HELP! I can't boot into Windows.?

Question

I could't boot into Windows, even though I have pressed F8 key and and try all the Boot Option (Safe mode, Last known good configure..., etc). None of them work.
I used Windows XP installation CD and try to repair it, but it couldn't detect my windows installation.
I went to Recovery Console and type the command Chkdsk to check the hard drive, but the checking process couldn't start. (At this point, I thought My hard drive was dead, but when I go to CMOS, and use "detect IDE devices", it still can detect my hard drive).
In Recovery Console, I have also tried Fixmbr and fixboot command, but it couldn't solve my problem.

Anyone have any idea how to fix it? I'm really appreciate it. Thank you in advance.

I have removed my hard drive and connected it to other PC, (I set it as slave), This PC just recognized my hard drive for a while then disappeared. Is it mean that my hard drive is actually physically damaged?

I've just discovered that my system fan isn't working. (I go to CMOS - PC Health Status, It said that "System Fan Speed : 0 rpm). Is it the cause for my hard drive to be failed? (I'm not sure that the fan will start spinning when I got into windows, or it have to spin right away at computer startup, since I can't boot up into windows right now)
I take out my system fan and try on another PC, it is still working fine (?).

I have use Windows Live CD (BartPE). But when I try to access to my disk. It said "error for direct access".

Answer 1

Because of what you list you've already tried, I suspect that, as you said, the hard drive is damaged, or the Win installation has corrupted. Since you don't want to reinstall XP onto a suspect drive (at least I wouldn't!) your best course of action now is to run the manufacturer's diagnostic utility on the drive. So if your drive is a Maxtor, you are going to download the Maxtor diagnostic from their home page from another pc. Then you follow the directions to create a diagnostic boot CD or floppy. The results of the diagnostics should tell you if the drive is physically ok.

If the drive is ok, you next need to decide if there's stuff on it you want to try to recover before reinstalling XP. If so, you're going to have to take it out of this pc and put it into a secondary position of another pc. Then going into Windows on that pc you can try to copy off whatever you need.

When you ultimately go to install XP, choose New Installation - not repair.

Final note - you can assume it is physically damaged if it is making any noises - grinding, clicking, etc.

Answer 2

Well, you can try a live CD. A live CD can boot your PC. In addition, the operating system is entirely on the CD. Everything runs from the CD and not the hard drive. There are many different live CD's but the more popular ones are Ubuntu and Knoppix. You can use them to copy your files to removable media. In addition, they contain system utility programs that can help you to diagnose and solve your problem. It appears that you have access to the Internet, so you can download either Ubuntu or Knoppix and they are absolutely free.

Below is an excerpt from PC Magazine about live CD:

"Knoppix also makes a great rescue CD. Used as a Linux rescue disk, it lets you restore your boot loader to your master boot record, back up hard drives, and repair file systems. It even makes a great Microsoft Windows recovery CD, as you can read and write to all the major Windows file systems, including FAT, FAT32, and NTFS. As a Windows recovery CD, it can restore corrupted system files, back up documents and settings, scan the system for viruses, and even edit the Windows Registry." --pcmag.com (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1819549,00.asp)

Here are the download site for
1. Ubuntu - http://www.ubuntu.com/download
2. Knoppix - http://www.knoppix.org/

From the description of your problem and how you have tried to fix your PC, it seems very likely that you have to reinstall Windows - which is a major pain in the b*tt. The live CD can help you recover your important files and copy them to removable media (e.g. CD, DVD or jumpdrive).

There are two other great resources to help you diagnosis and repair a PC, BartPE CD and the Ultimate Boot Disk. Unfortunately, you must have already created the disks before your PC crashed. You can find information on both of these items by running a Google search.