Is windows missing a file, or hard drive faliure?

D

defuse

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Aug 14, 2002
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The other day my little brother turn off my computer, but im pretty sure he didnt know what he was doing. Thus, now when ever I boot up I get a error stating, "Error loading operating system". So I made that hard drive a slave in another one of my computers and I tried to view the files and it keeps on prompting me to format the drive. Can I put the windows xp cd and try to repair windows?

Cliffs
1. When ever I boot up, I get a error stating, "Error loading operating system".
2. If I put the windows xp cd, can I salvage my hard drive
3. Put hard drive in another computer and it promts me to format it?
 
You should definitely try using the repair function on your windows xp cd. If it works, you'll salvage the windows install. If not, you'll be back where you started, but at least you wont be any worse off.
Was the other computer you put the drive into by any chance running Windows 98 or some other OS that doesnt support NTFS? Because if that's the case it'll prompt you to format a perfectly good drive. If it was running Win2k or XP the chances of recovering the data on the hard drive arent very good.
If windows repair (or any other way of salvaging the data) doesnt work, before replacing the hard drive, download and run a hard drive fitness test. You can create a bootable disk or cd on another computer, and then test the hard drive with it. That should help determine whether you need a new hard drive, or if a reformat and clean install would be sufficient.
 
How do I get to the repair function on xp? And, yes the computer that I made the hard drive a slave on was on NTFS format. Also, can I just install windows over it? Will my files still be there so I can back them up?
 
defuse said:
How do I get to the repair function on xp? And, yes the computer that I made the hard drive a slave on was on NTFS format. Also, can I just install windows over it? Will my files still be there so I can back them up?
Click to expand...

yeah, you can run a repair install - you won't loose any data...
 
Ok I put the windows cd in and it recognizes the partition but it says the partition is too full, or damaged. Windows must format this partition. Last time I checked I think I had a gigatbyte or two left of free space.

I tried hitting F3 for Automated System Recovery, and I promts me for a floppy disc? So, I search google, and I found out how to make a floopy disc. But it says its going to take 14 hours, its transftering all of windows onto floppy disc?????? I though I just needed one disc and then windows will take over?

Also, if im doing something wrong with ASR one problem I have its the floppy disc that I made is for the system im using right now, not for the corrupt hard drive. So can I use the floppy disc on the corrupt hard drive?
 
this is a long shot.

boot off cd, Press R to get to Recorvery Command.

Type in chkdsk /p then after that is finished try fixboot

I dont think that will fix it but worth a shot. If that doesn't work your left with formating and reinstalling.

I have seen when you put in the drive as a slave into another computer and it says Format, coudl be 2 things, one simple one is jumpers, if they are set incorrectly on the master or slave sometimes you get that error. And 2ndly the drive is just very fucked :)

You can try to format it hten use a recovery program
 
Ok I put the hard drive as a slave again in my other computer running windwox xp. I tried running the error checking program on xp and nothing happened. Then I tried to defragment and It claims the hard drive has only 94% free space? WTFBBQ, well is seems like all of my files are gone. The question now is, can I format the drive and use a program to recover my files? If yes, whats a good program out there?
 
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