A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e Chapter 14
Troubleshooting Windows 2000/XP Startup
Objectives : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 2 Objectives Learn about what happens when Windows 2000/XP starts up
Learn about the tools that can help you when Windows fails to boot or boots with errors
Learn strategies that you can use to solve problems when Windows 2000/XP won’t boot
Introduction : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 3 Introduction Two types of startup problems
Windows 2000/XP will not load the Windows desktop
Windows 2000/XP loads the desktop with errors
Topics to cover
What happens when Windows 2000/XP starts
Tools and utilities used to solve boot problems
Strategies and approaches for solving boot problems
Meet booting problems with a good plan
Understanding the Windows 2000/XP Boot Process : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 4 Understanding the Windows 2000/XP Boot Process Topics to cover in this section:
What happens during the boot process
What files are needed to boot
Changing settings that affect Windows 2000/XP startup
What Happens When Windows 2000/XP Starts Up : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 5 What Happens When Windows 2000/XP Starts Up The procedure applies to an Intel-based PC
Programs involved in the initial steps
Startup BIOS (firmware)
MBR program
Boot sector program
Ntldr
Table 14-1 describes the steps in detail
Slide 6: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 6 Table 14-1 Steps in the Windows 2000/XP boot process for systems with Intel-based processors
Slide 7: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 7 Table 14-1 Steps in the Windows 2000/XP boot process for systems with Intel-based processors (continued)
Files Needed to Start Windows 2000/XP : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 8 Files Needed to Start Windows 2000/XP See files in Table 14-2
Some of the files are core components of the OS
Slide 9: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 9 Table 14-2 Files needed to boot Windows 2000/XP successfully
Slide 10: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 10 Table 14-2 Files needed to boot Windows 2000/XP successfully (continued)
Important Folders Used in the Startup Process : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 11 Important Folders Used in the Startup Process List of key folders used by Windows 2000/XP:
C:\Windows: the Windows XP installation
C:\Windows\System32: core system files and subfolders
C:\Windows\System32\config: registry hives
C:\Windows\System32\drivers: device driver files
C:\Documents and Settings: user account information
C:\Program Files: installed applications
The Boot.ini File : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 12 The Boot.ini File Hidden text file in root directory of active partition
Read by Ntldr for two types of information:
Available operating systems (in [operating systems])
How to set up the boot (in [boot loader])
You may view and edit information in Boot.ini
To access Boot.ini, you must first make the file visible
Change hidden file setting in View tab of Folder Options
Switches may be used in [operating systems] section
Ex: /fastdetect: OS bypasses serial port devices at boot
Slide 13: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 13 Figure 14-2 A sample Windows XP Boot.ini file
Customizing the Way Windows 2000/XP Starts Up : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 14 Customizing the Way Windows 2000/XP Starts Up How to change Windows startup options
Right-click My Computer and select Properties
After System Properties opens, click Advanced
Under Startup and Recovery, click Settings
If necessary, change settings and enter OK
Configuring DEP (which changes /NoExecute switch)
Select Advanced tab of System Properties dialog box
Under Performance, click Settings
Click the Data Execution Prevention tab
Apply changes and click OK
Slide 15: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 15 Figure 14-4 You can access startup and recovery options from the System Properties dialog box
Troubleshooting Tools to Solve Startup Problems : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 16 Troubleshooting Tools to Solve Startup Problems Sources of information about troubleshooting tools:
Microsoft Knowledge Base at support.microsoft.com
Microsoft Windows XP Professional Resource Kit Documentation (a book)
Table 14-3 in the text
Help files for a command tool
Examples of the many tools available:
Last Known Good Configuration
Safe Mode
System Information (Systeminfo.exe)
Slide 17: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 17 Figure 14-7 The System Information window displays important information about the system’s hardware, software, and environment
Advanced Options Menu : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 18 Advanced Options Menu Used to diagnose and fix boot-related problems
Press F8 key to display Advanced Options menu
A list of the options
Safe Mode: boots OS with minimal configuration
Safe Mode with Networking: includes network access
Safe Mode with Command Prompt: text-based only
Enable Boot Logging: records files used during boot
Enable VGA Mode: substitute for regular display
Last Known Good Configuration: stored in the registry
Slide 19: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 19 Figure 14-10 Windows XP Safe Mode with Task Manager
Advanced Options Menu (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 20 Advanced Options Menu (continued) A list of the options (continued)
Directory services restore mode: for domain controllers
Debugging mode: for moving system logs to another PC
Disable automatic restart on system failure: stops reboot
Blue screen of death (BSOD)
Also called a stop error or system failure
Slide 21: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 21 Figure 14-13 Control what happens after a stop error
Recovery Console : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 22 Recovery Console A command-driven OS for serious troubleshooting
Functions performed with the Recovery Console
Repair a damaged registry, system files, or file system
Enable or disable a service or device driver
Repair master boot program on hard drive
Repair boot sector on the system partition
Repair a damaged Boot.ini file
Recover data when the Windows OS is beyond repair
Recovery Console is protected from illegal access
Table 14-4 (partially reproduced) lists commands
Slide 23: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 23 Table 14-4 Commands available from the Recovery Console
Recovery Console (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 24 Recovery Console (continued) Use the recovery console to fix hard drive problems
Fixmbr: restores the master boot program in the MBR
Fixboot: repairs the OS boot record
Diskpart: used to view, create, and delete partitions
Chkdsk: repairs file system and recovers data
Restore the registry following steps in Table 14-5
Disabling a service or device driver
Listsvc: lists all services currently installed
Disable: disables a service
Enable: shows current status or reinstates a service
Slide 25: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 25 Table 14-5 Steps to restore the Windows 2000/XP registry
Recovery Console (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 26 Recovery Console (continued) Use the Recovery Console to restore system files
Map: displays the current drive letters
Systemroot: sets Windows directory as default directory
Delete: deletes a file
CD: changes directory
Copy: makes a backup of the current Ntldr file
Bootcfg: lets you view and edit the Boot.ini file
Expand: extracts files compressed in cabinet (.cab) files
Slide 27: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 27 Figure 14-23 Recovery Console command to repair Ntldr
Recovery Console (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 28 Recovery Console (continued) Use the recovery console to recover data
First step: change some Recovery Console settings
Second step: copy data from hard drive to other media
Optional installation of the Recovery Console
Open a command window
Navigate to \i386 folder on Windows 2000/XP CD
Enter the command winnt32 /cmdcons
The Recovery Console is installed at this step
Restart your computer
Recovery Console should be on the boot loader menu
Strategies for Troubleshooting Windows 2000/XP Startup : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 29 Strategies for Troubleshooting Windows 2000/XP Startup Topics to cover
General guidelines for troubleshooting
How to respond to startup errors
How to clean up a sluggish startup
How to restore system files
Methods to use as a last resort
Guidelines for Troubleshooting Boot Problems : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 30 Guidelines for Troubleshooting Boot Problems Ask the user what happened before problem started
Back up data before trying to solve an OS problem
Determine what point in boot the system fails
Check the simple things first; e.g., loose cables
Boot to Advanced Options, select Last Known Good Configuration
Respond to Any Startup Errors : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 31 Respond to Any Startup Errors Signs of a successful startup
You can log onto Windows
The Windows desktop is loaded
The hourglass pointer has disappeared
If an error message appears during boot, address it
Table 14-6 identifies error messages
The table is partially reproduced in the following slide
Slide 32: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 32 Table 14-6 Startup error messages and their meanings
Respond to Any Startup Errors (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 33 Respond to Any Startup Errors (continued) Errors that occur before the windows load begins
Startup BIOS is still in control
All core startup components must work for success
Essential hardware: CPU, boot device, power supply
Example: BIOS cannot find a hard drive
Stop error
Drastic error that causes Windows to hang or lock up
Search Microsoft support site for help with problem
Example: a bad USB device causes BSOD to appear
Slide 34: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 34 Figure 14-25 A BSOD might be caused by hardware or software
Respond to Any Startup Errors (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 35 Respond to Any Startup Errors (continued) Program not found error
Entry in the registry or a startup folder, but no program
Cause: uninstall routine leaves entry behind
You can use Msconfig to identify orphan entry
If the entry is in registry, delete entry to eliminate error
Errors from when a device or service has failed to start
Use Device Manager to update the driver
Uninstall and reinstall the device
Boot from Last Known Good Configuration
Try Safe Mode, System Restore, Recovery Console
Slide 36: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 36 Figure 14-28 Delete orphan registry entry left there by malware
Cleaning Up Startup : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 37 Cleaning Up Startup Locations to check for cleanup
Startup folders for startup processes
Unwanted scheduled tasks
Group Policy startup entries
Installed fonts
Msconfig: used to find other startup entries
Services Console: used to disable unwanted services
Check startup folders
Move unwanted programs or shortcuts to another folder
Slide 38: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 38 Figure 14-29 This startup folder holds several unneeded services that appear in the system tray and take up system resources
Cleaning Up Startup (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 39 Cleaning Up Startup (continued) Look for unwanted scheduled tasks
Tasks launched at startup are in C:\Windows\Tasks
Inspect folder for unwanted or malicious tasks
Check Group Policy for unwanted startup events
Group Policy scripts are placed in one of four folders
Malicious software is sometimes placed in these folders
Check for too many installed fonts
Fonts stored in C:\Windows\Fonts folder
Install or uninstall a font: move font into or out of folder
Make sure folder does not hold more than 260 files
Slide 40: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 40 Figure 14-30 The Scheduled Task folder can contain tasks that launch at startup
Slide 41: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 41 Figure 14-31 Fonts are kept in the C:\Windows\Fonts folder
Cleaning Up Startup (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 42 Cleaning Up Startup (continued) Use Windows XP Msconfig to limit startup events
To access utility, enter Msconfig in the Run dialog box
Click Services tab to view all services set to start
Click Startup tab to view/edit list of startup programs
Deselecting a startup item is not a permanent solution
Check for corrupted or unneeded files
Service: support program running the background
Identify services from the Services Console
Investigate the service on the Internet
Slide 43: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 43 Figure 14-33 Use the Msconfig Startup tab to control programs launched at startup
Slide 44: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 44 Figure 14-34 The Services console is used to start, stop, and schedule services
Restore System Files : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 45 Restore System Files Return to a previous Windows XP restore point
Try Driver Rollback before System Restore
If using System Restore, select a close restore point
Accessing System Restore when Windows GUI is down
Try booting into Safe Mode
Use Windows 2000/XP boot disk to verify boot files
If OS boots from disk, problem is in root folder of C drive
To create boot disk, copy boot files from PC or setup CD
A repair suggestion: replace Ntldr, Ntdetect.com, Boot.ini
Restore System Files (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 46 Restore System Files (continued) Use the Recovery Console to restore system files
Boot to the Recovery Console
Get a directory listing of files in the root directory
Use the Chkdsk command to scan hard drive for errors
Try copying backup registry files to \..\system32\config
Identify faulty service using Listsvc, Disable, and Enable
Replace faulty service with a copy from the setup CD
Recover or Repair the Windows 2000/XP Installation : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 47 Recover or Repair the Windows 2000/XP Installation Recovery partitions and recovery CDs
If provided, use a recovery CD instead of a setup CD
Recovery CD has drivers specific to system and OS build
Hidden partition may also be used for recovery
Windows XP Automated System Recovery (ASR)
Recovers system from time of last full backup of drive C
Access ASR backup from setup CD (press F2)
Follow directions onscreen to restore drive C
Slide 48: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 48 Figure 14-35 Brand name recovery CDs and a Windows XP setup CD
Recover or Repair the Windows 2000/XP Installation (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 49 Recover or Repair the Windows 2000/XP Installation (continued) The Windows 2000 Emergency Repair Process
Method of last resort (all changes to system are lost)
Process uses Emergency Repair Disk (ERD)
In-place upgrade of Windows 2000/XP
Software/hardware are reinstalled, user data preserved
Use repair utility on Windows 2000/XP setup CD
Clean installation of Windows 2000/XP
First step: copy data files to a safe place
Destroy current Windows 2000/XP installation
Reinstall the OS from the Windows 2000/XP setup CD
Slide 50: A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 50 Figure 14-38 Windows XP Setup can repair the selected Windows installation
Summary : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 51 Summary Files used in boot process are stored in root directory of hard drive and C:\Windows\System32 folder
Boot.ini file: key startup file with [operating system] and [boot loader] sections
Advanced Options menu: diagnostic utility accessed before the OS GUI is loaded
Safe Mode: Advanced Option menu item that runs system with essential processes only
Summary (continued) : A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining your PC, 6e 52 Summary (continued) Recovery Console: command-driven OS used to troubleshoot serious startup problems
Blue screen of death (BSOD): serious stop error
When cleaning up the startup process, check folders with startup files and run anti-virus software
Restore system files using System Restore, a boot disk, or the Recovery Console
Restore an entire system using Automated System Recovery or performing a clean installation