc and that blue screen came up
giving me the options to start windows
Click to expand...

You should check the Event Logs for error events.
no idea on that one either, and I resolved it by doing what I did this
time, picked a restore point and ran it.

no the xp system restore

oh heck this pc has been rebuilt about 3 times already. It really isn;t a
brand, I bought the parts and had a tech install most of them. I had win
98 originally on it, then I upgraded to xp, not a full install an upgrade.
Couldn't perform a repair because the repair folder is empty,
Click to expand...

You don't use the repair folder to do a repair install. You use the XP CD.

But repair installs use most or all of the existing registry, so problems
located there are not addressed.

The Last Known Good Configuration does not use the version in the Repair
folder; normally, the Repair version is the original, and if you use it you
lose all references to instaslled apps.

BUT I just fixed that by doing this
http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/update-repair-folder-xp-using-ntbackup/
Click to expand...

If you can get a copy of a working registry this way, fine.

What you're doing there is basically the procedure here,
http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/restore-registry-hives-system-restore-snapshot-xp/

which is based on the process here:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307545

But again, this isn't the Last Known Good version.

oh yeah I have dvd's of the drives backup
Click to expand...

Then you should watch how this progresses. It can be that the most
time-effective approach is to wipe the drive and start over.

Of course, you do not need to install Win9x first if you have an Upgrade
install CD. You do need to have the Win9x CD on hand, but only to pop
into the CD drive for a few moments.

HTH
-pk
 
Patrick I was able to use system restore after the computer booted from LKC,
but like I said it wasn't a good LKC so that's when I went and used system
restore

Debbie
 
I know what steps I took to get my windows/repair folder back to having
files in it isn't LKC. My point is that MY LKC is useless to me as it is
now, the configuration that comes up asks me for activate windows. I can't
keep doing that each time I use the LKC. Right now if I have a problem I
have to call Microsoft to get a new number, I have done that 2 times already
because I used up my, oh I forgot what they were called.

I need a new LKC to start the pc if I need it too, not the useless one I
have now. This is the second time in this forum I tried to get help with
the issue and no one can help me. Can I just remove the darn thing? Delete
the files in the folder, something.

Debbie
 
these are the errors I keep getting

Event Type: Warning
Event Source: EventSystem
Event Category: (54)
Event ID: 4353
Date: 6/12/2009
Time: 7:32:19 PM
User: N/A
Computer: HOME
Description:
The COM+ Event System attempted to fire the
EventObjectChange::ChangedSubscription event but received a bad return code.
HRESULT was 80040201.

For more information, see Help and Support Center at
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.


Event Type: Warning
Event Source: EventSystem
Event Category: (52)
Event ID: 4356
Date: 6/12/2009
Time: 7:32:19 PM
User: N/A
Computer: HOME
Description:
The COM+ Event System failed to create an instance of the subscriber
partition:{41E90F3E-56C1-4633-81C3-6E8BAC8BDD70}!new:{D3938AB0-5B9D-11D1-8DD2-00AA004ABD5E}.
CoGetObject returned HRESULT 80070422.

For more information, see Help and Support Center at
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.


Event Type: Warning
Event Source: COM+
Event Category: (105)
Event ID: 4440
Date: 6/12/2009
Time: 7:32:19 PM
User: N/A
Computer: HOME
Description:
The CRM log file was originally created on a computer with a different name.
It has been updated with the name of the current computer. If this warning
appears when the computer name has been changed then no further action is
required. HOME-E87075FD81

Server Application ID: {02D4B3F1-FD88-11D1-960D-00805FC79235}
Server Application Instance ID:
{4D1A9414-ED8D-42AD-9C9A-3507278A3FDE}
Server Application Name: System Application
Comsvcs.dll file version: ENU 2001.12.4414.702 shp

Debbie
 
okay I have a currentcontrolset1, 3 and 4. Where's 2? And why do I have a
4? Lastknownconfiguration is set to 1, should I set it to the 3 or 4?

Debbie
 
Looking at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM what are the numbered Control Sets,
which Control Sets do you see?

I would start by making sure that there is no file system corruption
involved. Run a Chkdsk /f on the Windows drive. Be warned that there
is *always* a risk of data loss when chkdsk is run.

Of course, I trust that you have already made sure that the system is
virus/malware free.

John
 
I have a controlset1, controlset3, controlset4 and just a plain controlset
(with no number)
I'll run chkdsk now but I did do that about a month or 2 ago.

Debbie
 
(ALL PREVIOUS POSTS SNIPPED)...

Debbie:
First of all forgive me for not including the prior relevant posts bearing
on your problem, but I really don't believe they're particularly
illuminating in helping you to resolve your problem.

At the outset, I'm assuming the following...
1. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any hardware
issue, and,
2. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any
malware/virus infestation.

It really would be helpful if you provided some details about your system...
1. Is this a desktop or laptop/notebook machine?
2. If it's an OEM machine, what's its make & model?
3. If it's not an OEM machine, what's the make/model of its motherboard?
4. What kind (if any) of the XP OS installation CD do you have? Is it a
retail or non-branded OEM version that you purchased? Or do you have only an
XP OS recovery or restore CD that was provided by the OEM? Or if it's an OEM
machine, only a recovery or restore partition "built-in" to the HDD?
5. Did this failure-to-boot, BSOD problem occur out-of-the-blue? One moment
the system was working perfectly, the next time this problem arose? Do you
have *any* clue why the problem arose?

I believe one or more responders to your pleas for help have also suggested
you provide some or all of the above information but if you have I haven't
come across your responses. In any event I believe all this suggested
tinkering with registry modifications, control sets, etc. is not, in the
final analysis, going to be truly helpful to you in returning your system to
a bootable, functional state - if indeed it's possible to do so at this
stage without the loss of data.

So why don't you try some basic "stuff" in the meantime?

I think this was previously suggested to you so assuming you have an XP OS
installation CD why don't you boot to it and select the *first* repair
option. As you probably know, this will take you to the Recovery Console and
there you can invoke the chkdsk /r command. I realize that you stated you
tried the chkdsk command one or two months ago without any success, but give
it one more try. Since you've indicated you have a backup of your data files
on a DVD there's little to lose even if the chkdsk utility is again
unsuccessful.

Assuming you have an XP OS installation CD that allows you to undertake a
Repair install of the OS, i.e., the "second repair" process, have you
considered undertaking that process? If your problem is nothing much more
than a mildly corrupted OS, that Repair install may very well resolve your
problem. It's certainly worth a shot if you're able to undertake it with
your XP OS CD.
Anna
 
Answered your questions below

Debbie
Anna said:
(ALL PREVIOUS POSTS SNIPPED)...

Debbie:
First of all forgive me for not including the prior relevant posts bearing
on your problem, but I really don't believe they're particularly
illuminating in helping you to resolve your problem.

At the outset, I'm assuming the following...
1. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any hardware
issue, and,
2. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any
malware/virus infestation.
Click to expand...

you are correct
 
Anna said:
(ALL PREVIOUS POSTS SNIPPED)...

Debbie:
First of all forgive me for not including the prior relevant posts bearing
on your problem, but I really don't believe they're particularly
illuminating in helping you to resolve your problem.

At the outset, I'm assuming the following...
1. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any hardware
issue, and,
2. That the problem(s) you're experiencing are *not* due to any
malware/virus infestation.

It really would be helpful if you provided some details about your
system...
1. Is this a desktop or laptop/notebook machine?
2. If it's an OEM machine, what's its make & model?
3. If it's not an OEM machine, what's the make/model of its motherboard?
4. What kind (if any) of the XP OS installation CD do you have? Is it a
retail or non-branded OEM version that you purchased? Or do you have only
an XP OS recovery or restore CD that was provided by the OEM? Or if it's
an OEM machine, only a recovery or restore partition "built-in" to the
HDD?
5. Did this failure-to-boot, BSOD problem occur out-of-the-blue? One
moment the system was working perfectly, the next time this problem arose?
Do you have *any* clue why the problem arose?

I believe one or more responders to your pleas for help have also
suggested you provide some or all of the above information but if you have
I haven't come across your responses. In any event I believe all this
suggested tinkering with registry modifications, control sets, etc. is
not, in the final analysis, going to be truly helpful to you in returning
your system to a bootable, functional state - if indeed it's possible to
do so at this stage without the loss of data.

So why don't you try some basic "stuff" in the meantime?

I think this was previously suggested to you so assuming you have an XP OS
installation CD why don't you boot to it and select the *first* repair
option. As you probably know, this will take you to the Recovery Console
and there you can invoke the chkdsk /r command. I realize that you stated
you tried the chkdsk command one or two months ago without any success,
but give it one more try. Since you've indicated you have a backup of your
data files on a DVD there's little to lose even if the chkdsk utility is
again unsuccessful.

Assuming you have an XP OS installation CD that allows you to undertake a
Repair install of the OS, i.e., the "second repair" process, have you
considered undertaking that process? If your problem is nothing much more
than a mildly corrupted OS, that Repair install may very well resolve your
problem. It's certainly worth a shot if you're able to undertake it with
your XP OS CD.
Anna
Click to expand...


It's one (desktop) I built myself, Asus PK5-V (assume this is a typo &
correct model is P5K-V).

(XP OS installation CD) is a retail upgrade version

It seem like (the problem arose) out of the blue, but what I was doing
before it happened was in the device manager
under show hidden devices, I was removing some of the ones that were like
greyed out meaning they were no longer installed. Then I rebooted and the
option to use LKC came up.

I have never had any success using that recovery console, maybe it's because
I didn't know the command. So that is what I put chkdsk /r and what would
be the full command? I have the hard drive in 4 partitons.

The second repair, which one is that? Will I lose my data?


Debbie:
As I've indicated, it probably would be wise to undertake that "second"
Repair install at this point-in-time.

Undertaking a Repair install of the OS is a relatively straightforward
process. It would be roughly akin to making a fresh install of the OS, but
in nearly every case one's existing programs & user-created data would be
retained. Notice I said "nearly". While it would be a rather rare situation
where data would be lost or corrupted as a result of an unsuccessful Repair
install, and as unlikely as it may be, it *could* happen.

So if there are any programs and/or other data on your present drive that
are absolutely crucial to you and that you could not tolerate their loss,
then I would strongly suggest that before undertaking this Repair install
operation that you first either make a "clone" of the existing HDD (using a
disk-cloning or disk-imaging program) or, if that's not practical, install
the HDD in another machine as a secondary HDD so that you can (hopefully)
access the drive and pull off whatever data you want onto some removable
media, e.g., flash drive, CD, etc.

Again, it's a relatively rare event that a loss or corruption of data will
occur even when the Repair install is unsuccessful, but it *can* happen. So
I want you to be aware of this. Incidentally, in a previous post you stated
you had backed up your data onto a DVD (as I recall).

Here are the step-by-step instructions that can be found at Microsoft's site
at...
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/support/nostart.mspx#2

<quote>
Before performing a repair installation of Windows XP, you should have both
your Windows XP CD and your product key available.

To perform a repair installation of Windows XP

1. Insert your Windows XP CD into your computer.

2. Restart your computer. If prompted, press a key to start from the CD-ROM.

3. When the Welcome to Setup page appears, press ENTER on your keyboard.
(Note you do *not* press the "R" key at this time).

4. On the Windows XP Licensing Agreement page, read the licensing agreement.
Press the PAGE DOWN key to scroll to the bottom of the agreement. Then,
press F8.

5. When prompted, press R to have Windows XP attempt to repair Windows by
reinstalling important Windows components.

The repair and reinstallation process might take more than an hour.
Eventually, Setup prompts you to answer questions just as if you were
installing Windows XP for the first time. For detailed instructions, read
"Install Windows XP"
at...http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/winxp/install.mspx"
</quote>

While the above step-by-step instructions should suffice for you there are a
number of websites that contain more detailed instructions for undertaking a
Repair install in case you want to peruse them. Let me assure you that the
process is little more than fresh-installing the XP OS.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm#RI
http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm
http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=138
http://www.windowsreinstall.com/winxppro/installxpcdrepair/indexfullpage.htm
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315341

Assuming the Repair install is successful, you should use an A-V program to
immediately check out the PC for any virus infestation. Also, you will need
to download/install *all* the MS critical updates since SP3. (I'm assuming
that if you undertake this Repair install of the XP OS, you will be doing so
with a XP installation CD that contains SP3). But you can undertake this
Repair install with an XP OS installation CD that contains an earlier SP (or
even no SP) than what is currently on the present system and then later
(assuming a successful Repair install) install the latest SP3.

Also, there's a good chance that if the Repair install is successful and
your system is returned to a bootable, functional state, you *may* need to
install some (or all) of the drivers contained on your motherboard's
installation CD.
Anna
 
I removed some of the post. I did post what my pc was, I built it myself
with a Asus PK5-V.

As I was reading what you said about a repair there's where I run into a
problem, I cannot use my original product key because I used up all the
seats (I think that's what they called them) I have to keep calling
Microsoft if I have a need to get one when I run into problems, I had done
that like 3-4 times already and it gets to be a pain. I think I'll just do
what I keep doing with the LKC, just use it like it is and after it boots
the pc run a system restore point.

Thank you for your help and sorry to take up your time. I just thought
there might a simple solution to get a different LKC configuration point.
Like I thought maybe you can delete the contents in the folder and on reboot
it would reset it.

I'll just keep backing up my data with Acronis and hope for the best.

Thanks

Debbie
 
Anna wrote...

Debbie Graham said:
I removed some of the post. I did post what my pc was, I built it myself
with a Asus PK5-V.

As I was reading what you said about a repair there's where I run into a
problem, I cannot use my original product key because I used up all the
seats (I think that's what they called them) I have to keep calling
Microsoft if I have a need to get one when I run into problems, I had done
that like 3-4 times already and it gets to be a pain. I think I'll just
do what I keep doing with the LKC, just use it like it is and after it
boots the pc run a system restore point.

Thank you for your help and sorry to take up your time. I just thought
there might a simple solution to get a different LKC configuration point.
Like I thought maybe you can delete the contents in the folder and on
reboot it would reset it.

I'll just keep backing up my data with Acronis and hope for the best.

Thanks

Debbie
Click to expand...


Debbie:
I truly realize what a frustrating experience you're going through right now
(since few of us have not experienced the identical feeling where a nagging
PC problem was involved) and while I can sympathize with your desire to "end
it all" at this point, I really think you would be doing yourself a
disservice.

Undertaking a Repair install of the XP OS (as described above) is a
relatively simple process and not terribly time-consuming. As indicated,
it's really nothing more than re:installing the OS in virtually the same
manner as when you fresh-installed the OS. There are no complicated or
bewildering commands to invoke or options to select and the entire process
shouldn't take you much more than 45 minutes. And virtually all of that time
you needn't be in attendance at the PC during this re:install process.

There should be absolutely *no* problem using your Product ID during this
process. As long as the Product ID is a valid one - which apparently it is -
the Repair process will continue without incident. If the Repair install is
successful and your system is returned to a bootable, functional state you
may have to re:activate the system with Microsoft but that should pose no
real problem. We have undertaken the same process scores of times without
running into an activation problem that couldn't be finally favorably
resolved with MS. And there's a fair chance you will not even have to repeat
this activation process.

Anyway, it's simply good common sense to determine if the Repair install of
the OS will "do the trick". There's nothing - absolutely nothing - to lose
and it will be a good learning experience for you. I can assure you your
anticipated strategy as you've outlined above at the end of your post will
result in continued frustrations for you and will most likely end with your
dumping the existing system and fresh-installing the XP OS together with all
your programs/applications & personal data. So I would urge you to
reconsider your present intentions and (at least for the moment) pursue the
course of action I've recommended.
Anna

P.S.
It's really of no consequence re your current problem but I'm pretty sure
your ASUS motherboard is the P5K-V model and not the PK5-V. I've installed
and worked on a number of the P5K-V motherboards a number of times in years
gone by. It's a nice stable MB. As I recall it comes equipped with an eSATA
port - a most desirable feature.
 
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