oldpaint1

I am just frustrated. I volinteer on several boards in areas I am more expert. I can't expect you to know everything, who does. I am truely greatful for all your effort. You have forced me to carefully re-think the probelm which is a step in the right direction. The advice well intentioned, but not completely logical. I believe something got corupt possibly by a virus. I rule out the mobo since I configured a C: 18 months ago using the same mobo. That works fine. I will look into the error message I get when I tried to fix windows on the disfunctional C:. I will need to try that ag

If you are so sure it is the motherboard why does the other disk boot up just fine or is it just magic? I do not believe in magic so I can't see how it is the motherboard. I configured the drive that works on the same mother board and it has no problems. In fact when I went to install the new drivers for the C: that works, the install routine claimed all the drivers were installed and OK. Why would the XP repair routine claim there wasn't a windows partition on that disk when I went to repair it if the problem was only the motherboard. It is not the bootsector because I replaced it and

That is the smartest thing MS has done this century. It may induce persons willing to die with XP just to avoid these kinds of head aches, to purchse W-7.

Yes I tried all the above. Yes, I did add new hardware a big diff, the mobo. However, it was as close to the old as it could be. The other C: works fine. However, you did get me thinking. I had a sound card in the old configuration. I took it out because the new mobo should have that working. The other C: may have predated the sound failure on the mobo. I can't remember. The sound was the first thing to go maybe a year and 1/2 ago. Every few months a drive or USB port would die. I had plenty of both. It wasn't till it was clear that the erosion of utility wasn't going to stop that

The computer will boot but not log in even safe mode. I tried to use the CD to fix it in install/-repair mode but it did not recognise it as 'right' I can't remember the term. I ran a check disk and I did fix something but that did not help. I have a spare C:. Booting from that, the old C: is accessable as any other disk. I booted with a boot log. It got to the resourse loop and then it died. Any idea what the problem might be? I REALLY do not want to format the disk! That was the only solution given on another, less expert forum. I will only do that after I buy another disk and trans