Problems with login for Win XP

[darkcsboy]

The problem started when I was moving a hard drive from my pc to a new case but later I just decided to leave it there. So then I just left my hard drive unscrewed still in the old pc and what I think happened was that when I was moving my computer back to original position the hard drive touched some of the metal and it burned out the power supply, motherboard, and the cpu and I'm not really sure what happened.

I didn't even know it was still unscrewed because I had closed the case and just left my pc on. So then it burned out and I couldn't even turn on my pc anymore. My pc is a Pentium III 800 Mhz and I'm not sure of what the motherboard or power supply is. I was thinking of getting a new motherboard and power supply to replace the broken ones because they are probably damaged to badly to repair. Now that my computer wasn't operating anymore I had to switch to a new computer and that's what I did.

The operating system for the new pc is Win XP Home Edition and it was working fine at first until I installed McAfee VirusScan and the computer sort of froze there or something. I could still move the mouse but nothing happened when I clicked and I also tried ctrl + alt + delete but it didn't work either. Since the new pc didn't have a reset button I had to shut the power off and on again. I could get to the login screen but after I'm logged on to my account it just freezes there and I can't click anything even though I see all the programs I installed on my desktop.

I kept trying to restart my computer hoping that it would work but the problem seemed to get worse. At the startup screen I decided to use Safe Mode by pusing F8 and then choosing it. I want to figure out how I can run Win Xp normally without formatting. I have also tried System Restore but that won't work either. After that I tried the Recovery Console and my question is "Can I use the Windows 2000 Recovery Console for Win Xp?" I can't find my Win xp cd but I do have Windows 2000. I want to know if Windows 2000 and Xp are compatible like if they run on the same system or not. What I was going to do was put the Win 2000 cd in and then restarting my computer.

This is what I was planning to do:
1. Put the Win 2000 cd in my CD-Rom Drive.
2. Restart my computer.
3. Boot from the Win 2000 cd.
4. Let the Win 2000 Setup load.
5. Press F10 to open up the recovery console.
6. Press 1 to specify where my Win Xp directory is.
7. Type in chkdsk /r to correct all the bad sectors and problems in the hard drive.

I want to know if I can risk using the Win 2000 cd to activate the Recovery Console for Xp and after that I could try doing "chkdsk".

I can remove the CMOS or Setup password by simply removing just the lithium battery from my computer for more than 15 minutes, right? If I could do that I could maybe set the priority of the floppy disk to the first and boot into another mode to fix my computer.

I really need to have this problem solved as soon as possible because I still need to work on something and I need to use the normal Windows mode to do it.

[Exilibur]

Are you able to boot windows in safe mode?

[darkcsboy]

Yep, that's what I did and that's how I could connect to the Internet and have some things work. I have re-installed Win XP but I forgot the CMOS password, you know the one where when you start your computer you can press F1 to go to setup but I can't access the priorities because a password is blocking.

Can you tell me how to remove the CMOS password? I know I have to take the battery out and use a jumper to extract the memory out but I'm not sure how to do it. Can you please help me or do you know any websites that explain how to do it?

[>BKA< T Wrecks]

I know that doesn't help you right now, but why on earth did you set a CMOS password? I don't suppose you have dozens of people fiddling around with your CMOS while you're not near, or do you? I would NEVER set a password for things that don't really need to be protected... and why would I lock my CMOS? I'm the only one who goes in there anyway. Same thing with those screensaver passwords - I think they have caused a hundred times more trouble to paranoid but forgetful users than benefits for PC security... just my 2 cents, of course. 9_9

Ok, just so that this post isn't totally useless, I just googled "CMOS password forget" and found the solution in 1 minute: All you need is to put the "Clear CMOS" jumper into a different position. It's all in your mainboard manual: Where the jumper is located and what you need to do to it, etc. If you don't have a mainboard manual, you can try either searching the inscriptions near the jumpers or contacting the manufacturer of the board.

[sfx1999]

Bzzzt! T Wrecks, you have to put it in the clear position, then put it back, or else your computer won't boot.

It should be located right next to the battery. Make sure you don't hit your motherboard with static electricity, or you will kill it.

[>BKA< T Wrecks]

Ok, I guess this doesn't leave much to ask. So no need to take out the battery. And yes, in most cases the clear CMOS jumper IS next to the battery, now that I think about it.

[Exilibur]

I was just wondering... but couldn't you just uninstall mcafee in safe mode? Or is there something I missed?