XP Pro Splash Screen Hang

[boweasel]

Averatec laptop running XP Pro SP3. Has been sluggish, but yesterday it just stopped booting at all. It hangs on the splash screen with the little dots moving from left to right. After 10 minutes the screen goes black and will no longer respond.

All safe mode options eventually get me to a frozen screen immediately after the mup.sys driver is loaded.

All the other none safe options from F8 get me to the same splash screen hang as a normal boot.

I have used the only XP disk I have - a Dell SP3 bootable disk that is labeled XP Home Edition, not Pro, but I have been able to do a Repair Install with that disk, but it makes no difference. Accessing the console with that disk I have done 2 chkdsk /r runs. They seem to have detected no problems.

I have done a Fixboot and a Fixmbr from that screen to no avail.

From the PC I'm using now I downloaded Hiren's BootCD 13.2, which seems like a wonderful tool. From there I have loaded what they call Mini Windows XP, and that displays correctly, but I am unsure of just what tools to use to correct the problem. I have used both a system restore and a registry restore from the Mini XP, but neither of those have helped.

Can anyone here offer any suggestions? Or do I try to use the Dell disk to reload the OS? Will that even work?

 

[satrow]

It reads like you're getting a hang during the ntoskrnl loading phase of boot:

"NTOSKRNL.EXE
Black Screen Hang (after splash screen appears) (usually video driver)
- Last Known Good Configuration
- Safe Mode
- install/reinstall latest version of video drivers."

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic138692.html

 

[linney]

You could try a parallel install of XP Home and see if that runs on your machine.

See the instructions in "To install Windows XP to a new folder (to perform a parallel installation):"

How to install or upgrade to Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;316941&FR=1&PA=1&SD=HSCH

There are some other ideas in this thread, some of which you have already tried, some which you have not.

Cannot logon to winxp...losing lots of valuable documents
thread779-975236

 

[boweasel]

NTOSKRNL.EXEBlack Screen Hang (after splash screen appears) (usually video driver)
- Last Known Good Configuration
- Safe Mode
- install/reinstall latest version of video drivers."

Thank you, but I've sort of already mentioned that I can't boot in safe mode.

 

[boweasel]

You could try a parallel install of XP Home and see if that runs on your machine."

Won't I run into the problem of a product code? I only have disks for XP Home and the laptop runs XP Pro.

 

[linney]

I was only thinking of testing out the machine before considering the worthwhileness of doing a full clean install of XP Pro and losing all your current settings etc. There would be no need to Activate XP Home (for 30 days) but you would need to enter a valid Product Key.

The above step was only really to confirm or deny the stability of your current machine and hardware before machine, or hardware, replacement.

Does this Laptop have a Recovery Partition as you have no XP Pro CD? How was XP Pro loaded in the first place?

 

[boweasel]

Okay, I am soooo incredibly confused at this point:

1. This is my wife's laptop, and she had it before we were married. It has never given her any trouble. It was purchased with XP alredy loaded, and she was given no recovery disks.

2. I always assumed it was XP Home Edition. Doesn't XP Pro say the word professional on the splash screen?

3. Therefore when I did the Repair Install I used a Dell XP Home SP3 disk, and the RI completed with no errors. However it made no difference in the PC hanging on the splash screen in normal mode, or after mup.sys driver load in safe mode.

4. When using Hiren's BootCD I saw that it was listed as XP Professional when running Windows Mini XP. In Hiren's when I right click on My Computer and select properties, it displays as XP Professional Version 2002. I thought perhaps that someone who had worked on her laptop before I knew her had installed XP Pro. My wife, of course, does not know.

5. I obtained a Win XP Pro CD from my neighbor. It will not enable a Repair Install with that disk. Her OS does not display.

6. I now, rather late in the game notice that the MS sticker on the bottom of the laptop reads Windows XP Home Edition, Averatec, Inc, followed by the 25 character product key.

I am currently using the Hiren's CD to access Explorer and am copying all her important files to an External HD. After that I'll reinstall, probably using the Dell Home disk since the product key is for XP Home.

 

[linney]

I believe after one of the Service Packs that the Splash Screen stopped mentioning Home or Pro and just says Windows XP?

The Hirem XP CD was probably compiled with a XP Professional CD prior to the amending Service Pack?

Many Laptops, or Desktops, have a Recovery Partition included on a separate Partition on the hard drive, and in those circumstances no installation CD is supplied. You should check with the manufacturers web site and see what recovery options came with your machine. Do you still have any manual that came with the machine?

 

[BadBigBen]

How to fix an XP\Win 2000 System that freezes after loading mup.sys while booting

http://www.aitechsolutions.net/mupdotsysXPhang.html

Ben
"If it works don't fix it! If it doesn't use a sledgehammer..."
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