Windows XP forum: Need help getting Windows XP to boot...

A former Best Buy product line.

So there is nothing else I can do? What about with regard to replacing possible corrupt files? I already tried the most common files e.g. system, sam, software, security but are there others I could try?

I essentially followed procedures to manually select a restore point from a couple days ago, but why wouldn't this work?

I tried the procedure here: http://webcast.broadcastnewsroom.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=8658-0

While I cannot get in to safe mode, I can use Bart PE which I have on a bootable CD that lets me get to a command prompt. The procedure at the link above explains how to copy files from the restore points. If I copy the correct files, say, from a week ago or before this thing happened, shouldn't that wipe out whatever has happened to the registry? What couldn't be corrected with a good restore point?

I am just beside myself because, again, my system was running just fine the night before. So that means the system literally did something to itself, unprompted in the middle of the night to the point where it screwed the registry/boot sector/whatever.

How does something like this happen? Could a virus be to blame?

Bob,

Honest to God, I was strongly considering cloning my OS drive to a spare drive for just such a scenario. It seems it would be even easier and less time consuming then to use backup software.

But, alas, the spector of "progress prevention" has beat me to it.

I developed a theorem many years ago which states that "for every hour of 'progress' on a computer, there are two hours of progress prevention." So if you spend one hour on a computer actually getting meaningful work accomplished (progress), it means that there is some poor sap somewhere else in the world who has spent two hours of his time trying to get something to work. Balance must be maintained.

Some people call it two steps forward, ten steps backward.

Thanks for your help and insight.

Rob S.

Bob,

Super deal on those hard drives. Looks like I missed out as they're sold out.

WOW! I fixed the issue with Windows not booting. Since the error message specifically mentioned the DNSAPI.dll file, as a last resort and not expecting it to do anything, I did a search for another file with the same name in another directory. Somehow, the DNSAPI.dll in the c:\windows\system32 folder must have gotten corrupted or something. So I replaced it with another copy. Windows boots normally, no issues, although I believe I am using the startup files from a restore point from a week ago.

I still don't know what caused this problem but you can be sure I am running a virus scan and spyway/malware right away. I also want to image the drive to another and do my backups that way. Do you recommend any specific image cloning tools? Preferably free? Thanks.