System Restore Service won't start - Win XP Pro

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#1 Post by **GomJabbar** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 11:55 am

I'm having a devil of a time getting System Restore to work on my T42. I have System Restore Points, and when I told it to restore to an earlier date, it would say restoring settings or something like that as it was shutting down. But on reboot I would get an error message that System Restore could not restore to that point. Try a different Restore Point.

After some research I found out that the System Restore Service was not started. I have it set to Automatic, but when I try to start it I get the following message: "Could not start the System Restore Service service on Local Computer. Error 1114: A dynamic link library (DLL) initialization routine failed." I reinstalled System Restore from sr.inf, but I still get the same error messages.

Now I can't even see my System Restore Points anymore when I try to restore to an earlier date. When I try to restore to an earlier date I get the following error message: "System Restore is not able to protect your computer. Please restart your computer, and then run System Restore again." I even tried using System Restore from a command prompt in Safe Mode without success.

Anyone else have a problem with System Restore like this?

The only backup I have with me is RnR, and I cannot repair Windows with it. I can only replace files or do a complete restore from backup. I do not wish to restore this 3-month old backup at this time. I have a more recent backup in another location, but it is difficult to get to just now.

#2 Post by **Kyocera** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 12:27 pm

have you run sys file checker? does event viewer give any indications.

I wonder if norton is plundering your system restore files

#3 Post by **GomJabbar** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 12:37 pm

Yes I tried System File Checker already. I also tried disabling Norton Auto-Protect for 1 hour, but that made no difference.

#4 Post by **Kyocera** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 12:47 pm

Wish i could help, never had a hiccup with sys restore.

dsvochak · #5 Post by **dsvochak** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 2:34 pm

A question but not a solution.

What problem prompted you to decide to try to restore the system to an earlier state?

#6 Post by **GomJabbar** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 5:46 pm

A couple of nights ago I came to realize that my T42 was not going into Standby automatically, according to the power scheme I was in (Fn + F4 still worked). I tried uninstalling Battery MaxiMiser, rebooting, then reinstalling it, but that didn't fix it. Next I uninstalled Battery MaxiMiser, the Power Management Driver, ThinkPad Configuration, EasyEject Utility, and Presentation Director, as these packages are often listed together in the readme files. Then I had Software Installer install the lot of them at one time.

Now Standby was working as it should, but the power schemes in Battery MaxiMiser were not showing up properly under all the user accounts I have set up on my T42 (I have an Adminitrator User, Power User, and User account). So my overconfident self started some registry editing on the power profiles, and I ended up so that no power schemes showed up at all in Battery MaxiMiser or in Power Options in Contol Panel. Battery MaxiMiser would not add any power schemes either. I tried uninstalling everything again and reinstalling, but that didn't fix the problem.

Hence, time for System Restore. But I know that System Restore has not worked like it should for a least several weeks. When I would try to restore to a previous System Restore Point, I would see a dialog box about restoring settings, or something like that, but on reboot a message would say that my Computer could not be restored to that System Restore Point and nothing had been changed - would I like to try another Restore Point. I just never spent any time looking into it. I do have it turned on in the System Restore tab BTW. And up till this morning I could see System Restore Points that had been made when I started the process to restore to a previous System Restore Point. Now I can't even get that far.
---------------------
I was thinking this almost seems like a virus or something, so I updated my virus signatures in NAV, and my Detections in Spybot, then I ran both in Safe Mode. I came up clean on both counts.

dsvochak · #7 Post by **dsvochak** » Fri Mar 03, 2006 6:06 pm

I'd just wait until I could get to the more recent backup. If everything else is working and you can standby with Fn+F4, I'd live with it. Assuming that it won't be a significant period until you can access the more recent backup.

ibmuser · #8 Post by **ibmuser** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 2:14 pm

I think once the service is disabled, previous restore points are deleted.
But you might check dependencies here. I think you also need Remote Procedure Call(RPC) enabled as well.

Try in safe mode and see if that works.

#9 Post by **GomJabbar** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:53 pm

I think you are correct about the fact that once the service is disabled, the previous restore points are deleted. Previous to all my mucking around in the registry I saw that the System Restore Service was set to Automatic, yet not started. However if I tried to use System Restore, I was able to see recent Restore Points made by the system.

It appears the the system was still making the restore points OK, so I guess the System Restore Service is not needed for that.

I did read on one post that I might be able to fix System Restore by turning it off in the System Restore tab of System Properties, then turning it back on. But I am afraid to try this just yet, as I have the hope that I have not lost my System Restore Points, and that I still may be able to use them.

RPC is Started and working, as it has many other services that depend upon it, and they are working.

Already tried Safe Mode, but no dice.

ibmuser · #10 Post by **ibmuser** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 11:53 pm

Is there a specific error message? Anything about "framedyn.dll" that comes to mind when you tried the restore?

Look this over too:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodte ... srwxp.mspx

http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_restore.htm

#11 Post by **GomJabbar** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:34 am

Nothing about "framedyn.dll". I quoted the error messages that I wrote down and paraphrased the others, previously in this thread.

The second time I went to kellys-korner a couple of days ago, and got a virus alert from Norton - trojanbyteverify.

Before I got this alert, I did download and try the Power Policies reg file, but without success. [It's my Power Policies that I messed up - hence the need for System Restore]

I believe I was at that Microsoft page a couple of days ago. I didn't see anything exactly like my problem.

ibmuser · #12 Post by **ibmuser** » Mon Mar 06, 2006 2:21 pm

GomJabbar wrote:Nothing about "framedyn.dll". I quoted the error messages that I wrote down and paraphrased the others, previously in this thread.

The second time I went to kellys-korner a couple of days ago, and got a virus alert from Norton - trojanbyteverify. Before I got this alert, I did download and try the Power Policies reg file, but without success. [It's my Power Policies that I messed up - hence the need for System Restore]

I believe I was at that Microsoft page a couple of days ago. I didn't see anything exactly like my problem.

Geez, sorry abou the virus thing. I looked into the page - no problems at this end. The framedyn.dll thing was just a stab in the dark as the Microsoft page has a work around to that problem. I'm at loss for how you work around this. Let us know if you work around the problem.

#13 Post by **Kyocera** » Mon Mar 06, 2006 8:19 pm

I was doing a little reading about the trojanbytverify and are you sure norton got all of it, you might try running hijack this to check (and i am sure you are aware of the precautions with it) you can get it at majorgeeks. The interesting points I found were that system restore points could possibly be infected as well.

Just a thought.

#14 Post by **GomJabbar** » Mon Mar 06, 2006 10:02 pm

Thanks for the info, Kyocera. After I read your post I went to majorgeeks and downloaded Hijack This. I have heard of this program, but never tried it before. I ran the program and looked through the results. The processes and entries that I could not identify, I looked up in Google. I did not find anything inappropriate.

I went to Symantec's site the other day to see if a virus could have caused my System Restore problem. I did not read through everything, but what I found regarding registry entries made by the viruses, I did not find on my system. I think my problem results from some software that is running (amok), or is the result of a bad install somewhere along the way.

#15 Post by **Kyocera** » Mon Mar 06, 2006 10:21 pm

Well I have another theory, I read the symantec trojan.byte response, and could there be a possibility that norton is blocking your restore points due to a problem with them..... fascinating if true.

#16 Post by **GomJabbar** » Tue Mar 07, 2006 6:37 am

Kyocera, I did not see what you were talking about from the link you provided. However you got me to do more research and I stumbled across a post where the writer said that Panda AV prevented System Restore from working on his system. See last post in link below.

I also found a good site for troubleshooting System Restore. Unfortunately I do not have System Restore yet working on my T42. Some of the methods described remove existing System Restore Points. I looked at my Restore folder, and I do still have the System Restore points (and files) in it. Whether I will ever be able to use them is a good question.

PC Pitstop Forums: Panda Antivirus interfering with System Restore

System Restore Fails - site by Bert Kinney MS-MVP

EDIT: I haven't yet uninstalled Norton System Works to see if that will allow System Restore to work. I am on a relatively slow internet connection, and installing all the updates from Symantec will take some time. I am also wondering if Rescue and Recovery version 3 could have anything to do with it. I upgraded from version 2 to version 3.00.0027, then to the latest version 3.01.0037 around 01/21/06. In fact the upgrade patch from version 3.00.0027 to 3.01.0037 would not work on my system. I had to install the full upgrade.

#17 Post by **Kyocera** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 9:07 pm

Gomjabbar, don't know if you are still dealing with this but i found this over at the newgroups:

If this problem was seen after installing the latest Cumulative Update for
Internet Explorer, then visit this page for a fix:

ActiveX controls may not load as expected in Internet Explorer due to
defense in depth changes introduced in cumulative security update 896688:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/olereg.htm

#18 Post by **GomJabbar** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 12:27 am

Thanks, I'll have to check it out. I'll be home (hopefully) this weekend. I think I will wait until early next week to try the fix.

System Restore Service won't start - Win XP Pro

System Restore Service won't start - Win XP Pro

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