Startup Error

  • Thread starter Thread starter AJ
  • Start date Start date
A

AJ

I recently performed a reformat/reinstall of XP on my
parents hard-drive. Being 1000 miles away I had to do
the work on my computer then send their copy of XP and
the hard-drive back to them to use . Upon Startup they
are getting this message:

"We are sorry for any invonvinience but windows was
unable to start correctly,...."

Safe Mode won't work, nothing works.

Any Help would be great.

Thanks
 
This probably has to do with all the hardware that's
different. Licensing requires you to activate initially,
and again every time more than 6 hardware items change.
Shipping a hard drive is going to require full PnP at the
next reboot and then reactivation.

The best way would've been for you to have ran SysPrep
before unhooking it to send to your parents. Once Windows
identifies and loads the drivers for the motherbaord and
controller, it doesn't like to give it up.

A good tech could maybe boot to a 3rd-party rescue CD and
hack the registry and driver files on the hard drive. If
you damage the right stuff, then a "repair install" will
re-install the new hardware. Without hacking this stuff
first, all a repair install will do is look to see if the
registered components are there. It doesn't look to see
what is SUPPOSED to be there and fix it. If you delete the
chipset drivers and the SYSTEM registry hive, then repair
is forced rebuild the hardware hive.
 
Ok, well that's somewhat good to know for the future.
Can you tell me more about the SysPrep Option, I can have
the drive sent back to me and do that. I am not familiar
with this approach though.

Thanks for the help.

AJ
 
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