T41 - Corrupt File won't boot

[Lenk42602]

Greetings folks. Found this site last night while scouring the net for assistance. I have an off lease T41 that has recently developed a missing or corrupt file:

\Windows\System32\config\system

Because of this, she won't fire up. As I purchased this laptop as an off -lease item, I do not have any of the OS discs that came with it. Win Xp Pro.

I saw on ebay many individuals selling CD's that advertise "fixing any problem"....Probably will bake a quiche for me while I wait also.

So, don't I need to obtain the 5 install/set up cd's that will repair my file? I also read that one of those 5 cd's has a repair function that allows one to just repair any damaged files rather than wiping my HD and reinstalling. I would much rather do this, as I have not backed up my files in a while that were on my laptop.

I saw that one can download these directly to disc, but infortunately I am relegated to using old faithful - my IBM 600E with win98, so I cannot download and record these files to disc.

Any help or advice would be appreciated before I make my next move.

Thanks,

Len

[91011]

Before you do anything BACKUP YOUR DATA. You may have to put the drive in another machine or boot from a Live Win or Linux disc but do it. Then:

First thing to try - when booting push F8 until a screen with boot options comes up. Select LAST GOOD CONFIGURATION and cross your fingers. (This is safe to do without backing up first)

Next, your HDD may have a rescue partition but off-lease machines more often will have a plain XP install. Press F11 when booting and see if you get taken to the Rescue & Recovery page. If so, there is an option to repair the Windows system files. Plus other options that will return the HDD to the Factory state & you'll lose all your data. Pay attention to the options.

If you don't have the partition, find an XP disc & try a repair install - although I rarely have had much luck with this.

Third, buy Factory Recovery disks. From Lenovo about $50, from here somewhat less: http://www.<promotion of site not allowed>.com/

The exact procedures to follow can be found on the Forum or Google.

John

[Lenk42602]

Hey John,

Thanks for the assistance. I tried F8 during boot up, then selected "Last known....."

No dice.

F11 brought me a few other options, but no Rescue and recovery page option.

I think I am going to purchase the recovery cd's from the link you provided.

I will report back once I receive them.

Thanks a bunch for such clear assistance!

Len

[closersource]

First, it has been mentioned, but it can not be stressed enough - backup your drive.

Now try to remember what you did the last time your machine worked. Did you download or install anything? Do system maintenance? Edit the registry?

Try to boot into Safe Mode or the Command Line interface all under F8.

If this fails and you are sure you did not do anything new to the machine, then this is a classic symptom of your hard disk failing (or memory corruption). Other symptoms include your drive making excessive repetitive noise, and programs and Windows loading extremely slowly all of a sudden. Sifting aimlessly literally through the dark with the recovery disk will not help if this is the case, at least not permanently.

[Brad]

Welcome to the forum.

Please remember John's excellent advice to backup your hard drive first.

You could also post a WTB (want to buy) thread in the marketplace for the recovery CD's.

Brad

[rkawakami]

The file you are referencing, c:\windows\system32\config\system, is part of the registry. You might have some luck getting into System Restore and reverting to a previous restore point. This site appears to have the process:

http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/51 ... 31733.html (#3: Use System Restore)

Depending upon the restore point selected, you may end up removing some installed program(s) but this should not affect any of your documents.

[Lenk42602]

Well,

Since my last post, I purchased a set of oem recovery disks, wiped my hard drive, reinstalled my OS, all my programs, and she still is not running correctly. Drive seems to be failing/limping along.

Closersource - sounds like my drive is in fact making a dull clicking sound, barely audible, almost like it is hanging. MS prgrams (excel, ppt) were quite slow when the machine started to fail.

"If this fails and you are sure you did not do anything new to the machine, then this is a classic symptom of your hard disk failing (or memory corruption). Other symptoms include your drive making excessive repetitive noise, and programs and Windows loading extremely slowly all of a sudden. Sifting aimlessly literally through the dark with the recovery disk will not help if this is the case, at least not permanently."

Anyone have any suggestions on what should do now?

[rkawakami]

A thorough disk diagnostic would seem to be in order then. You have a couple of choices:

- PC Doctor for DOS; version for the T41 is here: http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-56222
- use the diagnostic that the disk manufacturer provides (SeaTools for Seagate, DFT for Hitachi, etc.)
- download and install a Windows program which is able to read the S.M.A.R.T. data from the drive; such as: http://www.passmark.com/products/diskcheckup.htm

As you now have the recovery disks, you can safely wipe (erase, format, partition) the drive. Most of the diagnostic programs won't disturb your data by default; you explicitly have to select an option to overwrite your data. The basic tests will verify that all of the sectors can be accessed and read. The S.M.A.R.T. reporting program can tell you if one of the drive parameters is out of the normal range but that in itself may not be a good indication of the quality of the drive.

[GACrabill]

... Drive seems to be failing/limping along.

... MS prgrams (excel, ppt) were quite slow when the machine started to fail.

Anyone have any suggestions on what should do now?

Since your hard drive has already gone thru some recovery processes, it may now be in PIO mode.

You should check in :
Device Manager --> IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers --> Primary IDE channel --> Properties --> Advanced Settings tab ....
to make sure that the Current Transfer Mode for Device 0 is "Ultra DMA Mode 5".

If it says PIO mode, you will need to search for the steps required to return to Ultra DMA Mode 5.

[closersource]

Well since you have already wiped the disk, I will assume you didn't need any data off of the machine. You have two options now. Properly recycle the drive at your nearest recycling center or if you have a lot of time and patience use a low-level sector testing utility to determine where the failure is. If it is in the outer sectors you can limit the drive size and keep on using the drive at your own risk, but on the upside it will work better maybe. If you want to just run your drive smoothly and without hassle then I am afraid it is time for a new drive. Running those tests recommended tests above will onyl tell you the same thing. Best of luck.

Nick

[Lenk42602]

Okay,

So my hard drive is completely inop now.... After several hard drive wipes/windows reinstall, and then resultant failure, I purchased a new drive. Should see it here early next week.

after install, I will let update.

Thanks for the info fellas,

Len

[Lenk42602]

k,

so now I have my new hard drive:

Removed the old one
pulled the battery
pulled to ac cord
installed new drive
installed recovery cd 1
- Factory contents
- yes (terms and conditions)
- Yes (run the program
- yes (attention)

within a few seconds I have Error #88 - unable to find correct hard drive...


What now?

Thanks,

Len

[GACrabill]

... within a few seconds I have Error #88 - unable to find correct hard drive ... What now?

I would boot into BIOS first and make sure that it knows about the new HDD before booting with the recovery CDs.