Hello everyone,

I got a pc here with XP pro in it, its on a 120 GB Maxtor HD and my PC's a P IV HT 3.2 Ghz with 1 Gb of ram. Problem is, when i boot, i try to boot XP, it loads the bootscreen, then the computer restarts. For the moment i use my old Vista Trial but please end my suffering ... 

Thx to everyone.Need...more...info...gasp 

Antivirus & antispyware protection / service packs installed / when did it start happening / did it ever work right / installed any new software?

Alan <><  Oh Sorry about that ! 

I got SP 2 , It ran fine till today. I got Symantec Client Security , Windows FIrewall and I use Spybot Search and DEstroy for Adware Crap... Plus I don't recall installing any new software.

COuld it be caused by a XP hotfix ? I think one hotfix was installed lately 
Was all of this software installed (Symantec in particular) prior to the problem?

Alan <><  Yes, Symantec has been on my comp since the beginning, almost a YEAR now.
Can you  boot into SafeMode?

Alan <><  No, it goes with the same symptoms. Any diagnosis DOC ?  "COuld it be caused by a XP hotfix ?"  Anything can be caused by a hotfix. 

Do you have all your stuff backed up?  Sounds like you might have to do either a repair with the real Windows CD or do a wipe and reinstall.

Alan <><  Well, since i had taken the precaution of installing a little 20 GB hd, I used it to install Vista and got some files on it... thus I can make a BACKUP of my files. I dont have the XP disc though...
So you have 2 drives in one machine?  One with XP on it and a second with Vista?  Did the problem start after you installed the 2nd drive with Vista on it?

Alan <><  Sorry undead.fox, I have to leave now. 

Don't go away as there are very able people on this site that can help.  Please hang in there, OK?

Alan <><  i'll sure do alan  thx a lot... And no its been since the beta release of vista that the 2nd drive is installed (around january).

thanks for anyone helping here,
DavidI suggest removing the Vista drive and going from there to reduce the amount of variables...patio, I really need that computer to be functionnable and XP wont boot, so I KEEP vista... I have tried rescue disks like BArtPE and it wont even boot from the CD ... could there be simply a problem in the bios ? 
Do you have a real XP CD to do a repair install? Like Patio, I think disconnecting the Vista drive for now is a smart idea.