[ellinator]

an unexplained crash gave me the message "Windows XP could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt: \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM " upon boot-up. after looking at the dell website for help, i got my OS CD out, and plunked through the following lines:

md tmp
copy c:\windows\system32\config\system c:\windows\tmp\system.bak
copy c:\windows\system32\config\software c:\windows\tmp\software.bak
copy c:\windows\system32\config\sam c:\windows\tmp\sam.bak
copy c:\windows\system32\config\security c:\windows\tmp\security.bak
copy c:\windows\system32\config\default c:\windows\tmp\default.bak

delete c:\windows\system32\config\system
delete c:\windows\system32\config\software
delete c:\windows\system32\config\sam
delete c:\windows\system32\config\security
delete c:\windows\system32\config\default

copy c:\windows\repair\system c:\windows\system32\config\system
copy c:\windows\repair\software c:\windows\system32\config\software
copy c:\windows\repair\sam c:\windows\system32\config\sam
copy c:\windows\repair\security c:\windows\system32\config\security
copy c:\windows\repair\default c:\windows\system32\config\default

all worked succesfully except for the md tmp line--it said "this file already exists." nothing bad seemed to happen so i continued until i reached the line "copy c:\windows\repair\system c:\windows\system32\config\system", and it told me that this file could not be located. after searching the web for someone else with my problem, it was posted in a forum that the 'file could not be located' meant that essentially the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM now does not exist on my computer.

i am not especially gifted in using the restore console, and the forum user who explained this missing HKEY file went on about some folders and moving this and that around.

is there anyone who could explain how to explain this is a step-by-step method? it seems as though he was re-creating the file

thanks

Edited by ellinator, 30 August 2008 - 03:08 PM.