ntoskrnl.exe error - won't boot

[scroce]

the error message is:

Windows 2000 could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:

<Windows 2000 Root>\system32\ntoskrnl.exe

Please re-install a copy of the above file.

So far I've created boot floppies and consulted with microsoft article Q124550 - but that only gets me so far.

If I need to replace ntoskrnl.exe with another copy, how do I do that? I tried using the boot disks, then going to the ERD but that didn't work, it ended with a message saying that it couldn't create the folder c:\system32

I tried using the recovery console, which got me to a Dos like command prompt, but it won't let me change directories or move files - every time I try it keeps saying &quot;access denied&quot;

I'm at an impasse - can someone help me figure out why this could have happened and/or what I can try at this point.

Thank you. Q: Why is my computer doing that?
A: Random Perversity of Inanimate
Objects

 

[CarDude]

A couple of Q's:

Is this a new install or re-install? Is the drive formatted FAT or NTFS?

-Dave.

 

[CharlieJax]

Try this:

http://www.windows2000faq.com/Articles/Index.cfm?ArticleID=14722

CJ
- If chickens could fly would they egg ugly people?

 

[scroce]

this is a re-install of an NTFS drive. Basically the computer worked fine yesterday, but when the user turned it on today, it wouldn't boot up and gave the aforementioned error. Q: Why is my computer doing that?
A: Random Perversity of Inanimate
Objects

 

[BIS]

might want to check your boot.ini , could be that for some reason its pointing at the wrong partition...

 

[scroce]

Charlie - I've seen that website - It seems that the problem is either the file has gone corrupt itself, or that somehow the arc path is wrong.

BIS - i checked boot ini - and i don't know why it could have all of a sudden changed - even if it did - how would I know what to change it back to? I tried messing with
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1), changing the partition value to 0 then to 2, but nothing seemed to work - I was just guessing - shooting in the dark.

The other thing I'd like to try is replacing the ntoskrnl.exe file from another pc, but how do I do that? first of all, i can't get into the operating system to move/copy files around. ntoskrnl.exe is too big to fit on a floppy without zipping it.

Even when i got ntoskrnl.exe on to the other pc as a zip file (which i did do) I run into the following problems:

1. using the recovery console, every time I try to access, copy or move a file off of the c: root, I get an error message saying &quot;access denied&quot; - how can this be?

2. I can't seem to run pkunzip.exe even from the root directory. Maybe I'm not doing it right? an executable file should run simply by calling it's name at the prompt, shouldn't it? It just keeps telling me something like &quot;unrecognized command - type help&quot;

Q: Why is my computer doing that?
A: Random Perversity of Inanimate
Objects

 

[wolluf]

If you boot into recovery console, you can get the ntoskrnl.exe file off the 2k CD (its in \I386 as ntoskrnl.ex_) using the expand command (this from 2k Help on its use).

Expand
Extracts a file from a compressed file. Use this command to extract a driver file from a cabinet (.cab) or compressed file on the Windows 2000 CD.

The expand command with the parameters listed below is only available when you are using the Windows 2000 Recovery Console, which can be started from the Windows 2000 Setup program. The expand command with different parameters is available from the command prompt in Windows 2000.

expand [/d] [/y] source | source.cab [/F:filespec}] [destination]

Parameters

/d

Lists the files contained in the cabinet file without expanding it or extracting from it.

/y

Suppresses the overwrite prompt when expanding or extracting files.

source

Specifies the file to expand. Use this if the source file contains a single file. Source can consist of a drive letter and a colon, a directory name, a file name, or a combination. You cannot use wildcard characters.

source.cab /f:filespec

Specifies a cabinet file to extract from, and the name of the file or files you want to extract. Use this if the source file contains multiple files. You can use wildcards for the files you want to extract.

destination

Specifies the destination directory and/or file name for the extracted file.

Examples

The following example extracts the file Msgame.sys from the Drivers cabinet file on the Windows 2000 CD and copies it to C:\Winnt\System\Drivers:

expand d:\i386\driver.cab \f:msgame.sys c:\winnt\system\drivers

The following example expands the compressed file Access.cp_:

expand d:\i386\acces.cp_ c:\winnt\system32\access.cpl

The following example lists all the files in the Drivers cabinet file on the Windows 2000 CD:

expand /d d:\i386\driver.cab

Important

The Driver cabinet file, which contains most of the drivers provided by Windows 2000, includes thousands of files. Expanding all of the files from this cabinet file onto your hard disk will take time and a lot of disk space. It is recommended that you extract only the file you need from this file.
Notes

If the destination is not specified, the file is copied to the current directory.
You cannot specify a floppy disk drive or a CD-ROM as the destination

PS. This error message can also mean a hardware problem (eg, memory, cpu, motherboard) rather than an actual corrupt file (are you overclocking? can you reduce speed of memory or processor?)

 

[BIS]

Hmm, don't know either - sorry to say. I just once had this problem with a ghost image from a pc with a different partitioning. Editing the boot.ini solved it then...
O well, there are probably more reasons for this error then. Can't help you further, but thought it was worth a shot. Good luck, let us know how (if) you get this sorted.

 

[scroce]

Well - I got it to work, but I wouldn't say that I really diagnosed what was going on.

The pc came with a recovery disk (Compaq - the ones that you think you'll never use - right???) - so I used it to run Setup instead of the generic boot disks (4 floppies) that I had made.

For some reason when I ran setup from them, and chose R for repair, it was able to find my partition and fix the boot using the ERD.

Actually, it didn't work the first time, but for some reason I decided to try it again, since it had gotten me one step farther than before, by finding the installation of my OS.

When I tried it the second time, it kept throwing me an error saying it couldn't find some file (from some cab file can't remember the name) and that windows may not function correctly. I just kept ignoring the error
by hitting Esc until it finished

Well, it started, and it's been working OK since then with no errors so far.

I guess it has something to do with compaq's hardware configuration, it'll run Setup and fix an installation using the CD that came with it, but not with standard w2k boot disks. Go figure.
Q: Why is my computer doing that?
A: Random Perversity of Inanimate
Objects