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Windows will not start after installing nVidia 15.17 drivers
I am running a q6600 on an EVGA 122-CK-NF68 mobo with OCZ SLI pc2 8500 ram running WINDOWS XP PRO 32-BIT. Powered by an Antec SLI True Power Trio.


Everything was fine until I installed the 15.17 nvidia nforce drivers. I rebooted and saw the Windows splash screen, but then windows would not start.

When I use F8 to get into safe mode, or enable vga or disable automatic restart upon system failure, my keyboard and mouse do not respond; I can not get into windows to restore the system.

I have access to the drive by using it as a secondary drive. If I knew which driver was causing the problem, I could delete it or replace it. That is, if it is a driver. This is the readme from the 15.17 package

This WinXP 32-bit nForce UDA driver package for CK804, MCP51, MCP55, MCP61, MCP65, MCP67M, MCP68, MCP73 consists of the following components:

Ethernet Driver (v67.80) WHQL
Network Management Tools (v67.81) "Sedona"
SATAIDE Driver (v) WHQL
SATARAID Driver (v) WHQL
RAIDTOOL Application (v)
SMU Driver (v1.45) WHQL
SMBus Driver (v4.64) WHQL
Installer (v5.99)

I can not start windows and my keyboard and mouse do not function when in safe mode. How can I remove the items installed by the 15.17 package?

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Dani AI

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A short, practical add-on for anyone who lands here with the same symptom (Windows hangs after a vendor driver bundle and input is dead in Safe Mode). The repair install that appears later in the thread is a sure fix, but the techniques below let you remove low-level drivers offline so a full repair can often be avoided.

If you can attach the problem disk to another Windows PC:

  • Use RegEdit to load the offline SYSTEM hive (HKLM -> File -> Load Hive -> X:\Windows\System32\Config\SYSTEM, give it a name like OFFLINE).
  • Browse OFFLINE\ControlSet00x\Services and look for recently added service keys (check ImagePath/Description for vendor names or drivers stored in System32\drivers).
  • Change the Service "Start" value to 4 (Disabled) for any suspected drivers, then File -> Unload Hive and safely return the disk.

Example (illustrative):

File -> Load Hive -> X:\Windows\System32\Config\SYSTEM  (name = OFFLINE)
HKLM\OFFLINE\ControlSet001\Services\<ServiceName> -> set "Start" = 4
File -> Unload Hive

If you can boot the Windows XP Recovery Console or a WinPE/WinRE disk:

  • Rename the suspect .sys files in \Windows\System32\drivers so Windows cannot load them on boot. That often restores input so you can boot normally and uninstall properly.

Example:

cd \windows\system32\drivers
ren drivername.sys drivername.sys.bak
exit

Quick troubleshooting and prevention: try a PS/2 keyboard/mouse or enable "Legacy USB" in BIOS to get into Safe Mode or Last Known Good. Always make a restore point or disk image before large driver packages and install only the chipset components you need from the motherboard vendor first. Back up the SYSTEM hive before editing—incorrect changes can leave the system unbootable.

Member Avatar for snowcat

Using Windows CD to repair worked. Install > F8 "I Agree" > R for repair.

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