To save OL files, with OL closed, locate and copy any *pst files.
Do not use export, or import

"Martin1" <Martin1@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:3EB61E33-AA88-42A2-BE13-803F9BA23B04@microsoft.com...
> I have recently had a problem with my desktop rebooting. I can't get into
F8
> options for safe mode, so I popped in bootable copy of my original XP CD
> (sp1) with SP2 slipstreamed in. Machine already had SP2 updates
installed.
> Machine had Avast antivirus, and regularly ran ad-aware. I had recently
> installed spybot prior to problems.
>
> Now, machine goes to bsod quickly at boot and then restarts.
>
> I saw the MS article 307545 on going into recovery console and temporarily
> replacing the five system32/config files from the repair directory in
order
> to boot. However, I tried this after I had tried the auto repair option
from
> the install menu of the XP CD. The repair didn't work, still reboots
> continually. And when I tried to repair again, setup said it had already
> "upgraded to Windows XP", but it would try again. What I didn't realize
is
> that this process would delete the restore points in the system volume
> information folder. (Clearly a novice.) So, when I started XP with the
> replacement config files from the repair directory, the only restore point
> folder was the one created when I created the new config files. So, I
> couldn't roll Windows back. Bummer.
>
> But, at least I was able to see all my files, in particular, a lot of
emails
> in Outlook that I need to save.
>
> In any event, I was curious to see if there was some other to fix the boot
> problem from the Recovery console. I've restored the original five boot
> files from the temp directory I had copied them to, and my machine is back
to
> the old reboot loop.
>
> Is there a way to diagnose and possibly boot into Windows with current
> config files? Or should I replace config files with repair files, backup
> hdd, and then nuke the whole thing and clean install? I do not have a
backup
> of files. Bad hygiene, I know. If I use a program like bootitng for
> creating an image file of hdd, will that be sufficient to restore files
> later? I had heard that to save outlook emails, I need to be able to open
> outlook and export to a file that can be imported to another machine
later.
> I do want to migrate my emails out of this unstable machine and into my
> laptop.
>
> So, any feedback on the above would be appreciated.
>
> Regards,
> Martin
> Bellevue, WA