Windows XP Recovery Console Question

Hi All,

When I try to boot my Dell laptop I receive this error:
unmountable_boot_volume

Many people said try and run the Windows XP Recovery Console. I did
that, and, after it got 80% of the way through, it jumped back to 50%
and now it just sits there.

I'm afraid to shut off the laptop. I do not want to lose all my data!

A few questions:

1) Should I try running it again?
2) Should I just reinstall XP?
3) Should I connect the drive to a desktop and try to extract whatever
data I can?
4) Are there any other DOS commands I may be able to use?

Please help!

Thanks

IS ther any numbers or code related to errror mmessage?
Have yuo mad any changes to computer?
Hee is one of XXXXXX

http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;555302

"amerar@iwc.net" wrote:

>
> Hi All,
>
> When I try to boot my Dell laptop I receive this error:
> unmountable_boot_volume
>
> Many people said try and run the Windows XP Recovery Console. I did
> that, and, after it got 80% of the way through, it jumped back to 50%
> and now it just sits there.
>
> I'm afraid to shut off the laptop. I do not want to lose all my data!
>
> A few questions:
>
> 1) Should I try running it again?
> 2) Should I just reinstall XP?
> 3) Should I connect the drive to a desktop and try to extract whatever
> data I can?
> 4) Are there any other DOS commands I may be able to use?
>
> Please help!
>
> Thanks
>
>

I did not write down the entire numerical error message. However,
after nearly 1 hour, it finally moved from 50% to 51%.

Ok, so it is doing "something". But should I stop it and try booting?
I mean, this could go on all night at this rate. What the heck is it
doing??

If you did "Recovery Console", it goes strait to a command prompt.
So don't know for sure what you did?

Run a chkdsk/ r from recovery console.

See article posted.

no need to set there for hours

"amerar@iwc.net" wrote:

>
> I did not write down the entire numerical error message. However,
> after nearly 1 hour, it finally moved from 50% to 51%.
>
> Ok, so it is doing "something". But should I stop it and try booting?
> I mean, this could go on all night at this rate. What the heck is it
> doing??
>
>

http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;297185
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;314058

"amerar@iwc.net" wrote:

>
> I did not write down the entire numerical error message. However,
> after nearly 1 hour, it finally moved from 50% to 51%.
>
> Ok, so it is doing "something". But should I stop it and try booting?
> I mean, this could go on all night at this rate. What the heck is it
> doing??
>
>

Hmmm, I did abort the recovery console at 52%, and now the laptop has
booted cleanly and everything seems to be working.

Maybe Windows fixed the problem during it's brief absence from
reality??

maybe!!!


"amerar@iwc.net" wrote:

>
> Hmmm, I did abort the recovery console at 52%, and now the laptop has
> booted cleanly and everything seems to be working.
>
> Maybe Windows fixed the problem during it's brief absence from
> reality??
>
>

I lied.....during a windows update I received:
KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR

What the heck???

The recovery console does not normally have a progress bar with a percentage
counter. That is because it is fairly fast to load, maybe a minute or so.

You might have accidentally performed a repair installation of XP, which can
take an hour or so.

Do an XP update. If all there is a lot of patches, then you probably did a
repair, since that nullifies patches later than the date of the XP CDROM.
If this is the case, then be sure to install all critical updates, soon.

As for the recovery console itself, you can download a multiple-floppy-disk
set of images that can run it. These are called XP setup disks, and are
free from Microsoft. Alternatively, if XP is running happily, you can
install the recover console on the the hard drive from the XP CDROM.
Obviously the recovery console on the had drive may not work if the disk
file system is badly damaged or if the MBR is damaged, but I have found it
useful for things like running CHKDSK outside of XP. Finally, you would do
well to make a Bart's bootable CD, which is smilar to the recovery consiole,
but friendlier, more like the XP desktop or safe mode. Here are some links:

http://support.microsoft.com/default...5BLN%5D;310994
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;307654
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/win_xp_rec.htm
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

See also this link about changing a registry entry in XCP to permit
accessing the recovery console without a password (scroll down a ways on th
webpage). This must be done before you get into certain kinds of trouble,
which can prevent access to the recovery console. Note that in contast to
the recovery console, Bart's bootable CD does not need a password.

http://www.theeldergeek.com/recovery_console.htm

<amerar@iwc.net> wrote in message
news:1131767717.104228.98140@o13g2000cwo.googlegro ups.com...
>
> Hi All,
>
> When I try to boot my Dell laptop I receive this error:
> unmountable_boot_volume
>
> Many people said try and run the Windows XP Recovery Console. I did
> that, and, after it got 80% of the way through, it jumped back to 50%
> and now it just sits there.
>
> I'm afraid to shut off the laptop. I do not want to lose all my data!
>
> A few questions:
>
> 1) Should I try running it again?
> 2) Should I just reinstall XP?
> 3) Should I connect the drive to a desktop and try to extract whatever
> data I can?
> 4) Are there any other DOS commands I may be able to use?
>
> Please help!
>
> Thanks
>

Thanks for all the feedback. Very helpful.

I belive I was in the recovery consile, as it dropped me to a command
window. I did use the setup disks, but when I tryied to run chkdsk /r,
I got an error that it could not find some file, like autochk.exe.
So, I went and got a copy of XP Professional and ran the recovery
console from there, and it worked.

I did not get a progress bar, but I got a percentage counter. As I
said, it went up to 80% (took about 45 minutes), then went back to 50%
and take 1 hour to get to 51%. I re-booted at that point, and things
seemed to be working. I received that KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR error
during a Windows update. I rebooted and the updates completed.

Anyhow, I am not failiar with "Bart's Bootable CD". Can you tell me a
bit about that? You mention that a password was needed to get into
the recovery console? I never had to supply a password to fix this
laptop........

Thanks.