I have an older desktop that was given to me, because it had files that i would never use I thought that my best option would be to uninstall the OS and reinstall it so I could start fresh. As I tried to uninstall the OS in "Add/Remove Programs" the OS was not found. With some effort I found that there were corrupt files that needed fixed to be able to uninstall. So i went to the microsoft support site (from my laptop) and found that I could boot from floppy drive the OS, but I overlooked that I needed the installation CD to finish the process. I also found that I could use the floppy's to get to the Recovery Console, and from the Recovery Console I could fix the corrupted files. I followed the instructions step by step and typed in all the prompts correctly, but when I got to the last step is when the real head ache began.
The last step had me restart the computer then go to Start|Accessories|System Tools|System Recovery. When I clicked on System Recovery the following message appeared, " Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permission to access the item." The problem is that it says that with everything I try to open EXCEPT My Computer, Control Panel, and it will extract ZIP Folders. But nothing within Control Panel will open after that.
I think that I may have unintentionally corrupted my Registry when I was in the Recovery Console. I'm now at a loss for what to do. Some other info that might be helpful; i have an installation CD for XP SP1a but the inherited computer runs XP SP2, i have a laptop that is fully functional, I have an external hard drive that so far has nothing on it and 1T of space.
Thanks to anyone who might be able to help me,
Special K801
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