im having a night mare........when i load up my pc it get the error message.........windows could not start because file is missing or corupt....<windows root7>\systen32\hal.dll please re-install above file.
how do i re-install this file please help as i have all my work files for over the last year on there and worried i might loose them, thanks

Try this as it may be quickest, if not the instructions for hal.dll are below

Items in blue which are underlined are clickable to give more information about the process

Start the System Restore Utility at a command prompt

1. Restart your computer, and keep tapping F8 during the initial start-up until you get options, select Safe Mode with a Command Prompt then press enter.

2. Log on to your computer with an administrator account or with an account that has administrator credentials.

3. Type the following command at a command prompt, and then press ENTER:

%systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe

4. Follow the instructions that appear on the screen to restore your computer to an earlier state.

Look for the most recent system checkpoint created before the errors to restore from

For additional information about the Safe mode with a command prompt, click 315222 to see a description of the Safe Mode Boot Options in Windows XP



For hal.dll


1. Configure the computer to start from the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.

2. Insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart your computer.

3. When you receive the Press any key to boot from CD message, press a key to start your computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM.

4. When you receive the Welcome to Setup message, press R to start the Recovery Console.

5. If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you have to use from the Recovery Console.

6. When you are prompted, type the administrator password, and then press ENTER.

7. At the command prompt, type bootcfg /list, and then press ENTER. The entries in your current Boot.ini file appear on the screen.

8. 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)

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.

9. Type exit, and then press ENTER to quit Recovery Console.

Your computer restarts, and the updated boot list appears when you receive the "Please select the operating system to start" message.

thanks 4 your help but all that has seemed to do is add another choice ie when pc loads it just asks whhich windows xp i want to load if i choose the new one its like a clean install has happened so all my files are still missing and if i choose the other option the orignal 1 i get back to the same error message any further help please

You did only have one for this part?

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

yes i did that, but previous to this i tried to use thr repair and it said windows already exists on here and it said to choose a different directory press escape so i did and it asked me to name it so i called it xp and like i said when pc loads it gives me 2 options to choose from its a black screen and both options say windows xp if i choose the new 1 its like a fresh install or the orig and back to error message ???????????????

Run this on the original, you can deal with the other version afterwards

You can use this guide to repair XP

Possibly, you will need to press the power button and keep tapping the delete key, (possibly F2) until the PC enters set up. Change the boot order to CD ROM Drive then hard drive, press F10 then press enter, load the XP CD then type Y then press enter, as it reboots, look for press any key to load from CD, press enter

You will need your XP product key to complete this

The XP Product Key is a 25 character alpha numerical code, which does not include the sequence OEM

If you have audio / video files which are subject to DRM you should check with the provider for known issues with performing an XP repair install

Click this to view the XP Repair Install Guide

Windows XP repair feature won't delete your data, installed programs, personal information, or settings. It just repairs the operating system

The XP repair install will look and run as a normal install, however, you must not see a request to format the drive

After running XP Repair you will need to install all Windows Updates

Microsoft Update

thanks kieth for trying to help, but this is what i did earlier and thats why i get 2 options of windows to load 1 is new 1 and other takes me back to error message??????????????/

You went to repair it but installed another copy of Windows, if you follow the guide exactly and choose the original, you can repair it and then remove the other version

As you will see, the repair does not involve the part which requires choosing a directory

is it possible to delete the other versions first as it is only selecting the new installation to repair???

So, first screen press enter, then F8 for the license agreement, but the next screen only has one copy listed?

yes that is correct, it giving me the option to repair the new 1 which happent to be called xp1 not the 1 which has the errors on it, i really thank u for your time, hope u can help further

If you boot the PC and choose the new install, does it load properly?

If yes, click start, my computer, double click local disc C

How many Windows folders are there

yes it does load properly and there is 2 well 1 called windows and the other called xp which was the new 1 i created

Can you see any other folders from the original install, if yes then you can transfer what you need from there to the new install.

Do you have the documents folder from the original install

cannot see folder from orignal install but there is 1 in the new install but nothing in it