also steve i could be wrong, but if u can get your cd to work with a
bootdisk, if u tell xp to just reinstall, but not totally reformat, im not so
sure you would lose your files, but i wouldnt try it unless you can find out
for sure

"Steve" wrote:

> I had a backup machine that I inadvently installed 2 copies of Win Home XP
> on. I decided to clean things up, and now have a problem. I installed SP2,
> and removed the 2nd version based on an article I found in the Knowledge
> Base. Lastly, I edited the Boot.ini according to the instructions. When I
> reboot my machine I get the following error at the DOS prompt:
> <Windows Root>\system32\hal.dll is missing or corrupt. More likely, the
> Boot.ini is probably the corrupt file, but I can't get to it since NTFS is
> installed.
>
> Someone suggested that I download the Windows XP 6-disk restore set, which I
> did. When I run it, the 2nd disk produces the following error message:
> 'File /ntkrnlmp.exe can be loaded- error Code 7'. I looked in the tech
> database which suggested that I select the install SCSI driver, and then
> by-pass by clicking F7. The restore software ignores installing the SCSI and
> just terminates back to DOS.
>
> Does anyone have a suggestion beyond re-formatting the drive?
>
> Thanks, Steve
>