recovery options for boot problems.

[muktim]

HI guys,
I am studying for A+ and many questions ask regarding the many ways of bringing the system to life from a boot error.
Among the options are:
safe mode
recovery console
recovery cd
boot from last know good configuration
system restore
and a few others.

I dont understand when to use which, except for maybe the system restore. The computers needs to boot up to use that options right?

I have tried some searching but to no success.

Could you please help?
Thanks

[jlreich]

Depends on what you mean by "boot errors". There is the windows boots and crashes kind of boot error, then there is the "NTLDR is missing..." or "cannot find HAL..." and windows won't boot at all kind of errors.

You can invoke system restore from a recovery console but if we are talking boot errors, as in something like "NTLDR is missing" error or similar, then that is not likely to help. System restore is more for software or configuration problems, the windows boots but then crashes type of errors. Pretty much the same with "last known..." and safe mode.

Really I would need to have a more specific scenario in order to say this is what I would use. Some of the tools you listed can be used in both types of boot errors.

[muktim]

one question which i just read is:
which of the following can be used to troubleshoot a problem on a windows that cant boot in safe mode:

System restore
recovery console
recovery cd

( the right answer is recovery console), but why?

[Paul Komski]

System Restore can only be invoked from within windows; be it from Safe Mode, Last Known Good or Normally. If you can't get into windows then you can't run this piece of Windows Software. In addition System Restore needs to have been in operation beforehand and have set a valid and useful Restore Point.

Recovery Console is a restricted Command Prompt application that allows one to run a number of Commands from. It can be found by booting to an Installation CD or as a multi-boot option (from boot.ini) if it had been previously installed onto the hard drive.

Recovery CDs come in many different categories depending on the system in question and whether the recovery files are on CD/DVDs or as special recovery (image) files on the hard drive somewhere. They are usually designed to put the PC back exactly to a prior point in time even to the original factory configuration.

It would take too long in one answer to give you a comprehensive answer to your OP but if you keep asking specific questions we can cover them one by one. Probably the best way to get a grip on what to use and when is to have or gain a fundamental basic understanding of how the whole boot process works.

( the right answer is recovery console), but why?

System Restore only from Windows
Recovery CDs are cures not troubleshooters.
Recovery Console gives one some, if limited, troubleshooting options and useful command prompt tools.

If recovery CDs were to include third party troubleshooting CDs (EBCD, UBCD4Win, Linux Live CDs) then they could validly be the correct answer.

[jlreich]

Originally Posted by Paul Komski

System Restore can only be invoked from within windows

Actually you can invoke it from the recovery console. I can't right off find the original instructions that I believe were provided by Sylvander some many years ago but I have actually done it successfully in the past. I know I still have the text file around here somewhere. A little googling and I came with these instructions.

[Paul Komski]

I know I still have the text file around here somewhere. A little googling and I came with these instructions.

That is and remains a very useful bit of information. It is a very geekish way to by-pass "System Restore" per se and restore the registry to what will hopefully then allow a functional boot into windows. It may indeed well allow a proper reboot but "System Restore" does all sorts of strange things apart from recreate an older working "registry"; which is why I have often referred to System Restore (in both Win XP and Win ME for sure) as a very crude tool; I have not enough experience (by design) of Vista's recovery options to comment on that OS.

Apart from Registry Rebuild, System Restore may keep or overwrite (or go back in time to) various other bits information. It has specific functions when it comes to elements within the Documents & Settings area and to exectutables wherever they were when the Restore Point (assuming there is one) was created.

It is always useful to know of any sort of "workaround" and this advice is no exception. I would just finally add that my own response was specifically in mind of the way that the OP had requested info - notably that only one of the three options was the correct answer; presumably as an answer to a multiple choice questionnaire.

An older registry can also be "restored" from UBCD4wIN and probably from an EBCD. I remain unconvinced that this is a proper "System Restore"; the sort of restore that would not only rebuild the registry but also roll back drivers and such like.

[Paul Komski]

Since found the following which gives a better all round retrospective on what system restore is all about:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System_Restore

[muktim]

thank you all for your answers. It was quite a bit of very usefull information, however I will bug you guys again.

[Paul Komski]

however I will bug you guys again

Fire away!