Posts by gerbil

Formatting.. installing... they are very different things. It could be that Setup thinks it has written files but there are errors which it has not noticed upon resuming installation.
Okay, try a full check of your disk surface - you can get Setup to do that: start Setup afresh, if there are no other partitions on it then delete the old partition and create a new one, then or else do a Full Format of your selected partition, go on with the installation.
[A quick format deletes the old Master File Table, a full format does that plus chkdsk of that partition].

Borzoi, some help for the hide/unhide partition action. Disk Mgmnt console won't let you do that, it won't even remove an Active marking of a partition. These tools will do all that, and are straightforward to use:
MBRWhiskey [GUI], or
MBRWiz [command line version]. To use this one just copy MBRWiz.exe to C: root, run cmd and change dir with cd \ then type mbrwiz /? for a list of commands.

Then un-hide it. But frankly, I don't see how that could affect Windows or Linuxes. It's just a bit set... the OS doesn't often care too much about the actual position of stuff on the disk, that is the job of the local controller - the OS wants to be able to understand the format and read the partition tables, and the partition MFTs, and make/accept requests of the drive, is all.
Anyway... could it be an interrupt priority problem? Does any other ext hdd behave the same way when doing the same task? Have you checked the tables for errors?

""MaxViewofFile".... are you sure? There is no such entry point."
If that really is the entry point in the error msg, then it does not exist in kernel32.dll. The existing MapViewofFile function is not being addressed so it will not return a value. There is no actual issue to solve there.
It has to be a clumsy mis-spelling in the script of an app seeking the MapViewofFile entry point. Hence I go with malware. Untested. You are lucky.
Pull the drive, slave it to another sys and run Malwarebytes.
==Please download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
from: http://www.majorgeeks.com/Malwarebytes_Anti-Malware_d5756.html
or: http://www.besttechie.net/tools/mbam-setup.exe
=Dclick that file, mbam-setup.exe, to install the application,
-ensure that it is set to update and start, else start it via the icon, and UPDATE it.
Select "Perform FULL Scan", then click Scan; the application will guide you through the remaining steps.
ENSURE that EVERYTHING found has a CHECKMARK against it, then click Remove Selected.
If malware has been found [and removed] MBAM will automatically produce a log for you when it completes... do not click the Save Logfile button.
Examine the log: if some files are listed as Delete on Reboot then restart your machine before continuing.
Copy and post that log [it is also saved under Logs tab in MBAM].

I suppose I could guess that the likely malware is being started with the winlogon key; running MBAM on a slaved drive won't …

Old thread, Brian, but my ISP will assign a new dynamic IP if I use my router to disconnect/connect. It's the behaviour I would I expect.

"MaxViewofFile".... are you sure? There is no such entry point.
If it was MapViewofFile entry point not found => kernel32 has an error...?
Done a malware scan?

I certainly am, ntlgnce.... it was your post and site suggestion I was referring to, ntlgnce... [ http://www.inspectmygadget.com/2008/07/05/windows-software-tools-to-change-your-default-audio-playback-device/ ]. :)
Be nice if Daniweb would put the page list per post back onto the forum index page. I only read the first page... Sigh... .
BrentA was the OP, murpeg can't get an entry point into STSYSTRA.EXE.
Seems like an issue with that particular file. Reload it.

Good site, murpeg. But... they say this : "The only thing that these programs can’t do is switch the audio output while sound is coming out. It will not crash the system, but the audio will remain coming out from the same device. This is because most programs decide which default device will be used on launch. Because of this, most programs will need to be restarted for the selected device to take effect. This is the same for the inbuilt Windows options."
Hope he does not mind my quoting him. It does look like even then a restart of the browser is necessary.
I could check, but Default Audio Device would have to be a registry entry.... in which case it is only going to be read on load, and so there is no way around a restart of the application. My guess. I am not going to check this one out.

You need to run chkdsk on that hdd, either from another OS or from the Recovery Console. It may be that you will also need to copy in that file from a cd or other OS.
A notebook. No cd/dvd drive? Then you need RC on a flash drive. Easiest is: mkrecovery. Google for it. Once the flash drive RC is created copy into the USB key folder $WIN_NT$.~BT the two files autochk.exe and autofmt.exe from the i386 source folder.
For some reason these two are excluded....
Once you get that up and running you start the RC on that notebook OS, and run...
chkdsk /p

Do you use boot.ini for your boot menu or the Grub loader. ie is Windows controlling OS selection, or Ubuntu?
A rundown of your partitions with the location of OSs, boot files and loaders might help.

Probbayo, from monitoring activity I can tell you:
-if GeneralFlags value is 0 then explorer.exe will set it to 1 at shutdown.
-if I stop the explorer process before shutdown leaving GeneralFlags = 0 then explorer will read it at boot time and reset it to 1.
-if I stop the explorer process leaving GeneralFlags = 0 and then restart explorer, it will read the 0 and reset it to 1.
-if GeneralFlags = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 then when it is read at boot time [ or explorer start...] it is then set at that same value.
GeneralFlags is a 4-bit value, and 0 is probably invalid.
DeskHtmlVersion is likewise reset to dec 272.
These are obviously actions inbuilt to explorer.exe. I don't think I can do more...

C: of 5GB.
Is Windows there? My XP takes up 3.8GB of space inside its own 8GB partition. There are no data files, no temp files, no third party applications other than a registry backup pgm [Erunt]. I think your 5GB space is far too small. I bet you could not buy a new 10GB hdd anywhere, now. Time to upgrade, I feel. A moderately small drive [by todays bloated standards] of 150GB capacity should do... smaller will not be cheaper, somewhat bigger will not be more expensive. eg 250GB.
your Windows would be having problems with fragmenting and lack of space for housekeeping files as they are rewritten to disk.

Hi. I could do a lot of guessing, or you could...
==download hijackthis: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download5554.html
-copy it to a new FOLDER placed either alongside your program files or on your desktop and then...
-in that folder start HijackThis by dclicking the .exe
-CLOSE ALL OTHER APPLICATIONS and any open windows including the explorer window containing HijackThis.
-click the Scan and Save a Logfile button. Post the log here.

Hello, nt... your sys has two very obvious problems. Copy these two files from your M$ cd or another XP OS into your C:\WINDOWS\System32\ folder.
- svchost.exe
- dimsntfy.dll

I do understand that approach, Probbayo, but a fix is a fix and creating a new user and passing over the contents would take you less than a minute.
I cannot find anything on GeneralFlags of any use, just that setting the second bit means desktop locked. I do not know the usage of the first and third bits.
Cheers.

Or use Recuva from Piriform, which is freeware.

The hdt725050vla360 is a 500GB hdd.
The hts543216l9a300 is a weeny, slow 160GB lappy drive. Disk 2.
Finally a 750GB hd753LJ. Disk 0.
Disk 2, C: is primary. It carries your Windows boot files [hence is System]. It may also have the Windows OS on it...? I cannot tell. Having your Windows boot files on it is interesting, because it is not marked Active.
Disk 2, E: is highlighted in green because it is a logical volume in an extended partition, plus some disk space unallocated.
Disk 0, F: you call Windows Install, yet it has neither boot files nor a Windows OS...? But it is marked Active... Gee.
I cannot tell where your Ubuntu is located.
[A partition marked as Boot contains the Windows OS, but no boot files; one marked as System contains boot files, and maybe also a Windows OS]. Well, that is clear to M$.....
Anyway, you expect this thing to boot?
Lessee.... booting Windows. BIOS turns its mind to loading the OS, and so searches for the Master Boot Record on the master disk [the one you told BIOS about]. The MBR's partition table for that disk is read, logical partitions in any extended partition are successively investigated, and the single, active partition is noted; the MBR code is loaded into memory, and BIOS hands control to that. The MBR code directs operations to the partition marked as active, specifically to its boot sector. All partitions …

Probbayo, I'm not getting anywhere with this remaining problem of yours... "I choose a desired image to set as wallpaper (even through display options) the screen just rapidly blinks but nothing happens. But after I relogin or reboot it changes."
May i suggest that a simple solution would be to create a new user profile for yourself, and then copy over your user folder CONTENTS [Documents and Settings\Probbayo\...].
If it works well, simply remove the old profile.
DO NOT try to copy over your user folder itself to the new user profile, only copy the contained folders and files.
Not what I wanted as a solution, but it should work.

Probbayo, could you post an image [as you did before] but of this key, please?
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop\Components

Note... not the Safemode\Components path...

Oops, sorry, cscgal.... I have Javascript enabled, and generally my security settings are lower than medium .
This seems to be an intermittent problem. Sometimes on sys startup it is there, sometimes all is well on startup. Beats me.
I realise that OSs accumulate errors and that eventually they overwhelm you. There is another one I have noticed - quoted material from other posts is hidden, and can be expanded. But not on my browsers. Not being able to see that material makes interpretation difficult.
These problems have arisen only since Daniweb adopted the new format.

It does seem like your video adapter is failing. Could be power supply, overheating, driver corruption? or just hardware failure [even a poor ribbon connection].
Check your power supply output ranges [you can get monitoring software from your mb supplier's website, or freeware - Gurgle for that]. Check in device manager for error signs against the video/display adapters. Overheating? Your mb may be compatible with temperature monitoring software [again, gurgle for freeware].

Did you try this regedit:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop\Components
Change the value of DeskHtmlVersion to zero instead of decimal 272.
Next, change your wallpaper, and then change it back, or to something you desire.

RAM. check your mb guide. But generally, if you are running TWO sticks you pair them; your mb will run with just one. Unplug your hdd and see if BIOS will POSt without it, likewise any other cards [you may need the video card if there is no integrated graphics on the mb..:)].
Add the hdd, see if it is recognised by BIOS.

"I also put the harddrive into a external case and can see everything on the drive"... that means that your partition table and MFT are fine. Likely the MBR is also, but that fixmbr reference was for you to run the Window's Recovery Console from an XP installation cd, select the failing OS and then to run the command:
fixmbr
You could try to load the RC with your hdd in the other machine, just select the failing OS when that screen appears.
"I have tried a different harddrive and attempted to reload window xp but that also goes to a black screen".. Isn't it strange how one can read something, and totally miss its import. So....
A simple but exhaustive RAM check: dl Memtest 86+ from http://www.memtest.org/ [you have the choice of cd, flashdrive or floppy]; load it onto your chosen medium [it will be bootable], and run it by a restart. Note that just one error is too many. This doesn't really stress your CPU. If it won't run remove all but one RAM stick.

HDD back into the other sys, load up the RC, select the OS on the FAILING drive and try fixmbr on it. Running chkdsk /p next would be an idea.
A black screen error with no message at your stage of loading means, I think, that BIOS handed over to an MBR which turned out to be corrupt enough to not give the sys a chance to warn.
Unless by "and when it completes the load it goes" you mean that Windows appeared to load...? In that case it is likely a kernel corruption.

Okay, biker, thanks.... might be settings, cos IE shows page errors also. I could worry more; Opera is my main browser, IE I use for only two sites to do with work, and FF I use sporadically. Next time an FF update rolls in I shall uninstall and dl the whole new thing. IE? Who really cares?

The difference is how the All Threads text boxes present. In Opera they are correct [follow the code]; in FF they tile vertically as a list of links. "All Threads" itself shows as a link, but null.

And if you navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurentControlSet\Enum\Root\System how many of the 4-digit subkeys [eg 0000] have Plug and Play Software Device Enumerator as the data for DeviceDesc?
Export the System key, then delete them [both, or just one that looks wrong.. :) Mine is 0000]?
Check Device Mgr again.
Reinstall the PnP SDE with the machine.inf trick. [via Add Hardware, with Machine.Inf, swenum.sys and streamci.dll in a temp directory]

Ah, you're fooling with me; it wasn't my gear after all - I have it running now and the site works beautifully in Opera [no ads, though... :)].
But I must say that your pages present differently in FF.

The drain connection is the input to the mosfet... it has 0.97V. Mosfet is fully on at gate = 5v; it then has about 3milliohms fwd resistance, so it looks like something is pinning the source [output] low [if the mosfet is actually turning on].
Try shorting the gate to ground [the gate supply will be protected by a resistor], see what the drain voltage jumps up to.
A blown cap like the one in your pic... if it was an overvoltage issue then I doubt the integrity of any related semiconductors. But maybe it just went to a short and the available current exploded it.

Oh dear, you are going to love this cscgal [so much like see a seagull...]; compensate for me not loving it. I am toying with an ad blocker script, and before it worked just fine - not a single ad. Then you changed the site. Still not a single ad, but it was blocking a couple of new items : the small member sign-in popup and all subforum block popins. I turn it off, restart Opera, and your site works as it probably should. Sigh.... I see ads, too. Some thinking to do. I'll get there again. I want to keep it generic.
Sorry for the bother.

I do, cscgal... IE, FF, Opera.
Once in a forum I can use the top line of "where you are" links to go backwards, also the link in the line that contains "Discussion thread" but not to another forum [and mouse nav buttons, of course, while the tree is unbroken].
So am I the only bloke with this problem? It must be my sys, then...:(
I don't understand browsers too well... too big a topic to approach.

Ok, you win, i give up... there are more important things to do.
The problem stated: I put http://www.daniweb.com/forums/forum10.html into my browser [Opera, as you can tell], and that page opens. I log in and get bumped to the main forums page. I click Microsoft Windows and get taken to that page which shows posts from all sub-forums. There I have no way to navigate to a subforum other than to click on a post from that forum. The link Microsoft Windows Category is dead to my browser - no dropdown menu appears. One the fwd/bkwd tree tangles I have to go back and do the same thing again to enter a forum.
So i give up.

Click just where it says Click to show Forums? I do, but they don't. Latest Opera and FF. Sigh.
Anyway, the font size range. Somehow it just annoys my brain, readjusting to the vastly different sizes. Something to do with eye-scanning, I suppose.
Okay, I check the Microsoft Windows Category page element, and sure in /forums/clientscript/scripts/forummenu.php the forum10.html [this forum] does not show up in the script... and there just is no dropdown menu appearing. For my browser/sys it is a dead link.

I could add that if I load Daniweb URL of the forum I wish to enter, then my browser will start there. But when I log in I get knocked back to the Microsoft Windows page and there is no link forward [that works].

Load/update the chipset drivers for your mb, then install the ethernet driver. Here: http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/network-internet-wireless/f/3324/t/7873195.aspx

I cannot see where else to post this so here it goes....
=The font size range is a bit too large. I find it very disagreeable. for my taste, the big is far too big. Sorry.
=I cannot link from Microsoft Windows to Win NT/2000/XP. I can only get there by clicking on a thread from that forum after I log in. [Opera, FF..].

Update all your drivers, now. And probably reinstall some software applications because some registry entries they used may have been altered in the Repair. And then download all the Security Updates again.
Windows Repairs suck.
Security updates.... such an annoyance if you simply use the Windows update program and then have to do a Repair. You can, of course, note the numbers of the updates, download the .exes, apply them and KEEP the original exe files in a folder. One wet day, you slipstream them with nlite.

Ccleaner is good, I use it every couple of days to clean [it is easily configurable], but never to clean the registry. Sod that.
Did you see my hijackthis reference? Get it, run that scan, post it. Also when you have the main menu open, click the Misc Tools button, click Generate StartupList Log. Post it. Simple as.

I'd be tempted to leave that object as "ObjectName"="NT Authority\\NetworkService"

Heat and memory issues.... except that tthe OP reinstalled his OS. That is often the most intensive work many users' cpus and southbridges ever do. Works out memory, too. But memtest86+ will, by just running, stress those things also.

Did you get it sorted out, Dave? It will be a hard drive error, and you need to run chkdsk on it. For that you will need a Recovery Console on a bootable USB key, else you will have to remove the hdd, place it into an enclosure and connect it to a working sys so that you may run Seagate? diagnostics on it [from their site, the Windows tool is fine for the job].
If you need help with making a USB key bootable RC I can guide you simply on that.

Aw.. you're a mean bunch!
Chaz, caper would really like to know the blue-screen error message contents ie the numbers, and files if mentioned. The moment it flashes up tap your Pause key to freeze it, Enter to continue. Be waiting for it....

Understood, deepug.... that does not always mean that you have an infection, but i find that GMER is usually a robust scanner.
[btw, when I mentioned suspect files/entries were highlighted in red in the Gmer reports, I meant suspect... firewall, AV and Daemon Tool's spdt also show up but are fine].
Could you run this for me, please, and post a log:
==download hijackthis: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download5554.html
-copy it to a new FOLDER placed either alongside your program files or on your desktop and then...
-in that folder start HijackThis by dclicking the .exe
-CLOSE ALL OTHER APPLICATIONS and any open windows including the explorer window containing HijackThis.
-click the Scan and Save a Logfile button. Post the log here.
Also...
==Download this file to your DESKTOP: http://download.bleepingcomputer.com/sUBs/ComboFix.exe
.....or this file: http://subs.geekstogo.com/ComboFix.exe
-IMPORTANT! : disconnect from the web, turn off your Antivirus, Antispyware and Firewall for the duration of this scan. Don't forget to reset them before you go back on the web!
- to run it dclick the Combofix.exe icon and follow the prompts to start it. When finished, it will produce a log, C:\Combofix.txt - post that log in your next reply.
A word of caution - do not touch your mouse/keyboard until the scan has completed. The scan will temporarily disable your desktop, and if interrupted may leave your desktop disabled. If this occurs reboot to restore the desktop.

For a representative of a software firm you offer rather bland solutions. Format and reinstall, indeed, for lost icons!!

Oops, you did say the task bar is not showing when you start yur sys. Okay, that is likely a reg key at fault, one that autostarts explorer. I can give you the likely registry edit directly, else you can run this program which will show us other settings that may be incorrect [and enable us to fix them]:
==download hijackthis: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download5554.html
-copy it to a new FOLDER placed either alongside your program files or on your desktop and then...
-in that folder start HijackThis by dclicking the .exe
-CLOSE ALL OTHER APPLICATIONS and any open windows including the explorer window containing HijackThis.
-click the Scan and Save a Logfile button. Post the log here.

Tricky. When you formatted and reinstalled did you have other data or application partitions that were not formatted also, or did you later apply software from media that were recorded on your earlier OS?
I'm thinking rootkits here, hiding malware that is faulty, and which freezes your system.
Rootkit scans are easy, try Gmer. If it finds something it will let you know... and the suspect files will be in red. If it freezes while scanning, be alert; post back with your findings.
http://www.gmer.net/ : you want the Download.exe button [or zip file].

Do you have the Start button and lower task bar showing?

Sometimes, crystal, if you don't have technical expertise then a repair shop or friend who does is the best bet. It could be any number of things pinning your system.... the power supply, mb, card on the mb, RAM, BIOS corruption.... Gee.
Start with RAM. Power off, pull the plug, open the case, ground your hands to the case [grab hold of the chassis], then identify your RAM sticks. If you have multiple, remove one.. try to restart. No go? Swap sticks. Goes? Bingo.
Power supply.... well, BIOS won't be telling you voltages if BIOS is not running. Either swap out the ps, or get it tested.
It's a start... :)

Tidus, try deleting your desktop.htt file.
It will be found in C:\Docs n Setts\You\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop.htt. You will have to clear the checkbox alongside Hide Protected Operating System Files via Explorer > Tools > folder Options > View tab.
Restart your sys... a new desktop.htt file will be regenerated, and hopefully there will not be that common tasks sidebar on your desktop.

The desktop.htt file is a text file which describes the layout and positioning of objects [not your icons] on your desktop. Somehow a part of explorer, the common tasks sidebar option, has gotten in there. Deleting the desktop.htt file is safe, it will be regenerated.
Recheck that box.