[curmudgeon]

Receiving NTLDR is missing when I power-up/boot computer, after trying to troubleshoot the "Dr Watson postmortem debugger error" w/ tips posted in the malware section of this site. I had downloaded About:Buster, CleanUp!, CWShredder, and HijackThis to my ProgramFiles, then when I attempted to enter SafeMode, I began receiving the "NTLDR is missing. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart your computer." I have reviewed various forums here and at Wugnet (the forum group which Toshiba links you to for online support). I downloaded a BootDisk from www.bootdisk.com for Windows XP Home/Pro/SP1/SP2; modified and saved the boot drive preference to FDD in the BIOS; but now receive "Remove disks or other media." when I attempt to boot with the boot disk in drive A:/. I am not very computer literate and have strayed toward the extent of my comfort level. I do not want to lose the photos/docs on my hard drive, so I have not attempted the 6-disk Windows XP Home Edition SP2 SetUp Disk or the Toshiba Recovery and Applications CD (3set).

Thanks,

Ron
Toshiba Satellite 1805-S204
Windows XP Home Edition (factory)
3.5 Floppy & DVD-ROM drives

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If you have the wndows XP cd there is a option to place the bootsector back / or replace the bootsector. That is one option.

The other option is booting from that bootlable cd and go through the menu's it will look for existing installations and then hit repair. (it's the 2nd time it gives you a repair option (NOT THE FIRST TIME) this will take a while but will take care of it too.

Rik

[Rico750]

If you have the wndows XP cd there is a option to place the bootsector back / or replace the bootsector. That is one option.

The other option is booting from that bootlable cd and go through the menu's it will look for existing installations and then hit repair. (it's the 2nd time it gives you a repair option (NOT THE FIRST TIME) this will take a while but will take care of it too.

Rik

[curmudgeon]

Rico750,
Thanks for the quick response. My Windows XP was factory installed on my laptop--no CD. I'm not clear on your second option "bootlable CD". The only CD I possess is the Toshiba Recovery CD. The little piece of paper w/ instructions states that I can either do a Full System Recovery (-->zero the HDD to default and lose my data) or Re-Install Individual Applications, Utilities or Drivers by inserting Disc 1 into the CD-ROM drive.

When I attempt the latter, it gives the usual welcome with "This process will restore the original default system install on your hard drive. Note that the current contents of your hard drive will be erased and replaced by the default system install. You should back up your system before continuing." F1 = OK, F2 = Cancel. If I hit F1 and proceed, will this a la carte re-install be on the next screen or will this start the complete system restoration??? This blind leap to the next screen by selecting F1 is unnerving since the mini-instruction sheet warns about seriously damaging my system if I attempt to stop it after beginning the process. Again, I am at the simpleton level. Thanks.

[Retired Tech]

I would go with F2 cancel and make the back up

[curmudgeon]

I have put in the Toshiba Recovery CD and rebooted starting w/ the E: drive. I selected the F2 (cancel) option described above in the thread. I then receive a black screen with A:\>

I have NO CLUE what to do next. Can I copy my NTLDR, NTDETECT.COM and BOOT.IDI from the boot disk floppy which I downloaded from www.bootdisk.com ("XP QuickBoot Disk")? If so, how do I accomplish this from A:\ to C:\ ????

Do I need to use the Windows XP SP2 SetUp Disks (6 of them) which I downloaded from support.microsoft (which is what microsoft recommended for people with Windows XP OEM----this does mean factory installed XP, right?), and will this allow me to get to a repair mode?? If I use these 6 SetUp Disks, will I preserve my data/photos on my HDD?? I am not versed in MS-DOS, so very specific instructions would be appreciated.

Thanks, Ron

[curmudgeon]

Any thoughts?? Will the 6-Disk microsoft Windows XP SP2 SetUp Disks clear the Hard Drive?

[israel_guy]

Hi,

Please borrow Windows XP CD From a friend, Launch the setup and press: Repair. You MUST Borrow the CD, and HAVE it in your home.