SFC /Scannow

20216 Views 9 Replies 3 Participants Last post by justpassingby, Jun 3, 2008

mowgli5381

Discussion Starter · May 29, 2008

Hi all, firstly thanks in advance for the help.
Right, i had a problem with windows not booting correctly, ran the repair console and did a fixboot. this sorted out the not booting problem, but now when it boots up its gives me the login screen but i can't login! from what ive been reading i need to run system file checker, but i can't work out how to do this from the recovery console as i cant actually get on to windows to use dos prompt or simply the run application tool. many thanks Adam.

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chauffeur2

· #2 · May 30, 2008

Re: SFC Scanow

Hi Adam, Welcome to TSF! :wave:

If the Login Screen is a box asking for a password, and you have not allocated one, just click ok and see if it will boot normally.

If not, you could try the sfc from 'Safe Mode'.

To do this, turn the computer on (from a "cold" start) and continually tap the F8 Key; this will bring you to a Menu with a number of listings, including Safe Mode; select this.

Once Safe Mode is running, go Start > Run > type in the box sfc /scannow, and insert the Windows CD (hold the Shift key down to prevent it from starting) > Ok.
(Please note the spaces in the command prompt.)
A small pane will appear on the screen running the sfc.
Naturally you will not be able to anything on the computer while its running, so be patient, as it will take anything up to 45 minutes to complete.
During the scan you might get a message box asking to Insert the CD, just click Retry, and allow sfc to do its thing.
Once the scan is complete, reboot the computer normally.

Post back with the outcome.

Kind Regards,

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justpassingby

· #3 · May 30, 2008

Re: SFC Scanow

Sfc won't run from the recovery console (btw it's scannow with 2 n's, I edited the thread's title). Do as chauffeur2 says.

If you can't log in safe mode either then :
- If this is a retail installation you'll have to uninstall IE7 from the recovery console and do a repair installation with an XP CD that has the same service pack than the one you have installed, create a sliptreamed CD with the service pack if needed (SP2, SP3).
- If this is an OEM installation then see what recovery options you have, a destructive recovery will require that you hook your hard drive to another computer to backup all your files before you start the recovery process.

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mowgli5381

Discussion Starter · #4 · May 31, 2008

Hi guys, thank you so much for your help, i can't logon in safe mode either and dont have a login password/admin password assigned and hitting ok just brings up the same message.
Its rather annoying considering it now boots up! will try uninstalling the IE7 and let you know. Thanks again.

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mowgli5381

Discussion Starter · #5 · May 31, 2008

right, not having much luck, all i get is the can't find specified directory or file message. cant seem to find anything in the listing to identify it either!

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justpassingby

· #6 · May 31, 2008

Please confirm that you tried to log as "administrator" (leave password blank) in safe mode before trying anything else.

Is this a retail installation ? If it's some brand computer with a preinstalled (OEM) version of XP then what's the brand and model ? You can't use a retail XP CD to do a repair installation on an OEM version of Windows.

What service pack had you installed ?

all i get is the can't find specified directory or file message

Do you get that message when you try to remove IE7 ? Follow these instructions :

1. Restart the computer in the Recovery Console.
2. Type the following commands.
Note Press ENTER after each command.
CD ie7\spuninst
batch Spuninst.txt

If you get a no such file or directory error then it probably means you hadn't installed IE7. Proceed with the repair installation (only if this is a retail installation) : boot on an XP Pro CD that has the same service pack as the one you have installed. Press enter to setup windows XP now, accept the licence, select the partition where Windows is currently installed and press 'R' to repair the selected installation. Make sure the option you get is "repair".

To stay on the safe side I would hook the drive to another computer to backup your personal data (or boot on the UBCD for Windows and save your data on an external USB drive) before starting the repair installation.

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mowgli5381

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jun 1, 2008

have tried safe mode as admin with a blank field, still get "domain not available"
Its a retail copy of xp and its got sp2 installed. on trying the commands to remove ie7 i get cant find the specified directory or file. I never actually installed any version of ie, only the one that was on the xp installation cd. think im gonna have to hit a full repair of it and see what gets lost. not too teched up regarding hooking to another machine to get some files off it beforehand. my important stuff is backed up, but it would be good to get a load of other stuff if possible.

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justpassingby

· #8 · Jun 1, 2008

Have you tried the last known good configuration (same menu as safe mode, press F8 at startup) ?

Are you on a domain ? Is your computer connected to another computer ? Are you doing homeworking ? Try to change the option next to log on to (the name of the domain) to log on the local computer. Contact your network admin or the person that installed XP pro for you.

See this article from Microsoft (XP pro in a domain) :
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q321305

The UBCD for Windows (see my previous post) will allow you to boot in a windows like environment and backup your files on an external USB drive without the need to take the hard drive out of the computer. You may need to add the sata drivers if your hard drive is a SATA drive.

You probably haven't installed IE7 but I'm not sure a repair installation would solve the domain password problem.

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mowgli5381

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jun 3, 2008

well, no joy at all, loks like im gonna have to do either a nasty repair/recovery or reinstall. gonna try out the ubcd and see if i can get that to work and at least get a few photos and things off the machine. may need to ask your help on the ubcd!!! will have to wait till i can get to my friends machine as my laptop doesnt have a burner. will let you know how it goes!!

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justpassingby

· #10 · Jun 3, 2008 (Edited)

One last thing you can try : from the recovery console type bootcfg /rebuild. It should detect 1 or several installations of Windows, add them all to the boot.ini file. Restart the computer and if you get to choose between several installations try selecting them one at a time and see how it goes.

At the command prompt, type bootcfg /rebuild, and then press ENTER. This command scans the hard disks of the computer for Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000, or Microsoft Windows NT installations, and then displays the results. Follow the instructions that appear on the screen to add the Windows installations to the Boot.ini file. For example, follow these steps to add a Windows XP installation to the Boot.ini file:

a. When you receive a message that is similar to the following message, press Y:
Total Identified Windows Installs: 1

[1] C:\Windows
Add installation to boot list? (Yes/No/All) => answer Y or A to add the installation(s)

b. You receive a message that is similar to the following message:
Enter Load Identifier
This is the name of the operating system. When you receive this message, type the name of your operating system, and then press ENTER. This is either Microsoft Windows XP Professional or Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition.

c. You receive a message that is similar to the following:
Enter OS Load options
When you receive this message, type /fastdetect, and then press ENTER.

Note The instructions that appear on your screen may be different, depending on the configuration of your computer.

Source : http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330184

What's the brand and model of your laptop ?

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