Outlook on the repair Express. Email & data in Windows

[jtdoom]

Dear Gentlebeings,

I need your input. I need your tips. I need your help too....

After you read this, and get thinking about the information already here you might wonder why I need help?
Well, I started writing this after a series of housecalls.
The conditions I had to work in were less than ideal.
There are many things I may have approached the wrong way.
Things I did not think of at the time. And there are things I do not know how to solve.
This means, many loose ends, and questions.

You may have been in a bad spot, and found workable solutions?
Post them here, for one day... it will help.
---------------------------------

The following can happen to any of us.
One day in a future you find that...
Windows is not running well, and most accounts are quite botched up.
Windows Backup was (hardly ever or never) used, and you find it fails to run.
Windows frequently hangs when you are trying to straighten it out... it is really frustrating.

In XP... You find there is NO (updated) repair floppy and you do not find a repair or backup file on the hard drives.
That's your luck when you want to repair from the recovery console...
Too bad, really... Most people never make a repair floppy.
When you have one, you should also update it every once in a while.
When you boot from an XP CD to use recovery console for Windows repair, it will ask for the repair floppy...
Bear in mind that one can save backup sets to a folder on another hard drive, or other partition.

But, you are out of luck, there is none.
And you have tried just about everything to make windows run well again...

In short, one is at a point where one wants to save imporant data, before that format that will come...

[jtdoom]

Hi there,

I am sometimes asked to help people at home, and far too many times I learned that they would feel really sorry when they had lost the data in their email clients.
So, let's start with that.
------------

Windows still runs?
Even if it only runs in safe mode, count your blessings.

close your file managers, and go to control panel.
SET FOLDER OPTIONS
make it show hidden files and folders,
make it show KNOWN extentions
make it show system files too.
hit apply, and close.
-------------------

1
OUTLOOK (NOT OUTLOOK EXPRESS)

How to save data from Outlook (Outlook saves its data to files with .PST extention, hence they are referred to as the PST files)

Let me first tell you that OUTLOOK has an export function.
Export to file only saves what you select, and default is for only the current mails. For a full backup, you go up and select personal folders, tick all subfolders ON, and then proceed to save it to a new folder, and give the file a name like 20060612 (for 2006/may/12th)
The file Outlook itself uses is called outlook.pst, and you should NEVER give a file you personally export that name.
secundo; OUTLOOK has an auto-archiving function.
In options, one can configure the place for the archives and backups.
I let mine go to another drive.
Anyhow... You want to do that to save the data, (please do so) but on this particular day, Windows is not running all that well, and Outlook keels over or won't even start in that environment...

If windows still runs (in safe mode or normal mode) one can first make a folder where folders and files will have to be copied to. Please make that folder on another hard drive or on another partition since C: is going to be formatted later.
(give the folder a meaningful name, like SAVE, and use subfolders there with the user name or account name).
That folder and all those you put in there have got to be accessible to all... The admin account can do this.

Then, search the computer for *.pst ( asterisk dot pst ) and copy all the pst files found to this new folder.
Search is ran with option for advanced search enabled, you make it search hidden and system folders, and inside all folders.
The new folder with saved data should then be burned to CDRW (if the OS still runs, and burn still works...).
EVEN when you can burn, it should be saved to other hard drive or other partition.
(Other partition is less safe, and burns may turn out to be corrupted.)

If you have only one drive, then dump the results to the burner, so as to burn them to CDRW or DVDRW

Now you have a copy of backup.pst, archive.pst, and outlook.pst (and if you ever exported/saved selected parts to a folder in C: you'd have found the exported files too).

BTW, this works for Outlook 97, Outlook 98 and for
Outlook 2000, 2002 and 2003

If Windows is damaged so much that it won't run at all, remember that given enough time and knowledge of the DOS commands, one can do the copy job from a DOS prompt.
Windows 9x users have the use of xcopy.
now, if you have a hard drive with letter E:
C:
cd\
xcopy *.pst E:\pst\2006xxxx /s /i /e /h /y
the xxxx in 2006xxxx would be month/date
These files can be HUGE... a floppy won't do.

NOTE; In XP, the command prompt you run in a window has FAR more functionality than the prompt in the recovery console.
One finds one can run use xcopy from that windowed prompt...
when one launches the console by going RUN, cmd, you are in your personal documents and settings folder.
the best way to get all of them is
cd\
xcopy *.pst E:\pst\2006xxxx /s /i /e /h /y
These files can be HUGE... a floppy won't do.
with above command it has to go to another drive.
http://www.mdgx.com/newtip1.htm#XCOPY

if you have to use copy because you do not have another drive but C: it is going to be tortuous
c:
cd\
md save
md save\outlook
dir *.pst /s
(if you had PST backups, you will also see where these are found...)
cd documents and settings\local settings\youraccount\application data\microsoft\outlook

copy *.pst C:\save\outlook


---------
win 9x and winXP

SFC (for system file check and system file restore) may work from that windowed prompt as well.
When you use it, it will ask for the CD, or the network location of the source files you ran windows setup from.
If your luck ran out, and SFC tells you it cannot get the source files, you most likely will have to run setup after saving data.
(Also remember the files on the CD could be older than the version on drive, and if windows was damaged pretty much, putting old versions in by using SFC could later become a problem... this is true for all windows versions.)

about wildcards
the asterisk and question mark are wildcard signs in MsDos and the command prompt.
an asteriks is also called a star, and I have seen it called a bullet too...
a star can be for many characters
a question mark is wildcard for a single character (256 minus the forbidden chars)

*.* (star dot star) would mean all files...
*.pst would mean all files ending with the pst extention
12345678.d?x would go for about 240 variations of 12345678.d x
and 001*.* would mean all files with 001 as the first three characters in the name.

in a good command window, you can use wildcards in COPY.
in a good command window, you could use XCOPY with wildcards.
In XP safe mode prompt only, forget w
Wildcards in COPY.
In XP safe mode prompt only, forget XCOPY. It just won't run.

------

I wondered how many are aware of the export function in Outlook, and all of the choices you have there?
You can use the export function to save to PST, and save selected (or all of) the current mails or folders to another hard disk or other partition, in a folder you make for the account, and give the saved file a name of your choice.
For backup purposes, I go to the top, for all personal folders and subfolders, and I do NOT compress...

Forewarned people can do better...
For OUTLOOK
Supported Operating Systems: Windows 2000 Service Pack 3; Windows 98 Second Edition; Windows ME; Windows XP
Personal folder backup tool from Microsoft
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=8b081f3a-b7d0-4b16-b8af-5a6322f4fd01&displaylang=en
use it while the machine runs well
It is not going to work on outlook 97 and 98, but will work on outlook 2003, 2002 and 2000:

it is described here
http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/assistance/HA010875321033.aspx

Erm, there is probably more to this.
I have no idea how many outlook.PST files you will find when there is more than one user account in XP.
I do know that I have a cybertechhelp.pst file in my Jaak account.
I must also tell you the pfbackup tool has limits.
It works for the account it was installed in, and has to be uninstalled to be installed for another account.
So, machines with multiple accounts either go through this hassle, or they simply use the export function.
You see, as long as windows and outlook runs, each account CAN export to file.
The pfbackup tool only makes this function more accessible to ONE account.

----------


2

OUTLOOK EXPRESS
How to save Outlook Express data
(and what about the identity or identities?)

After one learns how much time it takes to save this without using a download (Windows can be so botched getting online is a nightmare), then one can appreciate the tools one finds on the Internet, and uses them while Windows still runs.
I do recommend you start using the tools available to you, but you may be working on a machine that does not have such tools, so, you will want to know what to save when you are in a bad spot...

Does each user have an identity?
From what I have learned, yes, they have.

Does each user have a folder with dbx ?
Yes.
So, we need to find a way to make a working backup of all the identities, and all the email folders, and the address books.

First, you make new folder(s) on another hard drive or other partition, and you use meaningful name(s) (like account user name).

Then we use search function
Search is ran with option for advanced search enabled, make it search hidden and system folders, and look inside all folders, starting from root of C:

For Outlook Express you first search for folders with *.dbx files.
These folders do NOT contain the addressbook.
Copy the entire folder contaning DBX into new folder

The addressbook is a *.wab file
Search for *.wab
Copy the folder containing WAB into new folder.

then you can also search for a *.iaf file
this is the account settings file.

copy that to the folder you made for this user

once you have done this for all users, one can burn all this data for re-importing on the fresh installation.

And NOW, for the forewarned...
There is a tool one can use on a working computer, for identities OE

http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=http://support.microsoft.com%2Fdirectory%2Fworldwide%2Fen-gb%2Foutrules.asp

the tool referenced in that article is here
http://www.insideoutlookexpress.com/resources/tools.htm

-----------

3

How to save online Messenger files and mail recieved through Messenger
(Hallmark cards, for instance).
Not knowing about this one almost caused me to get my head bitten off once...
Which is what sparked the idea for this topic.
After the reinstall and all updating, we finally went on the net.
The little girl had all her online stuff still online, but Mama seemed to have lost her important MSN Messenger mails.
Some weeks later, I was told she did get that hallmark card back... Maybe her daughter helped her do that right...
(I had copied the entire documents and settings folder to a second partition, maybe that was where they found it, I dunno)
I do not use MSN nor Messenger.

I can only save data that is on the drive, and wonder where such would wind up, and what extention these files would have.
---------

4

When only half of the household is there, you may get no access to certain folders.
(touchy one, this... does one have to hack into accounts?)
(I had admin rights in safe mode, and this machine had a user folder forbidden to even admin. I was afraid this geeky guy would have used encryption on some files and folders, and warned him about the danger therein. He logged in, but still he failed to tell me where and what his other important data was, and he did lose music and movies when the C: on this machine got formatted.)

5
Even when all family members are there, you may later find out they plonked data they think is important in folders so deeply buried in unexpected places, you dont come across them by a simple and quick eyeballing of folders you think are important.

note; I had to ask what email clients they used. One used hotmail and OE, daddy used outlook and hotmail, and others used msn messenger and as it turned out, OE.
Ergo; one WILL have to look for *.dbx and *.pst in all accounts, since some users get to use hidden folders.
And, same thing goes for other filetypes...
-----------
6

This is about accounts

I found a good link about IAF files
http://www.canadaemails.com/import-mail-settings.htm

While I think about it, your internet service provider configuration file for IE might have been stored in an *.INS
(could be named like signup.ins)
When I have to install a free ISP account for people (for telephone modem connections), I save that ISP setup file in a folder called ISP_acct.
I also print that... and it is copied onto a CDRW...

Even when the online installation was automated, the INS file may still have been copied to your hard disk.
(There is usually an option to right click when the page says the internet settings are going to be changed, and that way the file can be saved...)
You could look for it.
One can view these INS files with notepad.
You don't go about that one by one, tho.
The ISP's account file will show account details, registered adress, shown name, email_adress, account password, and pop smtp dns etc...
Knowing that, one can run a search for a good keyword to be found as text within the found *.ins files, and you will find the ISP's info if present.

You found it? GREAT... You can still print?
Do it, for just saving that file will not mean anything to most when the login details and that all important password was forgotten.
The printout will have the password...
Having a copy of that ins file and paper printout when the ISP's paper work got mislaid usually results in getting a hug.

Having the copy of the INS file saves time when you get to configuration of the ISP account.
Just a doubleclick and Internet explorer says, "this will change your internet settings, do you want to proceed with this?"
Erm, YES, and viola...

-----------

7

In a household, different users will often have their own preferred email client, so it is wise to search and save all the installed email client type's files...
For other data files related to programs the users use... You start saving other application's data.
One can search for files associated to these programs.
MP3, MP4, jpg, doc, xls, etcetera, etcetera.
A known extention will often lead to a folder with other data that application put there.
One can find out what program uses which extention on the internet.

In a real crisis, one could probaly save that data while the hard drive got hooked up to another machine...

And now, something for the forewarned...
The migration wizard.
aka the FAST tool

This is a tool one can find in system tools in windows XP, but it is also on the CD.
On a still working system, insert the XP install CD, it autoruns if you let it, and to prepare, you choose something called other tasks.

The menu it offers shows option to save settings for transferring settings to another computer.
Follow the options, and one can save settings and data into a folder.
(It will offer you choices... cable connected machine, floppy or removable drive, or to make folder on a networked drive, but a local hard disk is also accepted.)

You have to weigh space requirements against available space.
You see, it can save all sort of documents for you, and default setting will save a gigamongous lot of them.
It is going to pick up data off ALL drives, and compresses it to the folder you directed it to... so you can see it easily tallies up to MANY gigabytes, so... forget floppy?
You could soon consider using a second hard disk to accept all that data.
You could then burn this to many CDRW(s) or to DVDRW(s)

Oh, when I first used this program, I ran that tool from CD, and I am kinda weird guy... so I scrolled thru the list, and noticed the migration tool does not mention PST.
I added
*.iaf
*.dbx
*.pst
(and killed some I know I don't want)

That tool I just described should be installed by default.
BACKUP is not always installed.
XP HOME users, do you see a hint here?
----------

8

With access to another computer and some feel for hardware, one can connect the drive to another machine... Of course, in another computer, you would then not be searching C:

There are times I can simply copy the windows partition C: to a huge empty hard drive I connect for the occasion, then disconnect the copy, and I can then run the format and do setup. I realise that is not an option to all folks, though.

If you have a second hard drive in there with ample space, know that xcopy and copy have fairly advanced switches ( XCOPY /? ), so you can xcopy most of the drive's folders to a folder on that other drive.
It beats searching for all this stuff...
(note; documents and settings folder is a huge folder, and stil it does not contain all of the files you will need to satisfy people. It's sometimes wise to have all but the swapfile, recycle.bin, hybernation file, system volume information, and/or restore folders copied over...)

---------
9

Once you have the system running a fresh updated windows, with an updated Antivirus, you then scan the computer to make sure there are no nasties anywhere in the copied data.
And after scanning, one can burn this data to DVDR discs.
After the burning got done, one can just as well leave the copy on the drive until all data is put back where one really needs it.
After a good while, one can reclaim the space the copy uses by deleting the folder you saved the data to.

------
10
HERE IS A WARNING...
Encrypted files can become unusable... If you have encrypted files, you try the best you can to get windows stable enough so as not having to format, and if that format will happen anyhow, FIRST save them files unencrypted to a safe drive.

also note that some subfolders can become inaccessible.
(This happened to a friend with a failing hard drive. I could recover almost all of the drive's data, we put a new drive in, and ran setup...Later on we found a folder of that rescued data that just don't allow us to access it. )
--------

Mishy has done great tutes that can help you.
HOW TO GET TO SAFE MODE
http://www.cybertechhelp.com/tutorial/article/how-to-boot-into-safe-mode

HOW TO SHOW HIDDEN FILES
http://www.cybertechhelp.com/tutorial/article/how-to-show-hidden-files

HOW TO BACK UP YOUR EMAIL
http://www.cybertechhelp.com/tutorial/article/how-to-backup-your-email

HOW TO MAKE FOLDERS
http://www.cybertechhelp.com/tutorial/article/how-to-create-folders
(from the command prompt; please note that MKDIR and MD will do the same for you...)

Dear gentlebeings,
this is going to be a work in progress.

I don't know the solutions to some of the problems I mention, some of which I encountered during house visits.
The conditions I had to work in were bad at times, and you can be in that spot too...
I feel this is just a starting point in a learning curve.

Let us learn, so we can help each other all the better.
Let us also hope that none of us ever have to use difficult and time consuming methods as a last ditch effort.

Do you know about workable methods? Go ahead, hit that reply button...

[jtdoom]

know the main title is about saving data, but I never said one should give up easily and format before at least trying to get the system run good (enough) again.
See, on that baddy I had to save the data from, the geeky son's account was the most stable one, and I did some of the work from within there.
All the data we copied was put in folders everybody could access, and the burning got done from that fairly stable account.

The better you get windows running, the less frustrating it is to do what you have to do for saving the data.

So, let's point you to a repair tool.
Oh yes, you can also use it in XP...
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=56D3C201-2C68-4DE8-9229-CA494362419C&displaylang=en

here you see what working from the console looks like
http://www.wown.com/j_helmig/wxprcons.htm

and this page has taught me many things.
http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm

[jtdoom]

putting the data back in outlook express
After re-installing Windows, you make the accounts, and from what I learned, these fresh accounts have a new ID key....

you are going to import from the files you saved, and some were in hidden folders.
We have several methods to copy data, and some methods will "unhide" hidden files (a copy will not keep that attribute), but other methods result in a copy of data where files are still hidden...
So let us keep it simple, and FIRST, set folder options to show hidden files and folders, and make it show extentions.

When I first tried import it was a trial and error process, but I managed to find a way to import from the copy I had saved.

In Outlook Express, you use import
If you used OE6 before the format, you have to use OE6, not a lower version.

You make sure you are doing this for each person's account... and/or for the identities this user has.
If you were lucky, you got the IAF file, so recreating identities could also be done.

For importing messages in an account
you hit import
you hit messages
you are presented a program listing
you select OE (in this case oe6)
you select from archived file
you point it to the folder you had tha data saved in for this user
and then select all folders

the following is not really clear to me as I have not yet worked on such s system, but I have seen that in OE an account can have more than one identity.
If a user had more than one identity, you would have found his files too.
Click from the other identity, then point it to the saved data for this identity.

You have to import the adressbook in yet another session of import.

Remember that the addressbook *.wab was in a different folder than the *.dbx files were in.
I was lucky - when I saved, I gave the folders the username to remember whose files it were and I had them together... but it really helps that the filename itself is based on username.

Far as I know, in OUTLOOK EXPRESS each user will have to import its own files from within its own new account.

(Sidenote; with Outlook, the current data is in a single pst file rather than spread over several files. Small wonder I have always prefered Outlook over OE. Just don't forget to copy archive.pst and backup.pst so the user can find back really old mails when they are needed.)

When you are done with all the imports, and got the other data where it belonged, get back to folder options, and reset this to defaults.

[jtdoom]

hi guys,

you bet I want to learn about what can make system restore malfunction when you need to roll back to an earlier restore-point.
And if possible, how to repair the function from within windows...

first I searched a bit about XP

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/h...ew_03may19.mspx (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/getstarted/ballew_03may19.mspx)

at the bottom of that article, that gentle woman says...
Do I Still Have to Use Backup?
System Restore is no substitute for regularly backing up your data. System Restore comes into play when your computer becomes unstable. System Restore can't be used if your hard drive fails or is melted down in a fire, because the information that System Restore uses is stored on the hard drive itself. To create regular backups of your data and computer system state, use the Backup utility in Windows XP.
To open Backup:
• Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Backup.

When you use Backup, save the backup information to a disk or an external drive for safekeeping. If there's a catastrophic failure, such as a hard drive crash, this backup can be used to restore the data after the hardware repair is complete. See Backup and Recover Your Information, Use Backup to Protect Information, and Backup Overview for more coverage on Backup.

Remember, regularly backup your data, make sure that System Restore has enough free space to run, and let Windows XP do the rest.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/s...ted/backup.mspx (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/getstarted/backup.mspx)
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/s...ore/backup.mspx (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/security/learnmore/backup.mspx)
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documen...s_ntbackup.mspx (http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/what_is_ntbackup.mspx)

There is a Frequently Asked Questions page there too
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechn...n/faqsrwxp.mspx (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/plan/faqsrwxp.mspx)

Some of the answers there tell us what can cause it to fail, what is useful in itself.
(answers show when you click on question, if you have java script enabled, that is...)
--------

I was also searching for problems with windows scanreg /restore in windows 98

1)
Bug Reports and Fixes
Scanreg /Restore fails to restore registry

Symptom:
While trying to restore the registry using SCANREG /RESTORE command at a C prompt in MSDOS mode, you receive an error stating that the System Restore failed.
Issue:
A third party program such as Norton Unerase may have the drive's disk access locked, causing the scanreg /restore utility to fail.
Resolution:
1. Reboot Windows 98 and press F8 to bring up the startup menu. 2. Select step-by-step start and load only HIMEM.SYS (and DoubleSpace, if needed). 3. Run SCANREG /RESTORE.

2)
Restoring the Windows Registry
Problem: Reloading a previous version of the Windows Registry. I have a system registry error and need to restore my registry without reinstalling windows 95 all over again and if I do need to reinstall it I do not want everything that is on the CD disc and do not want to lose the files I have on there now. Please help.

Answer: It is possible for you to restore your registry only if you have not successfully booted into Windows 95 or 98 since your problem occurred. The following is an excerpt from the Windows 95 Resource Kit. "Each time Windows 95 successfully starts, the operating system backs up the Registry by copying the current SYSTEM.DAT and USER.DAT files to SYSTEM.DA0 and USER.DA0, respectively.

"If Windows 95 fails to start, the backed-up Registry from the last successful startup can be copied over the current Registry. This method recovers the last successful settings after a system failure."

If this doesn't work you can reinstall Windows into its current directory which will usually repair a corrupt version of Windows and does not require reloading your programs (read our articles for instructions on how to do this). It may or may not repair your registry.

I recommend that Windows 95 users should browse the windows 95 CD and install ERU utility.
this will install to a folder, where you then have ERD.
the snapshots you make can be saved to hard disk too, and ERD will run from a dosprompt...
This often saved the day for me, back when I used windows 95.
(I installed it on the machines I built back then too)
-----------------------------------------------------


the lucky ones have it, smart ones use it.

examples of what they might have;
acronis
ghost
drive image
...

the lucky ones got a drive cloning tool bundled with the machine or motherboard or hard drive they bought...

some got it bundled with a utilities suite...

and some guys I know use Karen Kenworthy's replicator
http://www.karenware.com/powertools/ptreplicator.asp

[jtdoom]

Hi again
Lets's assume you are a user running a fat16 or fat32 formatted hard drive, and have a boot floppy that will read the drive...
You are in a real bind, cannot connect the hard drive into another machine, and would like to make all hidden files visible to simple commands and you have to do this in real mode from the DOS command prompt.

ATTRIB is the tool you could use.

C:
cd\
attrib *.* -h /s /d
(oh yes, that will run for a while... but the time lost by losing data would surely be worse. Quite often you find that some sorts of data is not ever reproducable...)

I am not a geeky command prompt guru, yet, I will mention that one could start like this.
set dircmd = /s /w /o /p /a:h (works in all DOS and windows versions)

with /a:h DIR will show hidden files.
If your result of a search for *.dbx with DIR shows there are such files in many folders, what often is the case... then one will use attrib on that entire drive. I would, because missing a folder would probably have me make mistakes when I get to copy data.

I MOST definately prefer using XCOPY over COPY.

What when you want to copy a file?
At the prompt, copy of a correctly typed (name.ext) file will work even when the file is hidden, whereas copy *.* (star dotstar) would skip hidden files if attrib had not set it unhidden.

However, XCOPY, with the correct options, will copy just about anything you want.

Attrib will take a long time running the entire hard disk, and with files telling you where they are at, you can run attrib for the folders you want, and its subfolders.
example
attrib "C:\documents and settings" -h /s /d
attrib "C:\documents and settings"\*.* -h -s /s /d would do all files and subfolders and the files in subfolders
the -s removes system tag
the -h removes hidden tag

(note that at the prompt, when you specify a folder with a long name or a long name with spaces in it, like "documents and settings", you use "quotation marks"

I thought I should try explain about this, because some windows users may boot from a floppy, and might not have XCOPY available.
Hmmm...
you have booted from floppy...
C:
dir xcop*.* /s
(in windows 98 you find xcopy.exe and xcopy32.mod)
A:
copy C:\windows\command\xcop*.*
(that is where they normally are in windows 98)
and now you have it on the floppy too, so you can use it...

here's an example of how one can use XCOPY...
from the command prompt
xcopy C:\*.dbx /e /h /i /c D:\save001
now, there are other files in the folders where *.dbx files are in... and you want the entire folder.
so, let me show another example
xcopy "C:\documents and settings"\*.* /e /h /i /c D:\save001


in XP, things are different.
try this, in XP, from cmd prompt
dir /?
you see a list of the options, and with /Q, you'll see the users the files types you searched for belong to.
Now, if the filename don't tell you whose file it was, that would...
so, I would set the DIR command to behave like this for the session at the prompt.
set dircmd = /Q /s /w /o /p /a:h

and what do you see when you do xcopy /?
there you see an option /G
I am really curious about that one now... I saw that it mentions encryption.
It is high time I get me XP for dummies... it might explain this.
Oh, I realised I just repeated that old tip.
a command followed by /? will tell you at least something of what it can do.

And while I talk about the prompt, I really hate the limitations in that XP prompt...
I know I hated the XP command prompt and its copy functions when I ran the prompt from recovery console... I start to hate this even more... one is in a mess, and may not be able to do something as simple like copy and xcopy between drives.

At least, if windows is not totally bollixed, one can run commands in a window in safe mode.

I once got to work on a computer where checksum errors caused a failure to boot to safe mode too and I had to transfer files putting its hard disk in another machine because the recovery console was of no help in this.
I did a few swaps and copy, each time to see different files wih checksum error preventing windows to load... and finally, after a few more files were copied it booted, but many functions still didn't work at all.
(sfc failed from the safe mode command prompt... The only tool I could work from was task manager... Could not run help from the start menu, nor could I use RUN dialog... it was THAT bad... The windows CDROM didn't let me do an upgrade... )
And yes, system repair utility was of no help.

Charlie White's solution could have worked, maybe, as I did see old snapshots while it was in my machine... but I didn't go for it I had found nasties when I scanned that drive... and I did not want to have them majestically reappear after spending far too much time on this...
It would have been an interesting experiment, but the important data was already saved, and a fresh legal copy of windows replaced the blackflag copy this one ran....

[jtdoom]

Hi

Windows XP has ASR (automatic system recovery)

1. ASR is not fully supported on home edition.

XP HOME CD has a folder called VALUEADD\MSFT\NTBACKUP
In there is a file to install Ntbackup, and it has a readme.

IF you install NtBackup from the CD to the Home Edition, ASR functionality will appear to work fine during
the backup session. Since the setup does not support ASR in the home edition, there is no way to initiate the ASR restore in case of a disaster. If you need to restore from this session, install Windows XP manually
and then restore from the ASR media.

2. Backup to CDRW

If you decide to backup to a CDRW, you cannot target that device directly. You must create a backup set of 650MB or less and backup to a file. After the file is complete, copy the file to the CDRW.

Please refer to the readme for XP home edition for additional notes.

The additional info is found in the root of the CD, in a file called
setupxp.html

there you find a link about using system restore.
That gets you to the info we seek, and part of it is on the internet.
I put the link about HOME in the first spot, since these folks have to manually install this utility.
Users with the PRO version have somewhat more luck.
But, the HOME version of Ntbackup is much better than nothing, and can still do the job.

The htm about system restore and repair has this section...

You can access the restore portion by pressing F2 when prompted in the text-mode portion of Setup. ASR reads the disk configurations from the file that it creates. It restores all the disk signatures, volumes, and partitions on the disks that you need to start the computer. ASR will try to restore all the disk configurations, but under some circumstances it might not be able to. ASR then installs a simple installation of Windows and automatically starts a restoration using the backup created by the ASR Wizard.
For more information about system recovery and repair, see the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles:

302700 (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=302700): An Error Message Is Displayed When You Attempt to Use the Automated System Recovery Wizard in Windows XP Home Edition
818903 (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=818903): Automated System Recovery Overview in Windows XP
322756 (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=322756): How to Back Up, Edit, and Restore the Registry in Windows XP
306084 (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=306084): How to Restore the Operating System to a Previous State in Windows XP
304449 (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=304449): How to Start the System Restore Tool from a Command Prompt in Windows XPThis means that you install it while the going is good, and do your backup routines as you should.
Then, when disaster strikes, windows gets to be repaired, and you AGAIN have to install ntbackup so as to be able to get the backed up data into the repaired windows.

Kind regards, Jaak

[jtdoom]

Hi,

that disaster scenario I described, what will finally result in a format to do a re-installation happened to real people...
Believe me that when I try fix a machine with a bluescreening windows, one of the things I will eventually try is to go back to a previous working windows.
Windows 98 did not really protect system files, it just got you back to an earlier configuration by restoring from earlier registry files..
If executable files or DLL's got missing or were replaced by bad versions, you could still be sunk deep, as it hard to repair them one by one.
SFC is a good tool which is mentioned quite frequently.
and so is EXT, (this runs from real mode DOS)

Anyhow, within windows 98 one has scanregw and one could do scanreg /restore from a command prompt.
That was better than nothing.
Sometimes one found that this failed you because the service did not load at the first boot of the day, and the last good configuration was way too old..

Millenium has it as well, and Millennium started protecting system files too..

In XP, it evolved into something one can most times rely on.
Now, in XP, the feature may have been wittingly disabled or it just got bust by mishap. Once disabled, one would think there was no way one could go back to a previous state.

if you did not use the windows disk cleanup utility, there is a high probability that old restore points are still there, even when not acessible to system restore...

The following is about XP system restore points, and you will have to decide if you want to try it.

I mentioned Charlie White..

Many months ago, I saved the following txt from a site.
--------------------------------------

Credits for this belong to Charlie White, writer of this article.

----
Windows XP Crashed?
Here's Help
A salvage mission into the depths of Windows XP, explained by Charlie White

PC users, you all know what it is: That dreaded Blue Screen of Death. That's right, the BSOD. You've installed a seemingly innocent application, restarted your computer, and suddenly you see this horror in front of your eyes: A big blue screen with some cryptic message on it. Try restarting again, same thing. You're dead. What will you do? What WILL you do?? Well, don't let it ruin your day. Remain calm. If you're using Windows XP, I can help you fix it. Come with me, down into the bowels of Windows XP, where only the high priests go. It'll be fun!

I'm going to show you how to bring your computer back to life, and restore it to the point where things went south. You might want to print this article and squirrel it away for that fateful day when this happens to you. Or if you don't want to print it (and who prints anything these days, anyway?), and you get a big ugly blue screen, just get on another computer somewhere and come back to this Web page for comfort and advice. I can get you out of this mess. I know, because I was in the same mess and I got myself out of it.

Here's what to do: First, get the Windows XP CD you used to install your operating system. By the way, this routine only works with Windows XP, either Professional or XP Home Edition. If you don't have a bootable XP CD, get one and have it with you at all times, because you never know when the dreaded BSOD might strike.

But before you do anything with that CD, try restarting your computer again. Sometimes, for some odd reason, this works.

Usually not, though. If you've tried that and everything else you can think of, and you can't even boot into Safe Mode, this is the mission for you.

Put the XP CD in the drive, and restart. When it says "press any key to boot from CD," go ahead, press any key and you're on your way to recovery. The Recovery Console, that is. If it doesn't give you a choice to boot from your CD drive, go into your computer's BIOS and make the adjustment for it to boot from CD. PCs brands and motherboards are too diverse for me to give you specifics on this, so follow the prompts and you can make that CD boot happen without too much trouble. Look at your screen when it boots up, and it always says "hit DEL for BIOS settings" or something similar. If you can't get it to boot from CD, just give up and call for support or take your computer to the nearest computer store for professional help.
OK, troops, are you still with me? Good. It'll look like you're re-installing Windows XP, but don't worry, you're not.
This is just a screen showing you that your computer is loading enough files from the CD to actually do something, anything but that awful blue screen. Now when you see the screen that asks you if you want to install Windows, don't! Just hit R for recover, and you'll see the ominous Recovery Console. Don't let that intimidate you; the Recovery Console is your ugly, black-suited friend. It will have a dark, bleak screen, with the following stuff:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Microsoft Windows(R) Recovery Console

The Recovery Console provides system repair and recovery functionality.
Type EXIT to quit the Recovery Console and restart the computer.

1: C:\WINDOWS

Which Windows Installation would you like to log onto
(To cancel, press ENTER)?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Go ahead and hit the number 1 on your keyboard, or whichever number corresponds to the operating system you were using when havoc struck. Enter your administrator password, and then hit enter. You're in! Now it's time to run with the big dogs! Do not be afraid, dear reader, I am here to help you.

If you type the following commands into your computer, it will work magic, akin to going back in time. There are three parts to this process, but believe me, they take much less time than reinstalling Windows XP and all your applications. So follow along with me, and keep in mind that each command must be typed exactly as you see it here. Please note that this procedure assumes that Windows XP is installed to the C:\Windows folder. Make sure to change C:\Windows to the appropriate windows folder if it's at a different location. The copy commands will answer you with a little "file copied" message. The delete commands just move on to the next line. Because of the way your Web browser displays individual lines, a command might look to you like it's two lines, so I've separated each command by an empty line. But anyway, type the whole command in one line, and when you've finished typing that command, hit the Enter key. Be sure to include the spaces I've included between each word here:

md tmp

copy C:\windows\system32\config\system C:\windows\tmp\system.bak

copy C:\windows\system32\config\software C:\windows\tmp\software.bak

copy C:\windows\system32\config\sam C:\windows\tmp\sam.bak

copy C:\windows\system32\config\security C:\windows\tmp\security.bak

copy C:\windows\system32\config\default C:\windows\tmp\default.bak

delete C:\windows\system32\config\system

delete C:\windows\system32\config\software

delete C:\windows\system32\config\Sam

delete C:\windows\system32\config\security

delete C:\windows\system32\config\default

copy C:\windows\repair\system C:\windows\system32\config\system

copy C:\windows\repair\software C:\windows\system32\config\software

copy C:\windows\repair\sam C:\windows\system32\config\sam

copy C:\windows\repair\security C:\windows\system32\config\security

copy C:\windows\repair\default C:\windows\system32\config\default

Now you can relax for a minute. You've made it through the first part! Way to go! Now what did you just do? I'll tell you.
You first made a temporary directory called "tmp" (md tmp), and then into it, you copied all the files that boot up Windows.
Then you deleted all those startup files, one of which is the stinker that got you into this mess in the first place. After that, you copied into that same place fresh startup files from a special repair directory. When you reboot, Windows will look for those files where it always does, and there won't be a stinker in the bunch. The only thing is, there won't be all your settings for all those applications you run every day, either. But not to worry. Right now, you're sitting in something like a lifeboat -- it's not the original ship, but it'll get you back to where you need to go. We'll get everything back to that comfortable place, but only after we go through steps 2 and 3.

Now type Exit and watch your computer restart into Windows XP again. Be sure not to tell it to boot from the CD this time.
But wait. That's not the way you had XP set up before this disaster struck! That's OK. We're in a lifeboat right now -- this isn't your comfy cruise ship, not just yet. Hang in there. I'm going to show you how to restore your system to the way it was the moment before you told it to install that errant application, or whatever it was you did, so follow along and we'll go to part 2.

Part 2
Here's where you'll copy the saved registry files from their backed up location by using System Restore. This folder is not available in Recovery Console and is normally not visible -- Microsoft is protecting you from yourself by hiding it from you and locking it away from you. But we have the keys. Before you start this procedure, you'll need to change several settings to make that folder visible:

1. Start Windows Explorer.
2. On the Tools menu, click Folder options.
3. Click the View tab.
4. Under Hidden files and folders, click to select Show hidden files and folders, and then click to clear the "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)" check box.

5. Click Yes when the dialog box is displayed that confirms that you want to display these files.
6. Double-click the drive where you installed Windows XP to get a list of the folders. It's important to click the correct drive.
7. Open the System Volume Information folder. This folder appears dimmed because it is set as a super-hidden folder. If you're using the FAT32 file system, this will be easy. If you're using NTFS, it won't let you open the folder, but here's how to get around that:
Right-click on that system volume information folder and select Sharing and Security.
Then click the Security tab. (No security tab? Skip two paragraphs.)
Click Add, and then in the box that's labeled "Enter the object names to select," type the name of the user that's at the top of the Start menu -- that's probably you. [Damn it, why do they say object names when it's people's names? I guess that's Microsoft for you.]

Anyway, make sure you type the name the way it's listed there on the Start Menu. I made the mistake of typing my first name only and it wouldn't let me in. Type first and last name if that's how it's written on the top of the Start menu. After you've typed that in, click OK a couple of times and finally that monster will let you in.

But what if you don't see a Security tab? Try this: Click to select the checkboxes in the "Network sharing and security" area
-- one is labeled "Share this folder on the network" and the other is labeled "Allow network users to change my files."

Change the share name to something short, like sysinfo. Then it'll let you in. After you're done with this entire rescue operation, you might want to go back and change these back to the way they were before, for maximum security.

OK. Now here you are, in the inner sanctum where only the high priests go. Be not afraid, all ye who enter here. As Microsoft so eloquently puts it:

NOTE : This folder contains one or more _restore {GUID} folders such as "_restore{87BD3667-3246-476B-923F-F86E30B3E7F8}".

8. Open a folder that was not created at the current time. You may have to click Details on the View menu to see when these folders were created. There may be one or more folders starting with "RP x under this folder. These are restore points.

9. Open one of these folders to locate a Snapshot subfolder; the following path is an example of a folder path to the Snapshot folder:

C:\System Volume Information\_restore{D86480E3-73EF-47BC-A0EB-A81BE6EE3ED8}RP1Snapshot

From the Snapshot folder, copy the following files to the C:\Windows\Tmp folder (you can use your mouse, you're in Windows now, remember?):
_registry_user_.default
_registry_machine_security
_registry_machine_software
_registry_machine_system
_registry_machine_sam

This is how Microsoft explains this: "These files are the backed up registry files from System Restore. Because you used the registry file created by Setup, this registry does not know that these restore points exist and are available. A new folder is created with a new GUID under System Volume Information and a restore point is created that includes a copy of the registry files that were copied during part one. This is why it is important not to use the most current folder, especially if the time stamp on the folder is the same as the current time."

Anyway, you're still not done. Don't worry, the magic is about to begin. Believe me, if you do this in front of your friends, they'll start thinking you're some kind of god. So, heavenly father, get ready to dazzle 'em.

Now it's time to place those files you just made visible to the Recovery console where they belong. And to do that, we need to get back into the Recovery Console. So, make sure your CD is in the drive, and restart Windows, this time hitting any key when it tells you to do that if you want to boot from CD. Yes, you want to boot from CD, so you can launch your old cryptic pal, the Recovery Console. Type R after it goes through that file-reading routine that looks like an install but isn't. Then you're back into our dark-suited friend with its ominous command line. It's kinda like going into the basement to fix some broken pipe or something. But we're not scared. The command line is our flashlight and friend. Here we go:

Part 3
In part three, you delete the existing registry files, and then copy the System Restore Registry files to the
C:\Windows\System32\Config folder:

From within Recovery Console, type the following commands:

Del c:\windows\system32\config\sam

Del c:\windows\system32\config\security

Del c:\windows\system32\config\software

Del c:\windows\system32\config\default

Del c:\windows\system32\config\system

copy c:\windows\tmp\_registry_machine_software c:\windows\system32\config\software

copy c:\windows\tmp\_registry_machine_system c:\windows\system32\config\system

copy c:\windows\tmp\_registry_machine_sam c:\windows\system32\config\sam

copy c:\windows\tmp\_registry_machine_security c:\windows\system32\config\security

copy c:\windows\tmp\_registry_user_.default c:\windows\system32\config\default

Now. You're done! Type exit and your computer will reboot into whichever restore file you chose. But wait. If it's not the right one, that's OK, you can now go into your System Restore area and pick a different restore point if you want. There's a whole calendar full of them in there. I bet you didn't know that Windows XP is watching just about every move you make, taking notes all the while. It can restore about any state you had on that machine. And the best part is, even when it's doing all that, it's still 10% faster than Windows 2000 according to our extensive tests here at the Midwest Test Facility.

Here's how to get into that restore area if you're not happy with the current restore point:
1. Click Start, then click All Programs.
2. Click Accessories, and then click System Tools.
3. Click System Restore, and then click Restore to a previous Restore Point.

Sheesh, before this I hated the command line. Many of you probably still do. But when it saves your butt like this, you have to feel grateful. I should send out a badge of courage for all you intrepid souls who followed me into these dark gallows, the basement of Windows XP. I hope this routine was successful in bringing your computer back to life. I know how it feels to have your computer down for the count. As a wise old man once told me, "When your computer crashes, it's like your dog just died." He was so right. Excuse me now, I'm going to go get some work done on my Mac.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Charlie White has been writing about new media and digital video since it was the laughingstock of the television industry. A

technology journalist and columnist for the past eight years, White is also an Emmy-winning producer, video editor and

shot-calling PBS TV director with 27 years broadcast experience. Talk back -- Send Chazz a note at cwhite@digitalmedianet.com
------------
the article was found on this page
http://www.digitalwebcast.com/2002/03_mar/tutorials/cw_boot_toot.htm

[Nick Grana]

Good book, JT. Is this the 'For Dummies' Edition?:D
Backup has been in my vocabulary for 30 years and for all the good it does to harp on it, some will just not get it until a catastrophic failure appears.
Don't put critical backups on the same drive you use everyday.
I've seen presidents of large companies break down and cry when I asked for their backup. "Backups?":sad:
In the tape backup days, I saw so many that thought they were on top of things until I told them all the backups they made were worthless. No one had thought to restore anything from those tapes just to verify the backup process was working. I could go on but you get the drift. I've dealt with it a long, long time and finally just don't give a hoot. If your data is so critical and you have no backups, then I have no sympathy for you. Sorry bout that, Chief.:happy:

[jtdoom]

Hi Nick,

I hope it is a first chapter... an eye opener, as it were...

free tools like the replicator, or Microsoft's suitcase folder, and the XP synctoy could be handy, even when they are designed for different purposes.

the new synctoy for XP is found here
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=e0fc1154-c975-4814-9649-cce41af06eb7&DisplayLang=en

One also wants to avoid having to download up to date drivers all over again...
(The version that works well and installed easily, should be burnt to CDR and be kept in a safe place... The original driver CD is not always your best friend. )

[jtdoom]

hi

that outlook.pst file you saved can fail while importing
(and you find data, but not all of it, afterwards.)

OR, it does not wanna import whatsoever...
What the Heck...
Just What the heck IS that repair tool What Clippy tells you about?

I mean, outlook help don't get me there.

It can fail during import, even when the PST is much much smaller than 2 gigabyte.

A packrat I know had many copies of recieved emails and their attachments in several folders, and the PST became 2 Gigabyte.
he could no longer recieve emails.
I exported the file, then we cleaned up. Quite Drastically..

a few hours later, he had re-imported so much, he again reached the 2Gb ceiling. Once again, he could no longer recieve emails.