Frequently Asked Questions
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Q: What can I do with the Recovery Console?

A: Recovery Console allows you to enable and disable services, format drives, read and write data on a local drive, including drives formatted to use NTFS file system, and perform many other administrative tasks. The Recovery Console is particularly useful if the computer needs to be repaired by copying a file from a floppy disk or CD to the hard drive, or if a service that is preventing the computer from starting properly needs to be reconfigured.

Recovery Console Scenarios

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adding Recovery Console as a Startup Option

Use the following steps to install the Microsoft® Windows® XP Recovery Console after Windows XP is already installed on your computer.

  1. Open the Run dialog box.

  2. In the Run dialog box, in the Open text box, type: d:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons (where d is the drive letter of your CD-ROM drive). Click OK.

  3. In the Windows Setup dialog box, to install the Recovery Console, click Yes.

  4. If you are not connected to the Internet, the following Windows Setup dialog box opens. Click Skip this step and continue installing Windows, and then click Next.

  5. Files are copied. In the Microsoft Windows XP Professional Setup dialog box, to finish the installation, click OK.

After the Recovery Console has been installed, use the following steps to access it.

  1. Restart the computer. When prompted to select an operating system to start, select Microsoft Windows Recovery Console.

    Note: This menu opens each time the computer starts and defaults to 30 seconds. Refer to the Frequently Asked Question titled "How do I adjust the System Startup times for the Startup Menu?" for information on how to adjust how long the Startup menu appears on startup. Refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base Articles that are similar to Q216417 for additional information on installing Recovery Console and Microsoft Knowledge Base Articles that are similar to Q229716 for information about the commands available in Recovery Console.

  2. On the Microsoft Windows XP(TM) Recovery Console screen, press the number of the corresponding Windows XP installation for which you know the administrator password.

  3. After selecting the appropriate Windows installation, type the administrator password when prompted.

    Note: The password for the Administrator account must be used, not just a password from an account with administrative priveleges. The default Administrator password is blank.

  4. The C:\WINDOWS prompt appears. Type the desired Recovery Console command, and then press the ENTER key.

  5. Type: exit. Press ENTER.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Removing Recovery Console as a Startup Option

  1. Open Control Panel.

  2. In Control Panel, open the System Properties dialog box.

    • If you are in Category View, click Performance and Maintenance, and then click System.
    • If you are in Classic View, double-click click the System icon.

  3. In the System Properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab. On the Advanced tab, in the Startup and Recovery box, click Settings.

    System Properties dialog box - Advanced tab

  4. In the Startup and Recovery dialog box, in the System startup box, click Edit.

    Startup and Recovery dialog box

  5. In the boot - Notepad window, drag the pointer to select C:\CMDCONS\BOOTSECT.DAT="Microsoft Windows Recovery Console" /cmdcons. From the Edit menu, click Delete.

    boot - Notepad window

  6. From the File menu, click Exit.

  7. In the Notepad dialog box, to save the changes, click Yes.

  8. In the Startup and Recovery dialog box, click OK.

  9. In the System Properties dialog box, click OK.

Note: There is a CMDCONS folder created in the root directory after installing the Recovery Console. This folder may be deleted, if desired, after the Recovery Console entry has been removed as a startup option.