Unable to reload windows after Virus

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ASKER

When booting to the reinstallation disk i get <windows root>\system32\hal.dll not found. please reinstall a copy of this file.

Then you have to boot an Installation disk and install a fresh copy of your OS.

ASKER

That's what I'm trying to do.

Are there any scratches on your reinstall CD? Is this happening after windows copies files to the hard drive, or as soon as you start booting to the CD?

If you find scratches as CthePrez said then you have to make a new installation CD because this may corrupt some files.

ASKER

I have tried these approaches.

Run the Dell Xp Pro ReInstallation Disk. (Could not run because of Virus)

Deleted the Windows directory attempting to remove the Adware (Cyber Security / Virus). The Dell REinstall disk could then NOT find enough of the old windows to run.

Ran a Full WIndows XP Pro INSTALLATION DISK. Same result ... blue screened out before any option to FORMAT.

Weird, Do you think that it's a HDD or hardware issue ?

I'm thinking his memory's going bad then...
grab yourself a copy of memtest ( http://www.memtest86.com/ ) and give it a run... if it's not hitting the hard drive, I'm seriously thinking memory.

Good thinking. Waiting the resutls

ASKER

Re : Memory ... the computer was booting with the virus. We could not remove the adware/virus, but no memory issues.

Re : Drive ; Could do everything except remove the virus. it is no doubt still there, but i can't understand why i can't format / get to the position where i can format the drive.

Try to boot with the installation disk then click on R then fdisk your HDD, But you will lost all of your data.

If you're computer is failing to boot off of a CD, then the hard drive should not the issue unless it's copying temp files to a location on the hard drive (which, if I'm not mistaken, doesn't happen on an XP Pro CD). It's either an issue with the CD-ROM drive, the disc, or an issue with the memory. Memory problems can sometimes be intermittent.

Speaking of that XP Pro CD, it bluescreens, you say? What was the error message on that BSOD?

ASKER

The original point ...I cannot get to the R option with either Windows XP installation disk. i want to FORMAT the disk and start over with Windows. Thanks.

ASKER

Will get the 'blue screen' message ....

awsome. meantime, if you really want to rule out the hard drive as the issue of the problems, go ahead and disconnected the data and power cables and see if the CD still errors out (besides from saying "hard drive not found"

ASKER

BLUE SCREEN
Windows has shutdown to prevent damage
Stop 0x0000007e
pci.sys
Adress F748E0BF base at F7487000
DAte stamp 3670855c

what devices do you have in your PCI slots? it might be a good idea to remove them and then try to start the CD, unless you're using a PCI based hard drive adapter.

ASKER

This has card readers. Will detach if possible and try again......

that's a good thought. At this point, I think we're pretty certian about it being hardware though. it's just a matter of if it's memory, or what. I'd still disconnect the hard drive, try to boot the CD, and also run a memory test just to make sure we're not chasing ghosts.

ASKER

I disconnected the card readers. Still same problem. I am going to assume the drive was totaled and replace. I thank you all for your help !!

did the errors occour even after you disconnected the hard drive, or did they stop?

Houssam Ballout

put the hard disk as slave on another computer
do a check disk, scan virus, then do a clean format,
then Try installing windows after that