I have a compaq presario 1.1.1.5 with XP Home edition. Starting the computer tell me that can't find anymore C:\windows\system32\hal.dll. and it stops here.
HP sold me the computer without the XP home edition disk, but only with with a "Compaq quickrestore system RECOVERY CD" which can only reinstall Windows XP h.e. deleting all my files (formatting the hard disk).
Trying not to loose all my files I would like to use ms dos 6.22 to COPY the file hal.dll in the directory, but if I start the computer with ms dos it can't find the hard disk. How can I do to let ms dos see my hard disk?
Is there any other way not to loose my files?
Please help me!
You have the drive formatted with NTFS or FAT32. MS-DOS 6.22 is not a solution. It won't work. Boot that computer with a Linux Live CD and copy them to a pendrive that connects into a USB slot.

You can also copy them across a NETWORK to a computer with a CDRW (or that ONE if it has it) and save your files that way.

You can boot from an XP CD, but you don't have that. If you use what you have you will also lose all of your files.

If you can google and find a Linspire 5.0 Live CD that will be easiest, but Knoppix will also work. The Linspire is a little more familiar to Windows users.