Is it possible to restore Redhat 9.0 to first installation?

[aldeburan]

I was using Kdevelopment to write and compile some 'C' code. My system crashed, rebooted and then prompted for scans using the 'fsck' command, which i did. It fixed a few errors and rebooted. Now when i go into linux it wont let me start any programs. The program flashes up onto the screen, closes and then the system freezes.

I am wondering if me compiling and running the 'c' code has altered the system files in any way.

Is it possible to do a full restore to the first installation with linux as you can with windows (can't seem to find any commands to implement this).

Any help or info would be much appreciated as i dont want to format my pc and do it all over again.

System Spec:
Amd 1300, 384MB Ram.
Windows XP on C drive, documents on D, and linux on (i suppose it would be an E drive on windows) it own logical drive. All logical drives are 13Gb.
I'm also not using a boot loader to boot up, just using a floppy boot disk to boot linux. Windows still boots fine.

 

[thedaver]

"I am wondering if me compiling and running the 'c' code has altered the system files in any way."
Gee, ya think so?! ;-)

You should be able to run the RedHat CD as a bootable recovery tool. Boot it and type "rescue" at the initial, install prompt. It should find your RedHat install on hdc3 (a partition of your hard drive) and offer to help you out.

I've never needed to reinstall as you require, but this is what the rescue mode is for!

Lessons learned: 1) do not compile and run beta code as root user, 2) add another small partition to test the program with so it doesn't takeout your system partitions, 3) ALWAYS partition linux with distinct partitions for major areas of the filesystem such as "/", "/tmp", "/home", "/usr", "/var", "/var/log", and "/boot". Otherwise you risk unnecessary pain...

Good luck.

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