Windows Vista Recovery. [ Edited ]

[asgisupport]

My company has HP Pavilion a6540d Home PC. It was bought 2 years ago. It has a built in operating system which is Windows Vista. We planned to upgrade it into Windows 7 just this week. I was about to restore the windows to its factory settings first before upgrading it. When I turned on the CPU,  it hanged up so I decided to force shut down. Then restarted it again, it didn't hang up until it was in recovery process already, again I forced shut down the computer. Made the machine rest for more that 10 hours. I tried to restore it again to its factory setting (hoping that it wouldn't hang). Fortunately, it the process finished successfully. But when I restart the computer after the restoration an error message appeared "The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed to install Windows. Click OK to retart the computer and to restart the installation." Then it restarted - error message appeared again - restarted - error message appeared again and looped all over. I would like to know how can I solve this error. I tried to hit F8 while the system boots and repair the computer but it gives me error "Error 0x400110020000100A". What should I do about this error? I'm trying to get the repair disc of Windows Vista so I can repair it but I didn't keep any. Can I just download a repair disc for Windows Vista since I can't access my computer before start up? HP don't have a separate recovery disc or a OS (Windows Vista) installer. Kindly help me. Thank you!

[DavidPK]

Hi,

If you have the facility in the bios to run a check on the Hard Drive, I would do this first as the error you mention would indicate a problem with the HDD itself.

If the HDD test passes, you could try the following.

This process will allow you to make a Vista Repair Disc. This is not an installation disc but will allow you to use the Vista Recovery Console that is available on retail versions of Vista.

Download the file on the link below.  Make sure you download the correct version.

Vista 32 bit

Vista 64 bit

This is a zipped file.  If you don't have an extraction utility installed, download and install 7-Zip, when installed, right click the zipped folder, select Extract Files and then click Ok.  You should now see another folder containing the ISO file.

You will need software to burn the ISO to a CD.  If you don't have this type on software installed, download and install ImgBurn and use this to burn the ISO to a CD.

Once you have created the Vista Repair Disc, follow the guide on the link below to see if this will repair your installation.

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/tutorial148.html#

Regards,

DP-K

[asgisupport]

Hi! I appreciate your reply. Following the solution you've given, I ran a diagnostic test and checked on the hard drive, it passed. So moved on to making a Vista Repair Disc and followed the instructions. Downloaded the Vista 32bit, extracted and burned it on a CD then followed the guide on the link you've shared to me. 

As I inserted the CD, it boots but the Windows Setup environment does not appear after seeing the screen stating that the "Windows is loading files". I only see this message, "Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. If windows files have been damaged or configured incorrectly, start up repair can help diagnose and fix the problem. If power was interrupted during start up, choose start windows normally." Then I chose Launch Start Up Repair (Recommended). Again I saw the screen stating that the "Windows is loading files". Then the Recovery Manager window will appear then I clicked Next. System Recovery, clicked the Yes radio button then clicked Next. An error will appear, stating "Error 0x400110020000100A. If this issue continues, please contact HP support." I clicked OK. Then the computer will restart again.

Why is it that I can't get up to the Windows Setup environment in order to repair the computer? I keep on getting the error message. Please help, I need to resolve this issue now. Thank you! 

[DavidPK]

Hi,

To be honest, I'm surprised the Hard Drive passed, however it may be a good idea to see if the drive is accessable using the following method - this will not only provide further evidence as to the condition of the HDD, but may allow you to back-up any files you need immediately.

The Ubuntu operating system CD you create using this method can run from the CD alone ( ie it doesn't have to install on the Hard Drive ) - details of how to create and use the CD are on the link below.

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/use-ubuntu-live-cd-to-backup-files-from-your-dead-windo...

Let me know the results.

Regards,

DP-K

[asgisupport]

Hi! Thank you again for you reply. I really appreciate it. I've followed the steps on the link you've provided, it opened my computer using the Ubuntu. But it seems like the instructions says that Ubuntu can be used to transfer the files in the hard drive to other external device. I need to recover the Windows Vista which is I think was corrupted. What will I do now? Does the Ubutu has the capability of restoring or repairing my Windows Vista? Thank you so much for your help!

[DavidPK]

Hi,

Ubuntu will not allow you to repair the Vista installation, but can allow you to backup any files you may need from the HDD - I realise this is not something you needed to do as you were trying to reinstall the OS, but it does give show that your PC is able to run Ubuntu which helps to narrow down what may be wrong.

First of all I would check that the physical connections to the Hard Drive are good - unplug them and then reconnect.  The process to access the HDD is shown in the link below along with a video overview ( the guide is actually for replacing the HDD, but shows clearly how to access it to re-do the connections ).

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01035705&tmp_task=useCategory&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=u...

If the Recovery Process still will not run, this may be because the Recovery Partition on the Hard Drive has become corrupted.  You can order a replacement set of Recovery Discs using the link below and use these to try reinstalling the operating system - if you live in the US, I believe these are around $30.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00810334&cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en

If you have any problem with this link, order them directly from HP.

If you live in the US, contact HP Here.

If you are in another part of the world, start Here.

Another option if you have access to a retails Windows installation disc is to see if this will install the operating system - don't try to activate it as it will detect that the activation key is already in use, but it will atleast show whether the PC is able to load an OS before spending money on replacement recovery discs.

Regards,

DP-K

[PCjaken101]

I ended up finding a fix for this problem on heresjaken computer blog    

It shows how to edit the registry from the error screen