Can't open anything

Dell GX 260 Win XP Pro with SP3 Earlier today I uninstalled two applications using Revo Uninstaller and shut down. When I returned I could open nothing from the start menu. Applictions start but my computer, the three partitions, directories—none can be opened. Other than the Recycle Bin, I keep only a few temporary files on the desktop, everything else is on the well organized start menu. Revo uninstaller uses an application's built in uninstall applet and then scans the system for associated registry entries and other files. Was something deleted that should not have been?

Greetings Augustus.

I'd suggest a System Restore.

If you cannot use: start > All Programs > Accessories > System tools > System Restore

You could try start > Run… cmd

then: c:\windows\system\restore\rstrui.exe

You can also try this from the Task Manager: right click a blank area of the Task Bar and open the Task Manager then: File > New Task (Run…)

cmd

then: c:\windows\system\restore\rstrui.exe


Or if none of the above work:

Boot into Safe Mode options and choose Safe Mode then choose System Restore.

Getting into Windows Safe Mode





…

jephree, Thanks. I'm on a different system right now but when I get home I'll give that a try and let you know.

Just adding a note.

When you use Revo Uninstaller, and it is finished with the scan.

Only delete the bolded entries.

Do not choose all, as that will kill / remove the root.


regards

Thanks but… I tried system restore. First the restore point created by REVO and then one day and two days earlier. No go. I presume the next step is a repair installation from the system disk and if that doesn't work—the dreaded fresh install.

Prior to that you could try the System File Checker.

start > Run… sfc /scannow

Can also be run from Task Manager.

I tried System File Checker twice and nothing changed. I then booted from my system disk and was not allowed to do a repair install "…the copy of Windows on the computer is newer than the one on the CD". Presumably that's because I started with the XP Pro with SP2 on the CD and have added SP3. Is there any way to work around that? I would rather re-install SP3 than go through all the work of configuring a fresh install the way I like.

Go to the Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs Check: Show Updates Scroll down to Windows SP3 Uninstall.

Why didn't I think of that !?! Maybe the frustration has disabled the "keep it simple" part of my brain.

No problem. Let us know how it goes.

If the uninstall of SP3 doesn't work, you could create a new XP install CD slipstreamed with SP3. Then you could do a Repair Install. It's pretty straight forward, just takes a while to get stuff downloaded and then run the process (Autostreamer). If needed, here are the directions I have:

The simplest way to create a Bootable Windows XP Pro or Home Installation CD Slipstreamed with SP2 or SP3 is to use Autostreamer. You point to your XP Pro/Home CD, the SP2/SP3 Service Pack .exe file, give it a path to write the .iso file to and off it goes. In 5 or 10 minutes you have a .iso file that you can burn to CD with almost any CD burner program you want to use. I used Roxio 7. There is a good freeware burner called DeepBurner which will do this also.

Here is the link to Autostreamer: http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/System-…ostreamer.shtml

You can download the SP2 .exe here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details…;displaylang=en
You can download the SP3 .exe here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details…;displaylang=en

An excellent alternative is nLite. It allows you to merge SP2/SP3/Windows Updates into a new XP CD image that you can install from. Takes a bit of fiddling with but worth the effort since it also allows you to pre-answer all the questions asked during install so all you have to do is boot the new CD, select where you want to install, format or not and go to lunch. When you come back the install is finished and your are at the latest Service Pack and Update level. See here:
http://www.nliteos.com/

If you have Vista, then give Vlite a try:
http://www.vlite.net/

Use this site to get the MS updates: http://www.softwarepatch.com/windows/

You can also get updates from an MS site but it takes more work: http://windowsxp.mvps.org/saveupdates.htm

Greetings All, Add/Remove didn't work. Normally when one of the entries is highlighted, the right side contains a "remove" Button but that was missing from the SP3 entry. I then Googled "uninstall sp3". The first listing was for a MS Knowledge Base article (support.microsoft.com/kb/950249). This listed four procedures to try. The first was to invoke Add/Remove from the run box. Contrary to my expectations this brought up the standard applet not a special super version and we know that wouldn't work. It then suggests running this file from the run box ($NtServicePackUninstall$). That did the job but the repair Install I then ran changed nothing. I will now try Rich's suggested slipstreamed install CD rather than just a fresh install. For some time I've wanted to create such a disk but all the applications I found to do that had such complicated, convoluted instructions I didn't think I could do it. This suggestion reads like something I can handle—thanks Rich. By the way, the eagerness to help and the level of knowledge I've found here has prompted me to move What the Tech to the top of the list in the Computer Info folder of my Bookmarks Menu. Augustus

Greetings all. Sorry about the delay in my reply but i was called out of town on family business. When I began the slipstreaming process upon my return I was brought up short by two serious problems (serious to me at least). I have gathered together all the items I need except the drivers. I finally decided I had to try a Driver Scanner & download service and the only one I found hat offers free downloads is DriverMax (two downloads per day) but I could not make it work and they have not replied to my request for assistance. Can anyone suggest the most reliable of such services. I am living on less than $900 a month Social Security so I cannot try one after another 'till I find one that works. The excellent slipstreaming instructions I've found suggest testing the ISO file in a Virtual Machine. VM Ware would seem to be the system to use and the free trial version of VMware View would probably do the job but I can find no instructions. Does anyone know where I can find a user's guide for VM Ware View or at least how to use it to test an ISO file?

Hi, its easy to get overcomplicated on this….. There is a lot to be said for slipstreaming SP3 and making an install disc, as its a very useful thing to have. The native drivers within the disc will get most systems up and running so at this stage trying to include the drivers for your system into a slipstreamed Install disc whilst being a good idea for some is unnecessarily complicated for others. Likewise testing on a VM is also a good idea but for some is unnecessarily complicated. If you are going ahead with the slipstreaming then if this is your first attempt at slipstreaming then there is a lot to be said for forgetting about trying to include the extra drivers specific for your machine and testing with a VM and just going ahead. Once you have made the slipstreamed disc try it out and see how you go Regards paws

Yeah as Paws said you can keep it simple. I created a sliptstreamed XP home disc… I just included SP3 and SATA drivers, and left the native drivers for everything else. This is good because i can use this on all XP home installs, it doesn't have specific drivers for specific machines, and after windows is installed windows update does most of the job for finding the rest of the drivers (as long as ethernet driver is working). Also a repair install shouldn't muck with existing drivers as far as I know.