Hello, I was trying to install an HP scanner on my HP V6000 laptop. When it prompted reboot after I installed the software, my laptop would not reboot. It is stuck in an endless reboot cycle. COMPAQ screen comes up, then I get a black page with options for Safe Mode, Last Known Configuration, or Start Windows normally. None of these work. When I choose one, it then goes to the WinXP page, then goes black, then for a split second I get a blue screen saying: STOP: c0000218 {Registry File Failure} The registry cannot load the hive (file): \SystemRoot\System32\Config\SECURITY or it's log or it's alternate. It is corrupt, absent, or not writable. Beginning dump of physical memory Physical memory dump complete. Contact your system administrator or technical support group for further assistance. I do not have a WinXP recovery CD since HP now builds them into the hard disk partition. This laptop is brand new. I may have an XP CD from my previous Dell. Would that help at all? Is there any way to save my files?? Or at least get an operable computer back? I use this daily for business, and cannot afford to mail it back to HP for 2+ months like they want me to. Thanks in advance.

Hi Kennedsh ============================================================= Yes, there is a possibility to save your important files. The other day a college student brought me her laptop with exactly the same symptoms. I had no idea what was wrong, but I have a BartPE CD Disk, booted therewith and you have access to the HDD and it will read, no mater what file system, Fat32, NTFS or what ever. First of all I saved all her important University works to a USB Hard drive, then used the option “checkdisk” which is part of BartPE and lo, there were some bad clusters, it repaird them and the hive file could be read again, the machine started normal and nothing was lost. When it says the hive file cannot be loaded then that file is not corrupt otherwise it would say the file is corrupt. Try to get a BartPE disk, it works wonders. Hope this helps Cheers the Peter

How do I Repair A Stop: c0000218 BTW You will need to have native Windows XP CD to perform the procedures contained in the above link. Whether or not the CD will recognize your pre-installed Windows remain to be seen. i_XpUser

So it all began when you were trying to install a printer. What HP printer is it? i_XpUser

Hi again ==================================================================== Well, XP Users link is ok, but since you don’t have the original installation disk and the Last good configuration doesn’t work either, that link is useless for you. Here some more information about BartPE disk. Insert the CD, turn computer off and on again. It will boot to a kind of Windows XP, it takes a while to load. Wait until it asks for network support - say NO. On bottom left is either a START or a GO button, click and a menu pops up. Choose programs - A43 File Manager Utilities and you have a kind of explorer window from where you can access all drives and connected USB devices on the none bootable machine. All file systems are supported. A USB stick or USB HDD must be connected before boot. The tools, such as Check Disk you find in System, Storage after clicking START or GO button. There is more to discover on BartPE, have fun. How to get BartPE? Google for BartPE, find the download site for PEbuilder.exe, it’s free and only 3.15 MB. It needs to be installed on a functional Computer. Bart's PE Builder helps you build a "BartPE" (Bart Preinstalled Environment) bootable Windows CD-Rom or DVD from the original Windows XP installation/setup CD, very suitable for PC maintenance tasks. You don’t need the setup CD if the folder i386 is somewhere on the C drive. The standard BartPE CD is less than 200 MB and fits even on a mini CD. It will let you add some maintenance applications during the creation of the CD. I added 32 such applications in addition to those that are included in the PEbuilder. BartPE is a nice toll for newcomers and advanced users alike. Cheers de Peter

Hey guys, Thanks for all your help! Here's how I fixed it in case anyone runs into similar problems: While booting, simply press F11. Win XP recovery starts, and not only did it reinstall the OS, it had all my files intact. I lost programs that didn't come on the computer (Word 2000, etc.), but that's a small price to pay. The worst part was, right after XP finished loading, a window popped up saying. "Your HP scanner is now installed." UGH!! lol

Thank you for posting back and letting us know how the problem was fixed. I do not have experiences with recovering a system where the recovery files are on a hidden partition. Have learnd something again. As to BartPE, it won't hurt to have such a CD in case of other problems. It's really handy. Peter