OT: Windows Disaster Time

[NunYa Bidness]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 19:43:48 GMT, Rich Grise <richgrise@example.net>
Gave us:

I'd suggest:
1. Unplug the box from the net.
2. Back up all of your data.
3. Format the drive. With Linux, you can go down to bare metal:

That has to be the most retarded thing I have ever heard anyone say
about formatting a drive.

dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/hdaX
where 'X' is replaced by the partition number of your boot
drive. It takes more than a minute. Time for a cup-o Joe,
or some wine, or play with the grandkids. Whatever.

You're an idiot.

4. Install Windows.

Primary error.

5. Re-install all of those pesky applications.

Extra, unneeded work.

6. Back up the registry.

Do you even know which files are involved, or are you a pushbutton
backup retard as well? I'd bet the latter.

7. Label and keep the "Emergency Repair" disk.

They almost never work in these situations.

8. Plug back in, Boot F8, "Safe mode", but select "Safe Mode With
Networking"

You're an idiot.

9. Do "Windows Update".

Why would that be needed. He should have a slipstreamed install
disc. WHat? You never made a slipstreamed disc that included service
packs? What an idiot your are to be giving advice on operating
systems.

10. Run all of these virus scans again:
http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html
http://www.claymania.com/windows2000-hardening.html
http://www.claymania.com/anti-virus.html

Yet another idiot trying to foist HIS way of doing things onto
someone else.

11. Re-create yourself as an ordinary user, log off as Administrator,
and log on as yourself.

Funny, I didn't see "ordinary user" listed in the user profiles
list.

12: Compute On!

(you might or might not want to run Windows Update before you
reinstall your apps - it's probably a matter of taste, but if
you're doing the registry, that's the part that knows which
stuff is already installed when you do a reinstall. I haven't
bothered, since I've copied all of my app CDs to a directory
on my main data drive. If you do this, mark them read-only.
(right-click, Properties, read-only, "Yes, mark this directory
and all of its files and subdirectories as read-only").)

You're an idiot.

You _do_ have separate partitions for your OS and your data,
haven't you?

You forgot to explain what size to make the OS partition. Hell, you
forgot to ask how his system was configured at all. You really are a
presumptuous idiot.

Good Luck!

With these instructions... I'd say he needs a lot of it.

Rich

The idiot, Rich... has spoken.

 

[Jim Thompson]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 16:25:26 -0400, Spehro Pefhany
<speffSNIP@interlogDOTyou.knowwhat> wrote:

[snip]

Before going any further, if it was *my* machine, I'd do an install of
Windows right over the old one and see what happens. Worst case,
you've just wasted a bit of time. Best (and more likely case, IMHO),
everything comes back just the way you left it. I've never been a
"format and re-install everything" kind of guy, and I've been able to
salvage every time except once (and then I found out later that I
probably could have using some arcane commands-- wasn't worth a lot of
effort in that case anyway).

[snip]

I waited thru the week to make sure I could conduct business, then I
just re-installed Win2K...

Most of it is working (I'm using the machine to send this), but a
number of programs seem to have lost DLL's.

Is there a proscribed way to restore DLL's?

I've heard terms like "re-registering programs", but have no
understanding of what this means.

Since I did a full (Windows) backup over the network is it possible to
selectively restore? I've not used this program before. My usual
method was simply copying everything since I had so much free drive
space over the network.

...Jim Thompson
--
| James E.Thompson, P.E. | mens |
| Analog Innovations, Inc. | et |
| Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus |
| Phoenix, Arizona Voice480)460-2350 | |
| E-mail Address at Website Fax480)460-2142 | Brass Rat |
| http://www.analog-innovations.com | 1962 |

I love to cook with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

 

[Spehro Pefhany]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 17:51:23 -0700, the renowned Jim Thompson
<thegreatone@example.com> wrote:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 16:25:26 -0400, Spehro Pefhany
speffSNIP@interlogDOTyou.knowwhat> wrote:

[snip]


Before going any further, if it was *my* machine, I'd do an install of
Windows right over the old one and see what happens. Worst case,
you've just wasted a bit of time. Best (and more likely case, IMHO),
everything comes back just the way you left it. I've never been a
"format and re-install everything" kind of guy, and I've been able to
salvage every time except once (and then I found out later that I
probably could have using some arcane commands-- wasn't worth a lot of
effort in that case anyway).

[snip]

I waited thru the week to make sure I could conduct business, then I
just re-installed Win2K...

Most of it is working (I'm using the machine to send this), but a
number of programs seem to have lost DLL's.

Good.

Is there a proscribed way to restore DLL's?

If just a few programs, I would re-install those programs and any
related updates.

I've heard terms like "re-registering programs", but have no
understanding of what this means.

You can let the installation programs worry about it. Mostly they
don't lose the customization you did when you install over the
previous version.

Since I did a full (Windows) backup over the network is it possible to
selectively restore? I've not used this program before. My usual
method was simply copying everything since I had so much free drive
space over the network.

...Jim Thompson

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
speff@interlog.com Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

 

[judgejudy]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 19:43:48 GMT, Rich Grise <richgrise@example.net>
wrote:

#On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 10:24:02 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:
#> On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 17:18:31 GMT, judgejudy <judgejudy@shaw.com>
#> wrote:
#>>I have windows 98 (on an old Aptiva 400MHz) and it came bundled
with
#>>ConfigSave Autocheck. It creates copys of my registry every couple
#>>weeks. Sometimes when I have serious problems like yours, I
restore a
#>>previous registry. and reboot. I think there is something similar
#>>built into Win2k which does the same thing.
#>>
#>>There is also the Settings - Control Panel - Display that you
should
#>>look at to see if it is just a setting that needs to be changed.
#>>
#>>My gut feeling given your description is that you have got some
sort
#>>of back door type of virus. If you get it running again, update
your
#>>virus detector with the latest virus descriptions and run it again.
#>>
#> control.exe doesn't work :-(
#>
#> Does anyone know if Win2K has something that automatically does the
#> registry backup?
#>
#> All I can find on boot-up is restore "Last", no other choices.
#
#You have to overtly back up the registry. It's under Start-Programs-
#Accessories-System Tools-Backup. When you get the "Backup [untitled]"
#window, there's a button that says "Emergency Repair Disk". Click
#_that_, and it will offer you a checkbox: "Also backup the registry
#to the repair directory. This backup can be used to help recover your
#system if the registry is damaged."
#
#I'd suggest:
#1. Unplug the box from the net.
#2. Back up all of your data.
#3. Format the drive. With Linux, you can go down to bare metal:
# > dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/hdaX
# where 'X' is replaced by the partition number of your boot
# drive. It takes more than a minute. Time for a cup-o Joe,
# or some wine, or play with the grandkids. Whatever.
#4. Install Windows.

<<Snip>>

Re-installing an operating system is NOT a fix. It's the solution
that bad system admins do when they don't know the answer.

 

[judgejudy]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 10:24:02 -0700, Jim Thompson
<thegreatone@example.com> wrote:

#On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 17:18:31 GMT, judgejudy <judgejudy@shaw.com>
#wrote:
#
#>I have windows 98 (on an old Aptiva 400MHz) and it came bundled
with
#>ConfigSave Autocheck. It creates copys of my registry every couple
#>weeks. Sometimes when I have serious problems like yours, I restore
a
#>previous registry. and reboot. I think there is something similar
#>built into Win2k which does the same thing.
#>
#>There is also the Settings - Control Panel - Display that you should
#>look at to see if it is just a setting that needs to be changed.
#>
#>My gut feeling given your description is that you have got some sort
#>of back door type of virus. If you get it running again, update
your
#>virus detector with the latest virus descriptions and run it again.
#>
#>
#>
#control.exe doesn't work :-(
#
#Does anyone know if Win2K has something that automatically does the
#registry backup?
#
#All I can find on boot-up is restore "Last", no other choices.
#
# ...Jim Thompson

From the Book "Windows 98 in a Nutshell" (O'Reilly),

Windows 98 includes a new utility named Registy Checker
(scanregw.exe)... which scans the Registry for inconsistencies and can
restore the Registry from a know good backup. Should the attempt fail
(or should a backup be unavailable), scanregw can also attempt to
repair the Registry.

scanregw runs automatically each time Windows 98 starts. If no
problem is found on the first time it runs during a given day, a
backup of the registry is made. These backups actually include the
User.dat and System.dat files, as well as the Win.ini and System.ini
configuration files Backups are stored as .cab files in the
\windows\sysbckup folder. Backups are given the names Rbxxx.ca, where
xxx is a unique number assigned by scanreg.

.. . .

Here's the procedure to follow if you think you've screwed up your
Registry and want to ge back to the last know good version:

1. Click - Shut Down
2. Click Restart in MS Dos mode -> Yes
3. Type the following a the dos prompt
c:\>scanreg / restore Rlxxx.cab

4. Restart your computer.

I don't know if this is similar in Win 2k. If not, I recommend
getting the O'Reilly book "Windows 2000 in a Nutshell".

I hope that this will solve your problem.

 

[Rich Grise, but drunk]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 10:24:02 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:

Does anyone know if Win2K has something that automatically does the
registry backup?

Yes, I could walk you through it keystroke by keystroke and you'd have
a fully-functional Windows 2000 system, with all of your applications,
and three different virus sweepers.

But you seem to not like me and take unprovoked shots at me just
because I'm not a repugnacrat.

So fuck you.

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise, but drunk]

On Sat, 30 Jul 2005 02:43:27 +0000, judgejudy wrote:

Re-installing an operating system is NOT a fix. It's the solution
that bad system admins do when they don't know the answer.

It's what you have to do with Windows when it gets all loaded up
with malware.

I have a fantasy - Oh, I'll make a whole post about my fantasy: Here's
a hint: Microsoft Linux!

Cheers!
Rich

 

[TokaMundo]

On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 02:01:42 GMT, "Rich Grise, but drunk"
<yahright@example.net> Gave us:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 10:24:02 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:

Does anyone know if Win2K has something that automatically does the
registry backup?

Yes, I could walk you through it keystroke by keystroke and you'd have
a fully-functional Windows 2000 system, with all of your applications,
and three different virus sweepers.

But you seem to not like me and take unprovoked shots at me just
because I'm not a repugnacrat.

So fuck you.

Cheers!
Rich

Having a mood swing, boy?

 

[Rich Grise, but drunk]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 22:58:55 +0000, NunYa Bidness wrote:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 19:43:48 GMT, Rich Grise <richgrise@example.net
Gave us:
3. Format the drive. With Linux, you can go down to bare metal:
That has to be the most retarded thing I have ever heard anyone say
about formatting a drive.

You're an idiot.
Primary error.
You're an idiot.

Thaqnks, I think I'll take your word for it that your spew is none
of my "bidness".

'bye.

 

[Rich Grise, but drunk]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 16:25:26 -0400, Spehro Pefhany wrote:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 19:43:48 GMT, the renowned Rich Grise
richgrise@example.net> wrote:
On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 10:24:02 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:
All I can find on boot-up is restore "Last", no other choices.

You have to overtly back up the registry. It's under Start-Programs-
Accessories-System Tools-Backup. When you get the "Backup [untitled]"
window, there's a button that says "Emergency Repair Disk". Click
_that_, and it will offer you a checkbox: "Also backup the registry
to the repair directory. This backup can be used to help recover your
system if the registry is damaged."

I'd suggest:
1. Unplug the box from the net.
2. Back up all of your data.

Before going any further, if it was *my* machine, I'd do an install of
Windows right over the old one and see what happens. Worst case,
you've just wasted a bit of time. Best (and more likely case, IMHO),
everything comes back just the way you left it. I've never been a
"format and re-install everything" kind of guy, and I've been able to
salvage every time except once (and then I found out later that I
probably could have using some arcane commands-- wasn't worth a lot of
effort in that case anyway).

OK, fair enough. If that works for you, I have no quarrel with that.
In my case, that's never worked for me. I always miss SOMETHING!

But Mr. T seems to be in dire straits - at this point, it seems he
has almost nothing to lose, so go for the overwrite - my boot CD
even offers me the option to repair the current installation, but
since it's only SP3, it refuses to do a repair on a system that's
been updated to SP4. That's usually the point where I throw my
hands in the air, have another drink, and boot Linux on the other
machine and go troll the newsgroups. ;-P

Thanks!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise, but drunk]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 17:51:23 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:
....

Is there a proscribed way to restore DLL's?
....

Yeah. [hehehehehehehehhehehe....]

 

[Rich Grise]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 17:51:23 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 16:25:26 -0400, Spehro Pefhany
speffSNIP@interlogDOTyou.knowwhat> wrote:
[snip]
Before going any further, if it was *my* machine, I'd do an install of
Windows right over the old one and see what happens. Worst case,
you've just wasted a bit of time. Best (and more likely case, IMHO),
everything comes back just the way you left it. I've never been a
"format and re-install everything" kind of guy, and I've been able to
salvage every time except once (and then I found out later that I
probably could have using some arcane commands-- wasn't worth a lot of
effort in that case anyway).
[snip]
I waited thru the week to make sure I could conduct business, then I
just re-installed Win2K...

Most of it is working (I'm using the machine to send this), but a
number of programs seem to have lost DLL's.

Is there a proscribed way to restore DLL's?

I've heard terms like "re-registering programs", but have no
understanding of what this means.

Since I did a full (Windows) backup over the network is it possible to
selectively restore? I've not used this program before. My usual
method was simply copying everything since I had so much free drive
space over the network.

It's kind of sad that you have such a thing about me. Just go
dig out the CDs and slap them in the drive and let all of your
apps reinstall themselves. If they're as smart as MDT6, they'll
even find your current settings. And it's a spectacularly good
excuse to go have a swig or so of some good, home-fermented wine.
(ass-u-me-ing that you're a connoisseur, of course.) Speaking of
data, You _DO_ keep your OS, Apps, and Data on separate partitions,
don't you?

I haven't tried the restore floppy, because even though I selected
the "save the registry too" setting, then it makes me wonder, so,
when I install apps, but Windows crashes anyway, and I restore the
registry, isn't it going to get restored to the state before I
installed the apps? So what's the point?

If you've installed your apps, OS, and data on separate partitions,
it's not going to be as bad as you might fear.

Howsomever, if you've installed your OS, your spps, and your data
all on one huge partition, you're fucked.

Unless you download Slackware Disk 2 ISO and boot from it. It could
save your data to the network.

Good Luck!
Rich

 

[Pig Bladder]

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 14:02:20 -0700, Jim Thompson wrote:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 16:25:26 -0400, Spehro Pefhany
speffSNIP@interlogDOTyou.knowwhat> wrote:

[snip]


Before going any further, if it was *my* machine, I'd do an install of
Windows right over the old one and see what happens. Worst case,
you've just wasted a bit of time. Best (and more likely case, IMHO),
everything comes back just the way you left it. I've never been a
"format and re-install everything" kind of guy, and I've been able to
salvage every time except once (and then I found out later that I
probably could have using some arcane commands-- wasn't worth a lot of
effort in that case anyway).

[snip]

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

Spehro, I'll give that a try.

Fortunately I AM fully backed-up... I haven't panicked... just sat
here sucking my thumb and doing all communication activities by
loading them with Task Manager.

I also discovered that I HAVE backed-up the registry, in April.

So I'll try all your ideas first, but then return to the April backup
if necessary. That should leave me with just a few new programs to
reload.

In the time you've been sucking your thumb for the past week, I've
reinstalled Windows on two separate systems, and installed a couple of
new apps.

Man up and do it already! Sheesh!

Good Luck!
--
The Pig Bladder from Uranus, still waiting for that
hot babe to ask what my favorite planet is. ;-j

 

[TokaMundo]

On Tue, 02 Aug 2005 02:09:39 GMT, "Rich Grise, but drunk"
<yahright@example.net> Gave us:

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 22:58:55 +0000, NunYa Bidness wrote:
On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 19:43:48 GMT, Rich Grise <richgrise@example.net
Gave us:
3. Format the drive. With Linux, you can go down to bare metal:
That has to be the most retarded thing I have ever heard anyone say
about formatting a drive.

You're an idiot.
Primary error.
You're an idiot.


Thaqnks, I think I'll take your word for it that your spew is none
of my "bidness".

'bye.

One would think that an old, toothless bastard might have a modicum
of maturity... I guess that you are an exception.

 

[Jim Thompson]

End result...

I reinstalled the OS to get a repaired Registry.

The whole hard-drive is still intact.

But a number of programs needed re-installing to get their Registry
entries back.

Fortunately everything, so far, has come right back up without
damaging any data.

Must be because I backed up everything ;-)

...Jim Thompson
--
| James E.Thompson, P.E. | mens |
| Analog Innovations, Inc. | et |
| Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus |
| Phoenix, Arizona Voice480)460-2350 | |
| E-mail Address at Website Fax480)460-2142 | Brass Rat |
| http://www.analog-innovations.com | 1962 |

I love to cook with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

 

[Bob Monsen]

Jim Thompson wrote:

End result...

I reinstalled the OS to get a repaired Registry.

The whole hard-drive is still intact.

But a number of programs needed re-installing to get their Registry
entries back.

Fortunately everything, so far, has come right back up without
damaging any data.

Must be because I backed up everything ;-)

...Jim Thompson

(Perhaps unwanted) advice for the future:

You could buy a 120GB hard drive, install it, and get a backup program
to do nightly backups to it. I don't trust the windows backup program,
which seems to miss it's appointments with regularity. This is what I
do, and it's helped me quite often. It is possible to do phased backups,
in which you get incrementals on a daily basis, and then a full backup
once a week. If you then DVD the result on a weekly basis, you can have
a full archive, which is often useful.

Another simple solution is to checkpoint the system using a network
backup device (obtainable from Frys for something like $200). These
things plug into your ethernet, and present a 'share', which you can use
as the destination for a backup. It is nice in case your PC catches
fire, or a virus decides to wipe all your disks. Using a password for
access makes it relatively impervious to virii and grandchildren as
well...

The best thing, however, (since you will clearly will lose money if your
house burns down and you lose your files) is to pay a professional to
come in and set up a tape or DVD backup, and have them stored offsite.
There are services you can hire to do this who will come in and pick up
the tape or DVD weekly, and, while not cheap, can save your potatoes
You can also do it yourself using a DVD writer, and a cd mailer,
however. Places like 'stone mountain' archive media in climate
controlled storage facilities.

Finally, there are internet backup services you can subscribe to.

If you have a full, incremental backup, you can simply restore the
entire hard drive at the last good checkpoint. THis is far simpler than
reinstalling OS + apps.

--
Regards,
Bob Monsen

If a little knowledge is dangerous, where is the man who has
so much as to be out of danger?
Thomas Henry Huxley, 1877