Troubleshooting the Startup Process. Published: November 0. Diagnosing and correcting hardware and software problems that affect the startup process is an important troubleshooting skill. Resolving startup issues requires a clear understanding of the startup process and core operating system components. For information on how to obtain the Windows XP Professional Resource Kit in its entirety, please see http: //www. On This Page. Related Information. Understanding the Startup Process.
Recovering from Hardware- Related Problems. Additional Resources. Related Information. For more information about troubleshooting concepts, see Chapter 2. Understanding Troubleshooting.”For more information about enabling, disabling, and managing devices, see Chapter 9, “Managing Devices.”For more information about troubleshooting disk or file system problems, see Chapter 2.
Troubleshooting Disks and File Systems” and Chapter 1. Organizing Disks.”For more information about Microsoft Windows XP Professional troubleshooting tools, see Appendix C, “Tools for Troubleshooting.”Understanding the Startup Process To diagnose and correct a startup problem, you need to understand what occurs during startup. The first step in isolating startup problems is for you to determine whether the problem occurs before, during, or after Microsoft Windows XP Professional starts up.
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The root cause of startup failure, including contributing factors, can stem from a variety of problems, such as user error, application faults, hardware failures, or virus activity. If the condition is serious enough, you might need to reinstall Windows XP Professional or restore files from backup media. In x. 86- based systems, startup failures that occur before the operating system loader (Ntldr) starts could indicate missing or deleted files, or it could indicate damage to the hard disk master boot record (MBR), partition table, or boot sector. If a problem occurs during startup, the system might have incompatible software or drivers, incompatible or improperly configured hardware, or corrupted system files. The startup process for x. Startup Phases The Windows XP Professional startup process closely resembles that of Microsoft Windows NT version 4. Microsoft Windows 2.
Microsoft Windows Server. See “Resolving Power Management Problems” later in this chapter for more information about problems that might occur when you bring your computer out of standby or hibernation. For Windows XP Professional to start, the system and boot partitions must contain the files listed in Table 2. Table 2. 9- 1 Windows XP Professional Startup Files. File Name. Disk Location Description. Ntldr. Root of the system partition.
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The operating system loader. Boot. ini. Root of the system partition. A file that specifies the paths to Windows XP Professional installations. For multiple- boot systems, Boot. Bootsect. dos (multiple- boot systems only)Root of the system partition. A hidden system file that Ntldr loads for a Windows XP Professional multiple- boot configuration that includes MS- DOS, Windows 9. Windows 9. 8, or Windows Me.
Bootsect. dos contains the boot sector for these operating systems. Ntdetect. com. Root of the system partition. The file that passes information about the hardware configuration to Ntldr. Ntbootdd. sys. Root of the system partition (required for SCSI or Advanced Technology Attachment . The contents of this file depend on the startup controller used. Ntoskrnl. exesystemroot\System.
The core (also called the kernel) of the Windows XP Professional operating system. Code that runs as part of the kernel does so in privileged processor mode and has direct access to system data and hardware.
During installation on single processor systems, Windows XP Professional Setup copies Ntoskrnl. CD. During installation on multiprocessor systems, Windows XP Professional Setup copies Ntoskrnlmp. Ntoskrnl. exe. Hal. System. 32. The hardware abstraction layer (HAL) dynamic- link library file. The HAL abstracts low- level hardware details from the operating system and provides a common programming interface to devices of the same type (such as video adapters). The Microsoft Windows XP Professional operating system CD contains several Hal files.
Setup copies to your computer the file that fits your hardware configuration and then renames the file as Hal. System registry filesystemroot\System. Config\System. The registry file that contains the data used to create the registry key HKEY. This key contains information that the operating system requires to start devices and system services. Device driverssystemroot\System. Drivers. Driver files for hardware devices, such as keyboard, mouse, and video.
Note Windows NT 4. Windows 2. 00. 0, Windows Server 2. Windows XP Professional define the “system” and “boot” partitions differently from other operating systems. The system volume contains files that are needed to start Windows XP Professional, such as the Windows loader (Ntldr). The boot volume contains Windows XP Professional operating system files and folders such as systemroot and systemroot\System. The boot volume can be, but does not have to be, the same volume as the system volume. In Table 2. 9- 1, the term systemroot is one of many environment variables used to associate string values, such as folder or file paths, to variables that Windows XP Professional applications and services use.
For example, by using environment variables, scripts can run without modification on computers that have different configurations. To obtain a list of environment variables useful for troubleshooting, type set at the command line. For more information about environment variables, see “To add or change the values of environment variables” in Windows XP Professional Help and Support Center. For more information about system files, see Appendix A, “System Files Reference.”Power- On Self Test As soon as you turn on a computer, its central processing unit (CPU) begins to carry out the programming instructions contained in the basic input/output system (BIOS). The BIOS, which is a type of firmware, contains the processor- dependent code that starts the computer regardless of the operating system installed.
The first set of startup instructions is the power- on self test (POST). The POST is responsible for the following system and diagnostic functions: Performs initial hardware checks, such as determining the amount of memory present. Verifies that the devices needed to start an operating system, such as a hard disk, are present.
Retrieves system configuration settings from nonvolatile complementary metal- oxide semiconductor (CMOS) memory, which is located on the motherboard. The contents of CMOS memory remain even after you shut down the computer. Examples of hardware settings stored in CMOS memory include boot order and Plug and Play information. After the motherboard POST completes, add- on adapters that have their own firmware (for example, video and hard drive controllers) carry out internal diagnostic tests. To access and change system and peripheral firmware settings, consult the system documentation provided by the manufacturer. Initial Startup Phase After the POST, the settings that are stored in CMOS memory, such as boot order, determine the devices that the computer can use to start an operating system.
For example, if the boot order specifies the floppy disk as the first startup device and the hard disk as second (some firmware displays this order as “A, C”), the following scenarios might occur at startup: The floppy disk drive contains a floppy disk. The BIOS searches the floppy disk drive for a bootable floppy disk. If one is present, the first sector (the floppy disk boot sector) loads into memory.
If the floppy disk is not bootable, an error message similar to the following appears: Non- system disk or disk error. Replace and press any key when ready. The computer displays the preceding message until you insert a bootable floppy disk or until you remove the floppy disk and restart the computer. The floppy disk drive does not contain a floppy disk. If you restart the computer without a floppy disk, the computer reads the boot code instructions located on the master boot record (MBR). The MBR is the first sector of data on the startup hard disk and contains instructions (called boot code) and a table (called a partition table) that identify primary and extended partitions. The BIOS reads the MBR into memory and transfers control to the code in the MBR.
The computer then searches the partition table for the active partition. The first sector of the active partition contains boot code that enables the computer to do the following: Determine the file system used.
Locate and start the operating system loader file, Ntldr. If an active partition does not exist or if boot sector information is missing or corrupt, a message similar to any of the following might appear: Invalid partition table. Error loading operating system. Missing operating system. BOOT: Couldn’t find NTLDR.
NTLDR is missing. If an active partition is successfully located, the code in the boot sector locates and starts Ntldr and the BIOS releases control to it.
For more information about disks and file systems—including information about the MBR, partitions, and boot sectors—see Chapter 1. Working with File Systems,” and Chapter 2. Troubleshooting Disks and File Systems.”The boot order specifies another startup device. In addition to floppy disks or hard disks attached to SCSI and ATA controllers, some computer firmware can start an operating system from other devices, such as: CD- ROMs.
Network adapters. Removable disks, such as Iomega Zip disks. Secondary storage devices installed in docking stations for portable computers. It is possible to specify a custom boot order, such as “CDROM, A, C”.
When you specify “CDROM, A, C” as a boot order, the following events occur at startup: The computer searches the CD- ROM for bootable media. If a bootable CD is present, the computer uses the CD- ROM as the startup device.