Where would I find DOS commands for the Recovery Console?

Go to Start > Help and Support and type "recovery console" (without the quotes) into the search box.  You will be surprised at how much information about Windows is available to you right there in the help files on your own computer.

Steve

A quick search using the search engine www.google.com (which can answer just about any question) gave the following among the first 10 or so hits.  Take your pick:

http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsXP/expertzone/tips/dougknox/doug92.asp

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

http://www.dougknox.com/xp/tips/xp_repair_install.htm

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm

http://www.windowsreinstall.com/winxphome/installxpcdrepair/

Steve

I've seen these general commands before. What I'd like to find is the specific commands for a non-destructive reinstall. For example, I found the commands the Dell tech support gave me to fix the "boot.ini" error. The technician gave these directions to me verbatim.

Use the boocfg utility in the Recovery Console to correct the Boot.ini file.
1. Start your computer with the WinXP CD.
2. When you receive the message to press R to repair Windows, by using the Recovery Console, press the R key.
3. Select the Windows installation you want, and then type the administrator password, if you have established one. Otherwise press Enter.
4. Type bootcfg /rebuild, and press Enter.

When the Windows installation is located, the following instructions are displayed:

Add installation to boot list? (Yes/No/All).
Type Y in response to this message.

Enter Load Identifier: This is the name of the operating system. Type Window XP Professional or Windows XP home Edition. (See above example)

After WinXP has successfully loaded, the Boot.ini can be modified to remove the incorrect entry.

I would add that you cannot do ANY type of re-install of XP from WITHIN the Recovery Console; you can only correct specific types of errors (as the list of NT commands allow).  As any of the sites listed by Volcano will show you, to do a Repair Re-install you must NOT enter into the Recovery Console, but must select Set up Windows and proceed through the screens until that option is offered.

Really? Seems every-time I rebooted with the OS disk in it would only go through the Windows Setup blue screen then only give me the option of a fresh reinstall or the Recovery Console. Is their some way to get to this non-destructive reinstall option?

You select Set-up Windows Now (press Enter); then set-up will go on to detect your existing operating system, perhaps issue a warning, and after several screens it will offer you as an option Repair an Existing Installation of Windows (or something close to that); select that option (I think you will need the Administrator's password, but I do not remember for certain).  That does a Repair Re-install of XP, if one can be done; the only usual type of failure is if the Registry is so thoroughly messed up that it cannot be repaired.  Notice, after a Repair Re-install you will have to run Windows Update to get all updates which postdate your CD, since the Repair Re-install only installs files from the CD (unlike SFC /SCANNOW, which also checks the update files on the hard drive for more recent versions).  The pages recommended by Volcano give you step by step instructions.