How to recover from a corrupted registry that prevents Windows XP from starting

[fefrie]

Someone unplugged my unbattery T60 while it was starting up.

Now I get this error on startup.

Windows XP could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt: \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM

When I start it with an OEM install disk, the disc doesn't recognize that there is a hard drive there when using the recovery console.

From This website:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/hel ... m-starting

I get this:

Do not use the procedure that is described in this article if your computer has an OEM-installed operating system.

Since I installed this hard drive using t60 recovery cds, I'm assuming that I have an OEM-installed operating system.

Pressing the thinkvantage button, I can't even get into the thinkvantage tools.

I've been googling for the last half hour. I'm at a loss.

I know the data is not gone, but hell, there were a lot of programs set up that I hope I can get the settings at least for.

I don't care if XP gets rebooted, but the settings and lists for each program, I really hope I can recover.

Any help is appreciated.

I do have another T60 running the same OS which is the master clone of sorts.

Is there anything I can do to transfer settings from one to another?

[theterminator93]

Try the Hiren's boot CD. It has a "mini Windows XP" that you can boot into which gives you file system access - and you can restore the registry backup (and/or do a "chkdsk /f" to repair potential file system errors) with the familiar XP GUI. At the very least you can connect a USB drive (and potentially get network drivers up) to copy any sensitive data off the drive before you start playing around.

[fefrie]

Thanks!

I want to hopefully run chkdsk.

for reference.

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=99659

[RealBlackStuff]

I don't have any XP to check, but in W7 there is this subdirectory in C:\Windows\System32\Config\RegBack
At some time during the day, Windows copies the Registry hives from \Config into \RegBack, don't ask me when or why.
It's probably the last good Reg-versions from when you last successfully booted.
If you get a boot-error like BSOD with Stop 7B and no further details, just copy these 5 hives (without extensions) DEFAULT, SYSTEM, SAM, SECURITY, SOFTWARE back into C:\Windows\System32\Config, overwriting the existing (corrupt) hives there.
Boot in peace.

[fefrie]

I've been working on it all night.

I used Hiren's boot CD, and with that I copied the SYSTEM file from the good t60 to the bad t60, and at least I was able to get the laptop working in Safe Mode with network.

At this point I can run all my podcatchers and Youtube downloaders which is what this computer is mostly used for.

I'm going to get most of the files I need off of it, image and clone the drive onto another drive to see if I can tinker further with the drive and bring something back.

c:/system volume information didn't have any restore points for me to use since I didn't turn it on.

I'm not completely frustrated. I've lost nothing, just a lot of work ahead of me.

Probably going to get another drive, and slowly rebuild a working version from a 'clean slate' image of the drive, and slowly reinstall the programs that I need.

It's all mostly a pain since this 'background' laptop I used via Remote Desktop Protocol. Now I have two laptops, two mouse on my desk. and I'll be ferrying data from one hard drive to another via an external hard drive and constant swapping hard drives with the laptop.

I did manage to chkdsk /r it and it found 4 bad sectors. Not sure if it can be repaired. It's not really the drive 'failing' I think. Mostly because it was accidentally unplugged while starting up. So I'm hoping that the drive was just damaged by me in those sectors and the rest of the drive will be fine.

[axur-delmeria]

You should have made a copy of the "bad" SYSTEM file.

I remember an old trick where you copy the corrupt registry files to a flash drive. Then, on a working computer, run regedit and use its 'load registry hive" function to load the registry files-- apparently regedit performs some checks and can fix some errors -- then unload the registry hive and copy it back to the malfunctioning computer.