I was able to recover the dead PC
Got a Win XP 64 CDROM
Used it to do system recovery (Windows can make this disk - if it hasn't crashed - it needs to be the same version you are using (32 bit Windows won't recover a 64 bit version) - I have Win XP64 on this 2008 system, which is a rare OS these days).
selected R when it booted
in recovery console - ran chkdsk /r
It spent 6 hrs rebuilding the MBR
The system then booted up normally and I was able to do a full backup (49 GB of important data recovered, there was no data lost)
I am using the system again until the new one arrives (the Mini-Mac wasn't cutting it as a desktop).
It works better, so I suspect this was a problem before the crash.
A friend who does this for a living suggested this course - I am sharing so others will be able to do this if need be. My friend tells me this has been common as of late - many systems are recovered in the same way.
Moral of the story for me - be sure you have a recent backup - accessible without your current system. (my last full backup was several months ago - too busy, no excuse - obviously).
Got a Win XP 64 CDROM
Used it to do system recovery (Windows can make this disk - if it hasn't crashed - it needs to be the same version you are using (32 bit Windows won't recover a 64 bit version) - I have Win XP64 on this 2008 system, which is a rare OS these days).
selected R when it booted
in recovery console - ran chkdsk /r
It spent 6 hrs rebuilding the MBR
The system then booted up normally and I was able to do a full backup (49 GB of important data recovered, there was no data lost)
I am using the system again until the new one arrives (the Mini-Mac wasn't cutting it as a desktop).
It works better, so I suspect this was a problem before the crash.
A friend who does this for a living suggested this course - I am sharing so others will be able to do this if need be. My friend tells me this has been common as of late - many systems are recovered in the same way.
Moral of the story for me - be sure you have a recent backup - accessible without your current system. (my last full backup was several months ago - too busy, no excuse - obviously).
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