missing hal.dll

could someone kindly give me clear guidance on how to put a missing (above) back onto another computer.I am trying to help my neice get her computer working but it is taking ages to shut down and the same to start up.I pressed the F8 button and tried to boot up in safe mode only to find a message say that system32//hal.dll file was missing, i have taken a copy of the file from my computer put it on a pen drive with the intention of putting the missing file back in it right place. Problem is that i dont know how get access the folder on her computer to put it back. i am really past my comfort zone and out of my depth now and need some clear guidance on how to replace this file. Her computer is using windows xp home edition and i am using windows xp professional and hope that the file i have copied from my computer on to my pen drive is compatable Please assist if you can–i am struggling with this

Hi koomamatta,

This is a problem that is daunting and can bring even experienced users to their knees.
Fortunately, one of the best help experts available (Fred Langa) has written a short and a long version of the repair process.

I'm including his brief prescription - and - links to the more extended steps.

Don't hesitate to post back with questions as they arise.
And be sure to post back with your "success", since other TC Members will be able to learn from your work.

Best Regards

From Windows Secrets/Langa List December 6, 2006
What to do when missing NTLDR and Hal.dll

Talk about bad luck! Reader Fred Peatross has started running into two of the very worst kinds of XP boot errors:
§ "One of my computers keeps getting the message ntldr missing corrupt file; hit any key. Recently, the message changed to a hal.dll file, either missing or corrupt.

"I can always do a cold boot and go right back into Windows XP. Warm boot doesn't get me into Windows, I get the missing or corrupt file prompt. I thought my hard drive might be going bad, so I purchased SpinRite. Ran SpinRite, and the HD had no errors and was fine. Is this going to come down to a reformatting of my HD?"
Intermittent problems can be among the hardest to troubleshoot. But the simplest thing to do to try to resolve this is to start with XP's Rebuild command. The short form of the fix is as follows:

Step 1. Boot from your XP Setup CD and enter the Recovery Console
Step 2. Enter the command attrib -h -r -s c:\boot.ini
Step 3. Delete the file (del c:\boot.ini)
Step 4. Run bootcfg /rebuild
Step 5. Run fixboot

Those five steps can fix a number of thorny startup issues and may be all you need.
But if the above is too telegraphic for you, you can read fully detailed instructions in my InformationWeek article, "XP's Little-Known Rebuild Command."
http://www.informationweek.com/LP/showArti…&queryText=
Microsoft's official instructions can be found in
"Description of the Windows XP Recovery Console"
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314058/en-us
and "Recovery Console Tools and Settings."
http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServe…3.mspx?mfr=true

If the Rebuild command doesn't help, you may be able to solve the problem by attacking each error message separately.
For example, Kelly Theriot's excellent site has a very complete how-to on the Missing HAL.DLL problem.
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_haldll_missing.htm
Also, Microsoft offers "How to troubleshoot the
'NTLDR Is Missing…' error message"
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/318728/en-us
and " 'NTLDR is missing' error message when you install or upgrade Windows XP."
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314057/en-us

Finally, if none of these software fixes work, or if the problem comes back, then indeed you may have a subtle hard-drive problem. It may be related to a marginal power supply, a heat issue, or simple old age (i.e., the drive's actuators are wearing out and functioning erratically).

There's no simple diagnostic for that, but making sure the software is OK is the first step to whittling down the variables you face.

Hi koomamatta,

Additional help has been offered by our own Hammer51, as quoted below:

regarding HAL -> http://forums.tomcoyote.org/index.php?showtopic=74250

thought I'd point this M$ link out to you, to see if would help the user - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/164448

I actually came across a comp about 2 months back which someone asked me to look at which was continously rebooting in a endless loop. After turning off autostart and going through to the BSOD it turned out it had a corrupt HAL - booted to recovery console and expanding both the files worked for me !

Regards, Hammer51

hi dough thanks for this information but i have taken the cowards way out and reformatted the computers hard drive and the problem is now well and truly sorted