WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

[Guest Robin]

Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

anything else, nothing.

 

I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything I've

read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice during

startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it doesn't

give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

 

The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM it

would not boot.

I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup Menu.

All help greatly appreaciated!

[Guest Ben Myers]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

Go to http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm and create a Windows 95

boot disk. Use it to start the computer, type

"path c:\windows;c:\windows\command" at the "A:\" prompt and press

"Enter". Then try the registry repair procedures..

 

Ben

 

"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

> Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

> registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

> anything else, nothing.

>

> I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything I've

> read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

> but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice during

> startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it doesn't

> give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

>

> The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM it

> would not boot.

> I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

> Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup Menu.

> All help greatly appreaciated!

[Guest Ron Martell]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

>registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

>anything else, nothing.

>

>I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything I've

>read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

>but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice during

>startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it doesn't

>give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

>

>The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM it

>would not boot.

>I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

>Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup Menu.

>All help greatly appreaciated!

 

Do you have access to a computer that is running Windows 98?

 

If so then go to that computer and copy the file scanreg.exe to a

diskette. Boot the Windows 95 computer with a Windows startup disk

then insert the diskette with the scanreg file on it and enter the

following command:

 

SCANREG /FIX

 

That should repair the registry if it is fixable.

 

Good luck

 

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada

--

Microsoft MVP (1997 - 2008)

On-Line Help Computer Service

http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

Syberfix Remote Computer Repair

 

"Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference

has never been in bed with a mosquito."

[Guest Jeff Richards]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

The most likely reason for being unable to repair the registry during

startup is that there is a RAM error. The registry is checked after it is

loaded into memory, and because of the RAM error it appears to be faulty.

 

Before trying to restore any more registry copies, put a good memory

diagnostic on a bootable floppy, boot to the floppy, and give it an

extensive run.

--

Jeff Richards

MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)

"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

> Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

> registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to

> do

> anything else, nothing.

>

> I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything

> I've

> read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

> but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice

> during

> startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it

> doesn't

> give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

>

> The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM

> it

> would not boot.

> I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

> Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup

> Menu.

> All help greatly appreaciated!

[Guest Robin]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

Thanks for the link. Figured I might need a WIN95 book disk, started looking

for mine, but am afraid I tossed it. - Robin

 

"Ben Myers" wrote:

> Go to http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm and create a Windows 95

> boot disk. Use it to start the computer, type

> "path c:\windows;c:\windows\command" at the "A:\" prompt and press

> "Enter". Then try the registry repair procedures..

>

> Ben

>

> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

> > Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

> > registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

> > anything else, nothing.

> >

> > I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything I've

> > read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

> > but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice during

> > startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it doesn't

> > give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

> >

> > The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM it

> > would not boot.

> > I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

> > Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup Menu.

> > All help greatly appreaciated!

>

[Guest Robin]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

My Win98 system is only bootable in Safe Mode. Will try to get it off that

or else start calling around looking for another 98 system. Thanks. - R

 

"Ron Martell" wrote:

> Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>

> >Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

> >registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

> >anything else, nothing.

> >

> >I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything I've

> >read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

> >but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice during

> >startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it doesn't

> >give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

> >

> >The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM it

> >would not boot.

> >I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

> >Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup Menu.

> >All help greatly appreaciated!

>

> Do you have access to a computer that is running Windows 98?

>

> If so then go to that computer and copy the file scanreg.exe to a

> diskette. Boot the Windows 95 computer with a Windows startup disk

> then insert the diskette with the scanreg file on it and enter the

> following command:

>

> SCANREG /FIX

>

> That should repair the registry if it is fixable.

>

> Good luck

>

> Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada

> --

> Microsoft MVP (1997 - 2008)

> On-Line Help Computer Service

> http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

> Syberfix Remote Computer Repair

>

> "Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference

> has never been in bed with a mosquito."

>

[Guest Robin]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

Would like to try this. What do you consider a "good memory diagnostic"?

What about Windows Memory Diagnostic tool, which I downloaded and can create

a bootable floppy with? Please explain 'extensive run'. If something isn't

found in the first pass, would futher passes come up with a problem?

 

Many thanks - R

 

 

"Jeff Richards" wrote:

> The most likely reason for being unable to repair the registry during

> startup is that there is a RAM error. The registry is checked after it is

> loaded into memory, and because of the RAM error it appears to be faulty.

>

> Before trying to restore any more registry copies, put a good memory

> diagnostic on a bootable floppy, boot to the floppy, and give it an

> extensive run.

> --

> Jeff Richards

> MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)

> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

> news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

> > Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

> > registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to

> > do

> > anything else, nothing.

> >

> > I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything

> > I've

> > read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

> > but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice

> > during

> > startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it

> > doesn't

> > give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

> >

> > The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM

> > it

> > would not boot.

> > I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

> > Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup

> > Menu.

> > All help greatly appreaciated!

>

>

>

[Guest Jeff Richards]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

I haven't used the software you mention, but it is probably OK (assuming it

works like you have described). I have used Docmemory and Memtest86 with

good results..

 

I would consider several hours as a minimum test - overnight would be

better. It is very possible that a problem could be missed with just a

single pass.

 

Not that other hardware problems could produce similar errors, although they

are less likely.

 

Once you are satisfied that there are no memory issues to deal with you can

tackle the task of recovering the registry with a lot more confidence.

--

Jeff Richards

MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)

"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

news:B5B96A7C-B469-4B61-BFA3-7995E59EFFFB@microsoft.com...

> Would like to try this. What do you consider a "good memory diagnostic"?

> What about Windows Memory Diagnostic tool, which I downloaded and can

> create

> a bootable floppy with? Please explain 'extensive run'. If something

> isn't

> found in the first pass, would futher passes come up with a problem?

>

> Many thanks - R

>

>

> "Jeff Richards" wrote:

>

>> The most likely reason for being unable to repair the registry during

>> startup is that there is a RAM error. The registry is checked after it

>> is

>> loaded into memory, and because of the RAM error it appears to be faulty.

>>

>> Before trying to restore any more registry copies, put a good memory

>> diagnostic on a bootable floppy, boot to the floppy, and give it an

>> extensive run.

>> --

>> Jeff Richards

>> MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)

>> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

>> news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

>> > Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

>> > registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it

>> > to

>> > do

>> > anything else, nothing.

>> >

>> > I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything

>> > I've

>> > read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do

>> > this

>> > but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice

>> > during

>> > startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it

>> > doesn't

>> > give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

>> >

>> > The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday

>> > AM

>> > it

>> > would not boot.

>> > I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

>> > Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup

>> > Menu.

>> > All help greatly appreaciated!

>>

>>

>>

[Guest cquirke (MVP Windows shell/user)]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

On Wed, 11 Jul 2007 10:08:01 -0700, Robin

>Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

>registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to do

>anything else, nothing.

 

F8 at boot, choose DOS mode (Command Prompt Only).

 

If you can't get there, problems are deeper (tho if that deep, there'd

be no talk of "registry")

 

DO NOT run Windows until you've checked the file system with Scandisk

from this DOS mode, as Windows will write to what may be an at-risk

hard drive. If Scandisk file system logic is OK, or is safe enough

for you to have allowed it to fix (judgement call, I know) then do a

surface scan. If that shows ANY...

- existing B(ad) clusters

- new bad clusters

- pauses the cluster counter with HD LED on (retries on bad sectors)

....then backup your data from DOS mode and look for a replacement HD.

 

Next, run Edit and load up C:\Winboot.ini, expecting to find none, and

then the same for C:\MSDOS.SYS - both of these are usually hidden, and

they control how the boot process "finds" Windows. Usually there is

no Winboot.ini, so MSDOS.SYS is used instead. In these files, pake

sure the [Paths] section is correct.

 

Next, make sure the Windows subtree, as predicted in [Paths], actually

does exist. The registry files, also usually hidden, will be in the

Windows base directory in the case of Win9x. They are:

- System.dat

- User.dat

- Classes.dat (in WinME only)

 

There are also backups of these, labled .1ST, in the root of C: - they

are very old, and should be used as a last resort only.

 

More recent backups should also be present, as follows...

 

Win95xx

 

System.da0 and User.da0 in the same place as the "live" registry, i.e.

the base Windows directory. This is a one-shot backup that gets

renewed (potentially with problems) on each boot at the point this

passes logon, but (for example) before the first sound is made etc.

 

Win98xx and WinME

 

Instead of the one-shot .DA0 backups, these versions keep the last 5

or so registry backups as compacted into RB*.CAB files that are in

SYSBCKUP directory under Windows. Use the Extract tool to extract

these, after first backing up the originals yourself.

 

If you have to fall back to a backup that loses settings, you can try

the following approach from DOS mode Regedit...

- backup all registry files as files, using Copy command etc.

- use Regedit /? to look up command line syntax

- export existing registry as a large .REG file

- swap working backup registry files into place

- import the .REG you created

- rename away the .REG for safety, e.g. to .TXT

 

You can also use a different command line parameter to let DOS mode

Regedit rebuild the registry. I don't trust myself to remember these

parameters properly (I think it's /C) so use /? to look them up!

 

HTH

 

 

>------------ ----- ---- --- -- - - - -

Our senses are our UI to reality

>------------ ----- ---- --- -- - - - -

[Guest glee]

Re: WIN95 Registry problem & can't get to Start Up Menu

 

I have used all of the RAM diagnostics listed below. They work well, but I suggest

running at least two of them, each overnight or for a period of hours in a loop, as

one may catch an error the others miss.

 

DocMemory

http://www.simmtester.com/page/products/doc/download.asp

 

MemTest86+:

http://www.memtest.org/

 

Windows Memory Tester

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

 

Read an follow the instructions on the web pages to download and create their

respective boot floppies.

--

Glen Ventura, MS MVP Shell/User, A+

http://dts-l.org/

http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm

 

 

"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

news:B5B96A7C-B469-4B61-BFA3-7995E59EFFFB@microsoft.com...

> Would like to try this. What do you consider a "good memory diagnostic"?

> What about Windows Memory Diagnostic tool, which I downloaded and can create

> a bootable floppy with? Please explain 'extensive run'. If something isn't

> found in the first pass, would futher passes come up with a problem?

>

> Many thanks - R

>

>

> "Jeff Richards" wrote:

>

>> The most likely reason for being unable to repair the registry during

>> startup is that there is a RAM error. The registry is checked after it is

>> loaded into memory, and because of the RAM error it appears to be faulty.

>>

>> Before trying to restore any more registry copies, put a good memory

>> diagnostic on a bootable floppy, boot to the floppy, and give it an

>> extensive run.

>> --

>> Jeff Richards

>> MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)

>> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message

>> news:125DEB77-D484-4F96-A9D9-5F86F2C0C653@microsoft.com...

>> > Have a win95 system that will not boot, says there's a problem with the

>> > registry, need to restore registry and reboot, and then I can't get it to

>> > do

>> > anything else, nothing.

>> >

>> > I'm trying to get to the startup menu to boot to safte mode. Everything

>> > I've

>> > read says to hit F8 when the 'start windows 95' screen appears. I do this

>> > but nothing happens. I get the 'start windows 95' blue screen twice

>> > during

>> > startup. I try hitting F8 (over & over again) at both times but it

>> > doesn't

>> > give me the start menu. I've tried F10, F9, & F4 also. Any ideas?

>> >

>> > The system ran fine Monday & shutdown seemed to run properly. Tuesday AM

>> > it

>> > would not boot.

>> > I have Microsoft's article id# 131431 Troubleshoot Registry Errors in

>> > Windows 95, but can't get anywhere because I can't get to the Startup

>> > Menu.

>> > All help greatly appreaciated!

>>

>>

>>