Error: System32 Config System File not found or corrupted

Question

Hi all, Here are my two cents after reading many threads on this error in here.  I fixed my problem after step 3 below (ran chkdsk twice).  THis is only an outline of the major steps.   I am on my way to finally purchase a backup drive now.  I almost lost many pictures of my two year old !     Upon bootup, press F2 - F8 – startup method (SAFE mode, last known configuration, etc.) F12 – choose boot device, DELL Diagnostics CTRL-F11     #1) Run DELL Diagnostics to check for bad hard drive.   #2a) Get WinXP Recovery disk from DELL.  DELL provides you one copy of the disk regardless of your warranty condition. #2b) Run Recovery Console first to get to DOS prompt   #3) Run chkdsk /r from the C:\ directory to repair (repeat until no errors encountered – if possible).   See http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_sys32.htm #4) Check the existence of the system file – copy it from repair dir.   Eg. cd system32\configren system system.oldren system.alt systemalt.oldcopy c:\windowsepair\systemcopy c:\windowsepairegback\systemexit or md tmpcopy C:\windows\system32\config\system C:\windows	mp\system.bakdelete C:\windows\system32\config\systemcopy C:\windowsepair\system C:\windows\system32\config\system   #5)  Fix Registry errors from http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_sys32.htm  see MS article Q307545 How to Recover from a Corrupted Registry   If there's data on the drive you need that isn't backed up start here:Buy a notebook to desktop drive cable or an external USB 2.0/firewire 2.5' drive enclosure, attach the drive to a working desktop or notebook and copy your data for backup.DO NOT PROCEED WITHOUT A BACKUP - DOING SO COULD BE FATAL TO YOUR DATA.Return the drive to the notebook. Boot, press F12 and run the extended diagnostics on the drive. If the drive passes, skip the next step.If the drive fails and you're under warranty, call Dell, report the error and they'll ship you a new drive.If the drive fails and you're out of warranty, bin it and replace it - any 120G or smaller, EIDE (NOT SATA) notebook 2.5' drive will work.If the drive passes, you can continue to try a repair (which fails more often than it succeeds) or bite the bullet and reinstall everything from scratch.Recovery usually fails to restore the registry; in about 70-80% of all cases, it's a hardware fault that causes the problem.Message Edited by ejn63 on 01-06-2008 08:03 PM

mombodog · Answer

' Q307545 How to Recover from a Corrupted Registry'  is bad advice, read the warning in the article.   Warning Do not use the procedure that is described in this article if your computer has an OEM-installed operating system. The system hive on OEM installations creates passwords and user accounts that did not exist previously. If you use the procedure that is described in this article, you may not be able to log back into the recovery console to restore the original registry hives.    Dell uses OEM installations.   Here is the proper method on a Dell or other PC that uses OEM installations of XP, to recover a corrupted registry.   http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/dsn/en/document?c=us&dl=false&l=en&s=gen&docid=89C2285FB22749B5ABF7CCB9CB612D47&doclang=en

Windows General

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