XP not booting - possible virus

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mark Gibson
  • Start date Start date
M

Mark Gibson

Hello

My XP will not boot. It just stops with the windows XP
screen. Could this be a virus ? Will a boot sector virus
scanner such as McAfee be able to access the drive when it
is formatted as NTFS ?

Tonight I will try a repair of XP anyway using the CD.

Thanks
Mark
 
Mark said:
Hello

My XP will not boot. It just stops with the windows XP
screen. Could this be a virus ? Will a boot sector virus
scanner such as McAfee be able to access the drive when it
is formatted as NTFS ?

Tonight I will try a repair of XP anyway using the CD.

Thanks
Mark
Click to expand...

If it was a boot sector virus (BSV) then the system wouldn't even boot to
the XP screen (I assume you mean the splash with the scrolling green or blue
bar). A BSV does exactly what it says on the tin - prevents the computer
from booting and, once it's reached the splash, it's already gone through
the initial boot sequence.

I would suspect an over heating problem, is your system adequately
ventilated?
 
Hi Mark,
My XP will not boot. It just stops with the windows XP
screen. Could this be a virus ?
Click to expand...

Yes, but it could be other things as well. Have your tried Safe mode yet?
Will a boot sector virus scanner such as McAfee be able to
access the drive when it is formatted as NTFS ?
Click to expand...

Yes, it is not file system dependent. Most AV makers provide a way of either
creating bootable AV floppies or a CD to use in instances where you cannot
load the system to check for bugs. Check your Mcafee manual for what they
offer.
Tonight I will try a repair of XP anyway using the CD.
Click to expand...

I would not do a repair install until after you have done the virus scan. If
you are infected, the reinstall will be pointless, and may make repairing
the damage harder.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone
 
Let me know what happen, Mine is doing the same thing??
Stop when the window xp screen appeers? Thanks Julie H.
 
Same problem here. XP starts up, goes to the XP screen,
then eventually shows my desktop background, but nothing
else. The desktop icons and start menu do not load. Any
suggestions. I assume it is a problem with Explorer.exe??
 
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