Recovery Console & loading extra drivers 1

[cpjust]

Hi,
I managed to install the Recovery Console on my XP Home machine and get into it, but I needed to load drivers for my SATA card from a floppy. I was wondering if there was a way to permanently install those drivers into the Recovery Console so I won't have to stick in my driver disk each time?

 

[linney]

How is the Recovery Console being started, from a CD, or is it installed on the hard drive and accessible via the boot menu?

Does this apply?

6575 » How can I add 3rd party mass storage drivers to my installed Recovery Console so I don't have to press F6 and load them?

http://www.jsifaq.com/SF/Tips/Tip.aspx?id=6575

 

[cpjust]

The Recovery Console is installed on my hard drive.

That sounds like exactly what I'm looking for, but the instructions look pretty complicated (i.e. easy to screw up). Is using this hack the only way to do it? It seems like it would be a pretty common request, so you'd think Microsoft would have made a driver install command or something?

 

[linney]

Jsifaq" is a highly regarded site and if there was any known Microsoft workaround or procedure I feel sure they would have known and linked to it.

How often do you use the Recovery Console? Where it might get a bit complicated is if you don't have a floppy drive.

For what it is worth, the Recovery Console is not necessary in Vista and is not part of that operating system.

 

[cpjust]

Why isn't the Recovery Console necessary in Vista?

So far the only reason I've had to use the Recovery Console is to run CHKDSK on my C: drive. I could tell it to scan the drive at next boot up, but that doesn't usually fix all the problems, so I wanted to keep running it until it's clean or I tired of running it (whichever comes first ;-) ).

 

[linney]

ChkDsk can be run from the GUI or even from a Command Prompt.
To run ChkDsk (from the GUI) to check your drive for errors. Right-click your Drive icon/ Properties/ Tools/ Error Checking. Select both boxes.

The Recovery Console is not included in Vista by design.

"What happened to the Recovery Console?

The Recovery Console in earlier versions of Windows has been removed in this version of Windows and replaced by several tools located in the System Recovery Options menu. The System Recovery Options menu is on the Windows Vista installation disc. If your computer manufacturer has preinstalled recovery options, the menu might also be installed on your hard disk".

 

[cpjust]

ChkDsk can be run from the GUI or even from a Command Prompt.

Yeah, but only in Read Only mode. You can't fix errors on the C: drive while Windows is using it.

 

[cpjust]

BTW, the instructions on that site worked, thanks!

 

[linney]

In both instances it should tell you that and offer to launch it at reboot?

C:\Windows\system32>chkdsk /r
The type of the file system is NTFS.
Cannot lock current drive.

Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by a
process. Would you like to schedule this volume to
checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)

 

[cpjust]

I could tell it to scan the drive at next boot up, but that doesn't usually fix all the problems, so I wanted to keep running it until it's clean or I tired of running it (whichever comes first ;-) ).