Recovering from an incomplete SP2 install

[bill]

While attempting to apply the SP2 patch to Windows XP Pro it was unable to
read several files from a USB drive and eventually quit altogether, leaving
the install only partially finished. Now I am unable to boot the system.

Is there some way to recover from this? For example, installing another OS
and recoering the registry and security files, etc.

[Mikhail Zhilin]

You can try to install the original WinXP (if it is not an OEM version)
on top of the existent version, without losing any programs and
settings; only most of the updates have to be reinstalled after that --
but if you plan to install SP2, you can not to think about SP1 updates:
SP2 does include them.

Boot from WinXP installation CD (again: it must not be OEM CD), select
installation, and before you'll be asked to select the drive where you
want to install XP -- Setup will show the existent Windows installation,
and suggest to select the system you want to repair and to press R to
repair it. Later, while repairing, you'll be asked to enter Product Key,
so keep it handy.

--
Mikhail Zhilin
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
http://www.aha.ru/~mwz
Sorry, no technical support by e-mail.
Please reply to the newsgroups only.
======
On Sat, 2 Jul 2005 09:37:36 -0700, "bill" > wrote:

>While attempting to apply the SP2 patch to Windows XP Pro it was unable to
>read several files from a USB drive and eventually quit altogether, leaving
>the install only partially finished. Now I am unable to boot the system.
>
>Is there some way to recover from this? For example, installing another OS
>and recoering the registry and security files, etc.
>

[bill]

Can I backup and restore the original registry after this to recover my
original state?

"Mikhail Zhilin" > wrote in message
...
> You can try to install the original WinXP (if it is not an OEM version)
> on top of the existent version, without losing any programs and
> settings; only most of the updates have to be reinstalled after that --
> but if you plan to install SP2, you can not to think about SP1 updates:
> SP2 does include them.
>
> Boot from WinXP installation CD (again: it must not be OEM CD), select
> installation, and before you'll be asked to select the drive where you
> want to install XP -- Setup will show the existent Windows installation,
> and suggest to select the system you want to repair and to press R to
> repair it. Later, while repairing, you'll be asked to enter Product Key,
> so keep it handy.
>
> --
> Mikhail Zhilin
> MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
> http://www.aha.ru/~mwz
> Sorry, no technical support by e-mail.
> Please reply to the newsgroups only.
> ======
> On Sat, 2 Jul 2005 09:37:36 -0700, "bill" > wrote:
>
> >While attempting to apply the SP2 patch to Windows XP Pro it was unable
to
> >read several files from a USB drive and eventually quit altogether,
leaving
> >the install only partially finished. Now I am unable to boot the system.
> >
> >Is there some way to recover from this? For example, installing another
OS
> >and recoering the registry and security files, etc.
> >
>

[Mikhail Zhilin]

On Sun, 3 Jul 2005 12:11:25 -0700, "bill" > wrote:

>Can I backup and restore the original registry after this to recover my
>original state?

Bill,

You can use ERUNT,
http://www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/
to backup the Registry at any time, and to restore any backup you
haven't deleted.

But Windows has the native, System Restore tool -- and in the most cases
it is more suitable than Erunt: it does restore not only the Registry,
but the essential files as well -- if they were deleted after the
selected Restore point was created.

--
Mikhail Zhilin
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
http://www.aha.ru/~mwz
Sorry, no technical support by e-mail.
Please reply to the newsgroups only.
======

>"Mikhail Zhilin" > wrote in message
...
>> You can try to install the original WinXP (if it is not an OEM version)
>> on top of the existent version, without losing any programs and
>> settings; only most of the updates have to be reinstalled after that --
>> but if you plan to install SP2, you can not to think about SP1 updates:
>> SP2 does include them.
>>
>> Boot from WinXP installation CD (again: it must not be OEM CD), select
>> installation, and before you'll be asked to select the drive where you
>> want to install XP -- Setup will show the existent Windows installation,
>> and suggest to select the system you want to repair and to press R to
>> repair it. Later, while repairing, you'll be asked to enter Product Key,
>> so keep it handy.
>>
<..>
>> ======
>> On Sat, 2 Jul 2005 09:37:36 -0700, "bill" > wrote:
>>
>> >While attempting to apply the SP2 patch to Windows XP Pro it was unable
>to
>> >read several files from a USB drive and eventually quit altogether,
>leaving
>> >the install only partially finished. Now I am unable to boot the system.
>> >
>> >Is there some way to recover from this? For example, installing another
>OS
>> >and recoering the registry and security files, etc.
>> >
>>
>