Deceptive Fixmbr Error Message


I used the information in Kathy Ivens's Getting Started with Windows 2000: "The Recovery Console" (August 2001, InstantDoc ID 21538) to install the Recovery Console (RC) on our file and print servers and on my own workstation. I made all the Group Policy changes that the article recommended. Two days later, my computer wouldn't boot into Windows. Outside consultants told me they suspected a problem with the Master Boot Record (MBR)--possibly a virus. They told me to boot into the RC and use the fixmbr command. I received an error message telling me that I seemed to have an invalid boot record and that using this command might destroy my computer. I ended up reinstalling Win2K Professional. Is there an RC command that will fix an invalid boot record?


Jerome Glass



My Microsoft RC expert tells me that you could have safely ignored the message. Apparently, the message always appears, and it's deceiving. He wouldn't call this situation a bug, but I have no problem labeling it with that term! The Microsoft article "Error Message When You Run fixmbr Command" (http://support.microsoft
.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;
q266745) addresses the problem.


Kathy Ivens

Jerome Glass 1/18/2002 10:38:28 AM

My Win2000 Adv Server CD does not contain a i386\\winnt32 folder. Is this only for Win2000 Pro users? The help feature on my Win2000 Adv Server also refers to this non-existent folder, but also makes a reference to Win2000 Pro. What did I miss?

Ron Weekley 11/1/2001 10:44:50 AM