OT: Computer Problem

[andrew]

Teach me to post before I read the whole thread! I'm only able to log on in the eveneing atm.

AJH

[andrew]

Do you want it then?

Pass, I don't know what a Bart disk is.

I see someone with half a life :-) suggested using the latest 8.04 live disk, I haven't downloaded that yet but I can copy a 7.10 which seems to work fine on my laptop, this computer is still on 6,06.

AJH

[andrew]

Yes, I think this is the first step, which is why I suggested moving it onto a new hard disk by using an ide to usb converter.

AJH

[Stuart Noble]

My, that looks like a useful little gadget

[andrew]

sick squid from ebuyer!

AJH

[LSR]

FWIW we have:

10 Dell servers running 24/7, some are at least 10 years old. Never had a single h/w problem 30 Dell desktops, avg age 3 years. One recent HD failure and letters wearing off a few keyboards 10 Dell laptops - 7 failed within 24 months but outside warranty. No failures with our Toshiba or Sony laptops. (excluding coffee spills, dropped bags, golf club through screen etc).

We've never spoken to Dell technical support in my 8 years here as IT Manager.

[Clint Sharp]

In message , LSR writes

Is that because you fix stuff in house or is it because you have been exceptionally lucky? If the latter, what numbers do you reckon for tonight's lottery?

Hopefully none of your servers are running SCSI drives with PERC controllers or your backups are regularly tested. Dell desktops have been famous for failing capacitors, one range Dell even replaced every hard drive in over 400 machines because of the customer complaining about the high failure rate (was approaching 25%). We have a special email address we use to report motherboard failures on Dell desktops because they are that common and my comment about PERC controllers? Don't bank on your data being good after a drive fails in a RAID set.

[Roger]

Well the discs arrived this pm for which many thanks Colin. I have had the Ubuntu disc in the CD drive and managed to copy some data files to the Seagate 'Free Agent' external drive. I couldn't however get onto the internet presumably because I need Windows to fire up the BT broadband package. No, scrub that. I do have an internet connection but it seems remarkably selective in what it will connect to.

I appreciate the need to do a clean install but can I first use the XP Install disc to boot the computer with the existing files intact so I can check that I have copied everything of value and see if I can extract the passwords, etc from some applications such as BT broadband as I haven't a clue what the password is.

Otherwise I think I will sleep on it before taking the irrevocable step just in case I remember something else I need to copy.

Oh dear my dial-up connection is not working atm. The computer dials in, pings for a while and then drops the connection. This message will go if/when the dial-up is restored. I don't know whether the problem is my end or Zetnets. FWIW the Zetnet message of the day doesn't acknowledge any problem but that is by no means conclusive.

[Colin Wilson]

If you're connecting wirelessly, try using a wired connection for now

- it should work fine. If you're on a USB ADSL modem, give up now, or see if you can borrow a router temporarily :-}

Before you get too far into this, i've come across a couple of links that might be of use, depending on what the exact error is you're seeing - unfortunately you'll have to watch the wrap :-}

that the first one has a method of using the Windows boot disc to get an "in place" repair done. Just in case you can't access the site, i'll post the destructions at the end of this message :-}

For password extraction (but this will be damn near impossible if you can't boot into windows) i've got a couple of utils on the bits & bobs CD - 007spy, and Snadboys' Revelation - 007spy may not work on XP as ISTR the security model changed, and Revelation needs to be installed prior to use. Both work in a similar way - get the disguised password dialogue box up, and drag an icon from the password utils to where it's "hidden" - the password will appear "uncloaked" in the 007spy or Revelation window.

[John Rumm]

If your BB connection relies on a entry in the Network Connections folder then there is a utility that will extract the password from the shortcut for you. I have placed a copy here:

that some antivirus progs will flag this as a "potentially unwanted program" since it is a password cracker it can be used for nefarious reasons! Hence you may have to create an exception in your AV software to allow it to run.

If in doubt clone the whole drive to a spare first.

[Roger]

The message from Colin Wilson contains these words:

The reason I have been so quiet since is that I only managed to log on via my dial-up connection the once last evening. I eventually managed to get to the ng via google groups but my message was still the last one on the thread so I gave up and went to bed.

No. wired.

BT Voyager 210 modem. After a bit it seemed to behave normally but for the first few attempts it looked for all the world as if the connection wasn't working with page not found coming up for several different addresses. I haven't as yet tried it this am.

This one would seem to fit if I can manage to follow the instructions. :-)

No need for that luckily. :-)

Thanks. I tried to log onto my BT mail account last pm (via ubuntu) but couldn't remember either my user name or my password but kept on being told BT had no record of me. (Memory loss or BT has decided I am no longer a BB customer).

[Roger]

The message from John Rumm contains these words:

I will try your program if/when I can get windows up and running without losing all my original data.

[LSR]

Yes and maybe. But not *that* lucky - sorry.

The RAIDed servers are:

6450 with PERC 2/DC - at least 8 years old. 2550 with PERC 3/Di - ditto 2850 with PERC 4e/Di - 5 years old (guess) 3 x 1950s with PERC 5i - fairly new.

Our Dell desktops are probably too new to have the infamous capacitor leak problem that affected lots of manufacturers across many products. Dell use the same mix of vendor drives as everyone else so there's no reason they should suffer any differently. Laptop reliability has been dreadful as per my earlier post.

- verified every night and the few times we've needed to restore data after s/w problems it's been fine.

I don't think Dell are any better or worse than IBM, HP etc - just cheaper.

[Roger]

The message from Colin Wilson contains these words:

"Make a backup of existing GDI32.dll in system folder with following command: REN C:\Windows\System32\GDI32.dll C:\Windows\System32\GDI32.dll.orig

Replace "C" of the drive letter of your Windows installation drive if necessary.

Then copy backup GDI32.dll from c:\windows\servicepackfiles\i386\gdi32.dll to the system folder with the following commands: copy C:\Windows\ServicePackFiles\i386\GDI32.dll C:\Windows\System32\GDI32.dll

Replace "C" with your own system drive letter if applicable.

Restart computer"

I tried to make a backup copy of the .dll but get "The parameter is not valid".

Given that the problem is "Entry point not found" should the .dll be there at all and is the message a roundabout way of telling me the .dll is missing?

If my assumption is correct can I just go ahead and copy the .dll from the service pack in the cd drive?

[Roger]

The message from Roger contains these words:

Looks as though this route is barred to me as well.

I eventually tried to copy from the SP3 disc but the cd player wouldn't open and after I persuaded it mechanically with a paper clip the command was met with access denied.

[Stuart Noble]

Were you able to boot the machine with the disk you were sent? Did the cd work then, and were you able to copy the important files? If so, why don't you just restore to factory settings with CTRL+F11? Once your broadband is up and running you can let the Windows Update site have its wicked way with you.

I think PhotoRec

I don't know whether this applies to Dell. Depends on the level of the format I believe, but I expect someone here will know for sure. I might be tempted to F11 and take my chances. How much time can you spend on this? How important can these files be? Where's your SP3 mate? Can't he give you a hand?

As you're probably realising, everybody needs a guru. I help friends out, but I have a nerdy mate if I get stuck. If he gets stuck, he has an even nerdier mate to consult, and so on. It's tough on your own

[Roger]

The message from Stuart Noble contains these words:

Only just got in from taking advantage of the lack of rain so I did not see this message until after 5pm when I logged on for the first time today.

I can boot the machine with the ubuntu disc and I can run the recovery program with XP install disc. Unfortunately I am have trouble persuading the recovery program to do the first stage of the cure that Colin pointed me at. The second stage I have so far completely cocked up as I didn't appreciate that the SP3 disc was a compressed file. I have used ubuntu to find out that there are several gdi32.dlls around, some apparently duplicates, and 12 in all. But I can't persuade ubuntu to tell me where they are so I can't use that program to copy the relevant gdi.dll

I haven't as yet tried to copy the service pack gdi.dll from where it is (or should be) on the C drive as I am still scratching my head about not being able to locate the one I am supposed to rename.

Doing a clean install is still on the cards at some time in the immediate future when I have exhausted all possibilities of getting the original setup to work again and am sure I have copied everything I can to a place of safety.

I have spoken on the phone to my SP3 mate who lives a couple of hundred miles away but all he could tell me (other than he didn't realise it was a beta) that he downloaded it from MS onto his Vista machine and used the disc to successfully install SP3 on 2 family PCs that weren't connected to the Internet.

I am in the middle of what passes for a major project for me and that takes most of the day when the weather isn't too bad. (Reworking my road access. Drive meets the road at an acute angle so drive end bell shaped.

36 feet of kerb backed up with a strip of cobbles 3 feet wide for the most part over 30 feet tapering out to 6 feet to one side). Evenings can be devoted to the computer if I don't fall asleep in from of the telly after eating my tea.

I am pretty low on the computer pecking order but my brother-in-law relies on me for computer advice.

[Colin Wilson]

'fraid it's hard to know where to go from here, this kind of problem can be an absolute sodding NiGhTmArE :-}

Re: net access - if your modem is actually a router, and you haven't switched it off in the interim, it should just let you straight out.

If it's a USB modem, refer to my earlier comment, and give up now :-}

USB adsl modems, despite allegedly being able to be on "all the time" come across a barrier within Windows, where a USB modem needs to be "connected" to, rather than just used straight away.

[Colin Wilson]

Not sure how you're getting online at the moment, but i'll send you a copy of my gdi32.dll (mine is pretty well patched to the hilt with everything pre SP3)

I'll try renaming the file and sending it uncompressed (it's only

276k) just in case you're having trouble unpacking stuff for now :-}

(sending as I type this !)

[Roger]

The message from Roger contains these words:

I decided I had nothing to lose by trying the copy instruction even though the rename instruction wouldn't work and rather to my surprise the copy instruction did work although I had my moment of doubt when it asked 'overwrite?'

So now I am up and running in the old configuration and wondering whether I should do a clean install after all. The desktop is covered with icons and reinstalling everything might take a week or more.

Many thanks again to all who helped me out.

Hopefully this is the last message from this computer for a long time.

Am I confident enough to install ubuntu and do I need to partition the hard drive first. :-)

I have poured myself a glass of single malt in celebration (rather earlier than I usually start drinking) so no more tampering tonight at any rate.