NTLDR is missing

J

jumargibbs

New Member
Hey guys, I read other "NTLDR is missing" posts but I'm installing 2K on a used drive AND I have to use Seagate's DDO so I can use all 120GBs. I started my own thread because I'm clueless when it comes to DOS. I just used my Win2K disc on an old HD to see if it worked. It did. So where the h*** did the NTLDR go?
 
"Problem: If the active partition does not contain the Windows boot files (ntldr, NTDETECT.COM & boot.ini) or boot files for another operating system (Win98SE on FAT32 active partition), your system will not boot but instead be caught in an endless repetitive loop. HD is probably OK but the O/S may have lost it's Boot Partition Files. If you have seen this statement above when boot your Win2000 Workstation.

These files are on your Win2000 CD which is a Bootable CD. Boot your system with the Win2000 CD. Copy those files to a floppy, then boot the floppy. If that fails, read on." http://www.buildorbuy.org/win2000ntldr.html
 
I was able to install Win2K but during setup I saw that the drive had 2 partitions. I was unable to delete one of them. Now my 120GB shows up as 80GB. I've tried using DiscWizard (installed from both the Seagate CD I have and from Seagate's website) but it generates errors upon opening. It says an error log is being created but it doesn't say where. Anybody know the location of the log or why the program will not run?
 
If you want to use DOS to delete a partition then you need to boot the computer off a windows 98 startup disk. When booted it gives you a choice of 4 options. One is exit. Choose exit, which brings you to a dos prompt. At the prompt type fdisk. Then you will be able to delete the partition. Be careful not to delete the primary partition with windows on it. Another option is to use Partition Magic. The software is great, but it is not free. It costs about $50. You can partition your drive inside windows,on the fly. You can delete,create,resize. During install you dreate 2 disks that you could use to boot off on any computer. Handy if you have a virus that you need removed quickly. Of course after deleting primary partition you will need to create a new primary and reinstall windows. Over all it is worth the money because it is easy to use. Alot better the fdisk.
 
jumargibbs said:
I was able to install Win2K but during setup I saw that the drive had 2 partitions. I was unable to delete one of them. Now my 120GB shows up as 80GB. I've tried using DiscWizard (installed from both the Seagate CD I have and from Seagate's website) but it generates errors upon opening. It says an error log is being created but it doesn't say where. Anybody know the location of the log or why the program will not run?
Click to expand...

If you have nothing important on either partition at this time Fdisk will delete both the 80gb you are seeing and the smaller one. Then you could create the one single primary you are after. Or what is even easier would be borrowing an XP installation disk to only start the installer until it asks which partition you want XP to go on. At that time you can press L and then D to delete each one at a time. Then you can use Fdisk or another partitioning software to install 2000 onto a new partition with a fresh format.
By using Fdisk or the XP installer to wipe the current partitions you won't have to worry about error logs created by DiscWizard. You would only need to create the new primary along with formatting it for a fresh copy of 2000.
 
I've really screwed things up. I'm using the last (5th) hard drive I have that will work with this computer. It now has 3 copies of Win 2K on it but only one that will boot. Apparently I've been inadvertently asking for help on how to repair Win. All I want to do is delete everything on a Seagate drive so that it is just as it was when I bought it new. I've tried to delete with 2K and XP installation discs and they refuse to delete everything. If fdisk will wipe it all out, that's what I want to do. Can someone tell me how to enter DOS from 2K and what to type in?
 
You can't enter dos in 2K since that has an NT core on a NTFS partition. If you have an old 98 startup floppy hanging around or search for a free zero fill utility you can take care of anything on all the drives one at a time. You first have to change the boot order in the bios if the floppy drive isn't set as the first boot device there. You then insert the startup disk and restart the system for wait of those few seconds to see the system start off the floppy instead of the hard drive. Once the loading process has completed you will then see a "dos prompt". If you have ever used the command prompt then this will be a familiar sight. At the prompt you simply type in "fdisk" and press the enter key to see that utility load and detect the drive and partitions.

When fdisk lists the detected partitions you will then see the option to delete the current ones one at a time. After a successful deletion you will need to find the create new partition option. You will then be asked if you wish to enable large drive support which you answer yes to. That will then create one single partition using the entire drive. If the new partition is created you will then see instruction to remove the floppy and restart the system. So remove the floppy but re-enter the bios upon the next restart to assign the cd drive as the first boot device to boot from the installation disk.

At this point you are now ready to install a fresh copy of Windows on a brand new partition for a clean install of 2K. If all goes well here you simply reassign the floppy or hard drive as the first in the boot order when the system restarts for the first time. 2K will then load a new desktop.
 
I remembered the zero fill utility on the disc that came with the drive. I used it and it worked, but following the instructions exactly still led to the "missing NTLDR" message. I have to use OnTrack's DDO so I can use all 120GBs of the drive. If I skip that, I can load the OS but I end up with a 32GB drive. I know my Win disc is good, so where the heck is the NTLDR?
 
I just got this off Seagate's support site regarding missing NTLDR errors seen in Windows that still links to an MS support page. Here's the text and link.
"NTLDR Errors

There are 4 primary reasons why you might get an NTLDR error:

The boot order is not set to boot from CD first.
To install Windows XP you need to boot from the CD. Many computers default to boot from the hard drive first, but will boot from the CD if there is no partition on the hard drive. Once you use DWSE to create a partition the computer attempts to boot from this new partition and finds that the partition has no operating system installed and reports NTLDR.

To fix this version of the issue you will need to adjust the boot order of your computer in the BIOS (computer setup).


You left a floppy in the diskette drive.
Check and confirm you don't have any diskettes in the drive (you may have saved the readme file from DWSE to a floppy).


If you have more than 1 CD/ATAPI device installed on the secondary channel, be sure that you are booting from the "master" CD/ATAPI device. You can verify which one is the master versus slave CD/ATAPI device by booting into your CMOS/BIOS setup in case those devices are currently set for "Cable-Select" or you just don't know which one is the master device.

If this has been checked then try removing the "slave" CD/ATAPI device from the channel to see if the issue resolves itself.


The Window XP CD prompted you to 'press any key' and you missed it.
When booting from the Windows XP CD it will look for partitions if your drive is blank it will boot directly from the CD. If the drive has a partition it should prompt you to 'press any key to continue' so that you don't have to remove the CD after the reboot that occurs during installation. You have to press any key very quickly because this message will time out in a very short period of time (a few seconds) then you will see an NTLDR error on the screen.


Windows has not been installed. If the operating system has not been installed on this computer then the system will report an NTLDR message until you boot from the install media and install the operating system to the hard drive.
For more information on NTLDR missing errors visit Microsoft's support web page." http://www.seagate.com/support/ts/ata/errors/02_ntldr.html
 
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