Windows XP startup issues and the need for Windows Data Recovery

BIOS (Basic Input/output System) are a critical component of a Windows operating system. It is the first code to be executed when you start your Windows-based PC. It checks system hardware, ports etc. and then loads MBR (Master Boot Record) into the memory. MBR searches the active partition on your primary hard disk and passes control to that PBR (Partition Boot Record). Now, the PBR loads various system-specific boot files. These files are responsible for initializing and loading the rest of the OS. If any of these files gets corrupt, the system would become unbootable. As a consequence, you will lose all the precious data saved in your system. To overcome the problem, you need to go for Windows recovery through a reliable third-party utility. 

For instance, when you start your Windows XP-based system, you may come across anyone of the following cases:

·         The Start button or task-bar becomes invisible.

·         A blue or black screen appears and the computer stops responding.

Cause:

One of the following reasons may be responsible for the above behavior-

·         You have enabled 'Auto-hide the taskbar' option in the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

·         Some settings of your user account may be corrupt.

·         The 'Explorer.exe' fails to load during startup.

·         Operating system boot files are damaged.

These circumstances would prevent you from accessing the valuable information stored in your system. To recover Windows files, you may use an updated backup. However, if the backup is unavailable, follow the below mentioned resolution steps

Resolution:

These steps may help you solve the problem-

·         Disable the auto-hide option: In the 'Taskbar and Start Menu Properties' dialog box, under the 'Taskbar' tab, disable the 'Auto-hide the taskbar' option.  

·         Log on as a different user: Log in to your system using a different user account. If you do not encounter any problems, create a new account. Now apply the settings of the old user account to this account.

·         Start computer in Safe Mode: If 'Explorer.exe' file fails to load, boot the system using the 'Safe Mode with Networking' option. Now, scan your PC using an anti-virus utility and install all the essential updates on your system by running Windows Update.

·         Repair Windows XP: Repair Windows XP installation using the Windows XP bootable disc. Choose to repair the existing installation. All the Windows files will be replaced.

If the problem still persists, you should take help of efficient Windows recovery software. This software is capable of safely recovering all types of user data files in any situation of data loss.

Recover Windows files with Stellar Windows data recovery software

Data is precious and data loss is a tragic for almost everyone of us. Even the loss of photos is a great headache for all of us. The data is lost usually when there is a system crash, virus attacks, sudden power surges all affect the hard drive and makes files corrupt, lost or damaged and leaves you needing to recover windows files.

It is better to check if the hard drive is affected. What caused the system to crash? It may be a new incompatible hardware or software. Try to unplug the hardware and restart the computer. A normal start-up indicates that the hardware is indeed the problem.

If it does not start-up normally, press the F8 key while the Windows is rebooting to start it in safe mode. If it reaches the log-in screen, then the problem may be related to a new software. Before proceeding to the next step, already make a backup of the other remaining files.

You can also fix the problem using system restore which resets the settings but there is no guarantee you will get your files back and recover deleted files.

If the first step did not work at all, then you can try another method to try to save lost data. Take off all the cables and USB wires and open the case to find the hard drive. Make sure that all the cables are plugged into the right place. You can also try to switch with one cable from another and see if this will work. If the problem still exists, then it is time to accept that there is something wrong with the hard drive.

If nothing else works, then you can now try to use Stellar Phoenix windows data recovery software. This software is the ultimate solution which I have also tried and recommend you to try to recover your files.