Sams Teach Yourself MCSE Windows NT Server 4 in 14 Days
(Publisher: Macmillan Computer Publishing)
Author(s): David Schaer, et al
ISBN: 0672311283
Publication Date: 12/15/97

Numerous error messages might pop up if any of these files are missing or corrupt. However, some of them can be misleading. The most common boot error is

Windows NT could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
\winnt root\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
Please reinstall a copy of the above file.

There actually are many causes for this error. The first is the obvious: NTOSKRNL.EXE is missing or corrupt. If this is the case, you should perform an emergency repair (discussed later in this chapter). Two other reasons are related to the BOOT.INI.

BOOT.INI points to the location of the NTOSKRNL.EXE. If it points to the wrong place, the computer thinks that the file is missing when it might not be. For this reason, you should modify the BOOT.INI to show the correct location of the NTOSKRL.EXE.

The last reason for the preceding error message would be in the absence of a BOOT.INI. If it is missing, NTLDR attempts to load Windows NT from the default location (in the WINNT directory on the first partition of the first disk on the first controller). If it does not find NTOSKRNL.EXE there, it once again pops up the preceding error message. The fix for this problem is to create a BOOT.INI with the correct path to the NTOSKRNL.EXE.

The next most common message is

BOOT: Couldn’t find NTLDR
Please insert another disk.

This is the second most common error message not because the NTLDR file is missing, but because this is the message that appears if you leave in drive A a floppy disk that has been formatted in Windows NT. When you format a floppy in NT, the boot sector of that floppy is different than the standard Windows-formatted floppy. In Windows NT, the format process puts information on the boot sector of that floppy that points to the file NTLDR for booting (not COMMAND.COM).

If the NTLDR is missing or is corrupt, the proper way to replace it is through an emergency repair. Alternatively, copying an NTLDR file from another Windows NT server (same version) can repair this problem.

When the NTDETECT.COM file is missing, you receive a somewhat misleading message on your screen. The message will state

NTDETECT V1.0 Checking Hardware...
NTDETECT failed

It appears from the preceding message that NTDETECT.COM is present and attempting to load. However, NTLDR, not NTDETECT.COM, actually puts this message on the screen. The detection process fails if NTLDR is not present. Once again, copying another copy of this file to the server or performing an emergency repair is the appropriate course of action.

If you have a dual-boot configuration on your server and you attempt to boot the server to another operating system, the BOOTSECT.DOS file must be present. If it is not, the computer will not load the boot sector information from your previous operating system. If it is missing, the following message will appear:

I/O Error accessing boot sector file
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1):\bootsect.dos

Do not attempt to copy this file from another Windows NT machine. The BOOTSECT.DOS file contains information specific to the computer on which it is located. You must perform an emergency repair by using the Emergency Repair Disk you created previously when repairing the machine.

14.3.1. Bypassing the Boot Sector

If you can’t start Windows NT because one or more of the files mentioned in the preceding section is missing or corrupt, you can start the server now and replace the files later. However, this takes a little planning ahead of time.

You can bypass the boot sector by creating a Windows NT boot disk. Use this boot disk to take the place of the missing or corrupted files discussed in the previous section. Unlike a typical MS-DOS boot disk, after the server boots up from the boot disk, you then can remove the boot disk and the server will be operational. Think of it as jump-starting a car. After you have jump-started a car, you can remove the jumper cables and the car will continue to run. This basically is how a boot disk works under Windows NT. In MS-DOS, when you booted to floppy, that floppy had to remain there for reference to the COMMAND.COM. This is not so with Windows NT.

Creating a boot disk is a simple task. Take these steps:

•  Format a floppy disk in Windows NT (not MS-DOS or Windows 95).

•  Copy the files discussed in Table 14.1, with the exception of NTOSKRNL.EXE.

•  Modify the BOOT.INI to reflect the proper path to the NTOSKRNL.EXE. (This is for Intel-based machines only.)