Windows - Registry Recovery Error message on boot up

[AARGH!]

:mad:

Well, after months of trying to fix this problem, I am stymied. Bottom line is upon a boot up I get the following:

Windows - Registry Recovery One of the files containing the system's Registry data had to be recovered by use of a log or alternate copy. The recovery was successful.

Once this happens, my desktop theme has changed from the default, and sometimes after another reboot the XP theme is back, or just plain "gone" and is no longer an option. Usually once this starts up, it's like gremlins and stuff stops working.

I've read and tried several fixes, dozens of reinstalls, I have replaced hardware, tested memory, you name it, I've done it. Thought it might have been a bad hard drive that was discovered using maxtor's test program, but no luck, new install same problem.

System consists of:

Asus P4P800E Deluxe
P4 3.2Ghz
4x512 Corsair memory
2x Maxtor 300gig drives (SATA on ICH5R contoller Raid0)
2x Seagate 300gig drives (SATA on Promise 378 Raid0)
Plextor DVD burner
X800XL ATI AGP
Antec NeoHE 430
XP Pro SP2 (and MCE 2005)

I've read this same problem happening to people using laptops, desktops, XP Home, SP1, just about the whole gamut with no clear culprit. I'm about ready to torch the whole thing, and my wife is ready to kill me for the amount of $$$ I spent in replacing everything trying to figure out the "cause".

The sheer randomness is the killer, I've reinstalled, reimaged, you name it, and it can start almost immediately or not for weeks, but once it does, it's doomed to fail.

Anyone else have experienced this and found a true fix?

Thanks,

AARGH!

[AARGH!]

Bump, because I have no idea what to do now....

[djnes]

Without beating the dead horse that is RAID0 anymore....have you tried using just one hard drive for a little while, and giving that a shot? It doesn't take much to corrupt a RAID0 array, so that's what I'd start to blame. Give it a shot using one single drive.

[AARGH!]

I've run RAID0 on several systems and never encountered anything like this (or at all). I've thought about doing it just for testing to see if the motherboard ICH5R chipset is "bad", but since this is my fileserver I need it to run in RAID0.

Oh another potential culprit that crossed my mind is .NET framework. ATI and their damn new control panel installs 2.0, but then Norton Ghost 9 installs 1.1. Any issues with the two of these running together?

Thanks

AARGH!

[djnes]

You're running RAID0 on a fileserver? I hope these aren't important files. I could go on a rant about RAID0 and post my usual link, but it's not my data that's at risk. All I'm going to say is that RAID0 is definitely not a good choice for a fileserver. RAID1, sure, but not RAID0. That being said, I'd still try using only one drive for now. You seemed to try many other things with no success, so that still leaves the RAID subsystem as a possible cause.

[Catweazle]

Having two different versions of .NET framework installed should not be an issue.

I'd incline toward the 'system corruption on a RAID array' as a possible cause too. Considering that the problem is replicated even after fresh installs it can only really be one of two things:

i) A hardware related problem
ii) A software corruption which you are re-introducing by reinstalling the same troublesome programs after a fresh install.

By the way? You really ARE doing a fresh install aren't you? Not just ghosting the same image over and again?

[AARGH!]

I've done several fresh installs as well as images. As far as content, is backed up on external drives. It's for my DVD, music, video collection that is accessed throughout the house. Speed is more of the requirement, but in looking at eliminating possible culprit of the raid controller was eyeballing the HighPoint RocketRaid card. I could at least then do Raid5. Just the thought of spending more $$$ is going to suck.

What gets me is after reading countless posts on this error message there wasn't a clear key part/issue as the cause. It ranged from laptops to desktops going back several years.

I've also installed it using different media (the joys of MSDN access), so thats not at issue.

thanks

AARGH!