Author: Feivel Avrum
Date: 10:05:36 12/07/00
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On December 07, 2000 at 12:34:03, James T. Walker wrote: >I turned on my computer this morning and it fails to boot up windows. I get a >message "Data error reading drive C" and "Fail Retry Abort". If I tell it to >retry it gives me "cannot find a device or file that may be needed to run >windows or a windows application. It then names vserver.vxd. If I hit retry >again it gives me VSHINIT.VXD and again I get ndiswan.vxd. After that nothing >but a blue screen. I ran scandisk and tested the surface with no problems >found. I can boot in Windows "Safe mode" but when I click on "Help" nothing >happens. If I boot in MSDOS safe mode command prompt only and try to read the >"Windows\System" directory I get a data error reading drive C. I cannot >read/write to that directory. In Windows safe mode I can click on "Mycomputer" >and explore the Windows\System directory with no problems and the files >mentioned above appear normal in byte size. If anyone can give me some >suggestions or point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated. >Should I try to reinstall Windows 98? >Jim Jim, I just had a similar problem only mine was not limited to a few Vxds. It was every VxD and most system files. In my case it was a particularly nasty virus that cost me immesurable grief. The first thing you can try is to surgically ressurect Windows (much easier if the cabs are on your HD). Use f8 and choose command prompt only. Then go to the directory with your cabs and type extract /a win98_21.cab *.vxd Copy the resulting files to the directories given in the error messages. Most probably they will be c:\Windows\System and c:\Windows\System\VMM32. If you were using Outlook as an email client, don't bother with the above since it is a virus\trojan horse that exploits the security hole (read grand canyon) in Outlook. If you did use Outlook, trying the above will just lead to the virus trying to protect itself by creating a new partition and copying itself there and leaving the original code on the first partition which is set inactive and changed to a NON-DOS, NON-LINUX, NON-OS\2, NON-ANYTHING partition. Then you have major problems if you want to save any data. Good luck
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