[Xiren]

Hello.
I have Windows XP Home. Yesterday, I installed NeoTrace Express 3.5 and when my computer went to restart the following error appeared in DOS:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing
or corrupt:
<Windows root>\system32\hal.dll.
Please re-install a copy of the above file.

If I use a Boot Disk, I can not see my actual C: drive. What I mean is, if I change to the C: it is actually showing the contents of my D: drive. I removed the HD and put it on my other computer and could access it. I looked and the hal.dll file was there. Both hal.dll files matched except for the time. I beliece my hal.dll' time was 8:00 while the one on my other computer says 12:59 AM, do not know if that matters. I got it to boot up like it always does, but thought I should run antivirus, spycheckers, and the works. I even went back a few days agp using RESTORE. When I had to reboot, it locked up again with the same error. Once again I was able to get back into Windows, do not know how I did it. Then this morning I turned it on and the same thing.

Is the hard drive going bad? I do not want to have to re-install XP, I just did it about 4-6 months ago. If I bought a new HD and copied whould that cause the same problem? Or could there be something wrong with the motherboard and/or processor. Because sometimes, very randomly, before the above problem happened, my computer would hang around the time it detects the CD Drives. I would hit reset and all would be fine.

Any help would be very helpful. Thank you in advance.

Also, where can I read how to do a soft install.

Edited by Xiren, 13 July 2006 - 05:29 AM.

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Does this help for you?
http://www.kellys-ko...dll_missing.htm

[Caracas]

Does this help for you?
http://www.kellys-ko...dll_missing.htm

[Xiren]

No, that did not help. I just copied the file from the CD over to the hard drive, deleted the old file, renamed hal.dl_ to hal.dll, but it did not help. Thank you though...

[Caracas]

Did you rename hal.dl_ or did you expand it?
It has to be expanded:

something like this:
expand d:\i386\hal.dl_ c:\windows\system32

[Xiren]

Let me try that...
I did just copy it over...

Well...
I did it twice now and it still seems to be happening. I did the EXPAND command and it worked fine. Computer rebooted and then it hung when it was detecting all the hardware. Since my mouse and keyboard are USB, they did not work. I reset the computer but got the error again. Re-did the HAL.DLL file. This time I had a non-USB keyboard. Everything worked fine. But when I shut it down and turned it back on again the error came up.
Now I am confused. What else can I try?

Edited by Xiren, 13 July 2006 - 06:39 AM.

[Xiren]

Now this is weird. I took the XP disk out when I was done, both last night and today. So when I shut down and restarted, I got the error. I put the disk back in, but forgot to hit the button to boot from the CD, Windows loaded up all by itself. What should I do?

[Caracas]

When windows boots with the CD in, is there any CD-activity?

[Xiren]

No, there is not CD activity. Now, when it shuts down, a window saying "It is now safe to shut down your computer" comes on and my STANDBY button is greyed out. It seems as long as the CD is in, everything is ok

[gerryf]

start > run
devmgmt.msc
<enter>

click the + next to COMPUTER

what does it say underneath?

[Xiren]

It says:

MPS Uniprocessor PC