HD Prob.-Cant Get in Windows-Reinstalling XP Prob?

[popeye]

I have a HD Drive problem. Can't get into Windows XP Pro. Trying to reinstall WIndows to try to get files copied before I return it. When I boot from CD and and get to the prompt for Partition to install, it says C: with Everything free. I press enter and says have to delete partition. Am I doing something wrong? If I press D to delete partition it says all will be lost. How can I get my files copied? Help appreciated quickly, I have to return it tomorrow. Thanks.

[Sephiroth]

do you have anything that can boot you to a dos prompt with ntfschk? (i'm thinking of the xp n in 1 cd here, a few of the other ones might have this too), if you have the xp n in 1, try booting off of it with the choice to use ntfsdos, and then try using ntfschk from dos, i had this problem too, if ntfschk gives you an error scanning the drive, reboot, try again, i had to do this like, 6 times, when my hdd screwed up like yours did, until it finally fixed everything (mine was a corrupt MFT), good luck...



Last edited by Sephiroth at Aug 21 2002, 04:21 PM

Do you have access to another machine? You could always install that drive as a slave and git yer files.

Zo

[popeye]

I have 6 n 1 cd. How do you do what you are saying. There are 6 choices and restart. Could you help with instructions? Thanks.

[Sephiroth]

sure

boot off of the cd, and select the choice to boot to ntfsdos (i forget the exact choice name, i can't find my cd atm to check, but it's listed)

after it boots, just type ntfschk and push enter, it should mount your ntfs drives and check them

i think the command is ntfschk, if it isn't, just do a dir @ the dir it boots you to, should be a:\ , and look for it, it's not ntfspro, but ntfschk i believe

[popeye]

Thanks for the reply. I think one of the prompts was to boot to dos. I don't remeber seeing ntfdos. Will it work in dos? If so all I type is ntfsck and press enter? Also what is a MFT? They are going to replace my hard drive. Thanks again.

[Sephiroth]

hmm, it might be start windows 98 to run ntfsdos pro, it's the closest that i can remember, and yes, ntfschk and hit enter will chkdsk the drives, and mft = master filing table, a small record on ntfs drives that stores locations of all of the files on the partition / drive, like the FAT (file allocation table) on a fat32 disk

[Dave]

The 6in1 does not contain any of those virtual floppies, those came in later versions.

If you can't run chkdsk, your going to need to put the drive in as slave to a working system and try to recover your stuff that way. If you don't have another working system maybe you have another drive you can install XP onto. Sounds like you might need a data recovery program as well.

You said:

Quote:

When I boot from CD and and get to the prompt for Partition to install, it says C: with Everything free.

If setup is telling you the partition is empty (Everything free), there must be something wrong with the MFT or FAT table.
Best of luck popeye,
Dave

[Sephiroth]

oooh, i could have sworn the 6 in 1 had them, doh