Error loading explorer.exe you must reinstall windows

[kinzuaj]

>-----Original Message-----
>I receive the following error message
>
>"error loading explorer.exe
>you must reinstall windows"
>
>I have followed the technical bulletin that specifies
>editing system.ini to remove any unknown program name
>after the exploere.exe line. I did not have any unknown
>program name.
>
>Any suggestions?
>
>I am able to boot my computer with the system startup
disk
>for Windows Me. I do not have my recovery CD-ROM with me.
>
>
I currently have the same problem. This hasn't worked for
me but it may for you.
starup with cd rom support
type ext
at the next prompt type 'drive':\win9x
next prompt type msvcrt.dll
next prompt type c:\windows\sytem
next prompt type y
then restart and goodluck
more info at article 299296 at microsoft.com

[Felch]

My CD_ROM recovery disk only wants to re-install Windows
Me. It doesn't seem to contain anything related to IE.

Is there somewhere I can get an IE disk?
>-----Original Message-----
>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>I receive the following error message
>>
>>"error loading explorer.exe
>>you must reinstall windows"
>>
>>I have followed the technical bulletin that specifies
>>editing system.ini to remove any unknown program name
>>after the exploere.exe line. I did not have any unknown
>>program name.
>>
>>Any suggestions?
>>
>>I am able to boot my computer with the system startup
>disk
>>for Windows Me. I do not have my recovery CD-ROM with me.
>>
>>
>I currently have the same problem. This hasn't worked
for
>me but it may for you.
>starup with cd rom support
>type ext
>at the next prompt type 'drive':\win9x
>next prompt type msvcrt.dll
>next prompt type c:\windows\sytem
>next prompt type y
>then restart and goodluck
>more info at article 299296 at microsoft.com
>.
>

[Mike M]

What does reinstalling IE have to do with your problem? There seems to me to
be little point in doing this, if required, until you have got Win Me working
again.
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



Felch > wrote:

> My CD_ROM recovery disk only wants to re-install Windows
> Me. It doesn't seem to contain anything related to IE.
>
> Is there somewhere I can get an IE disk?

There are many ISP disks at major retailers with IE at the checkout counter
I have some from Earthlink, MSN, etc

[felch]

I miss-spoke.
I was ASSUMING that by explorer it meant IE.
I have found some information that certain .dll files are
stored on c: THere was a MS bulletin that required me to
copy a certain .dll file from the CD-ROM to the harddrive.
I am going to try this first.
My only other option seems to be to let the recovery disk
re-install Windows Me. I don't want to go that far yet. I
don't know if everything will be wiped. That isn't the end
of the world, I have backups, but the effort involved is
substaintial.

Felch

>-----Original Message-----
>What does reinstalling IE have to do with your problem?
There seems to me to
>be little point in doing this, if required, until you
have got Win Me working
>again.
>--
>Mike Maltby MS-MVP

>
>
>Felch > wrote:
>
>> My CD_ROM recovery disk only wants to re-install Windows
>> Me. It doesn't seem to contain anything related to IE.
>>
>> Is there somewhere I can get an IE disk?
>
>
>.
>

[Mike M]

If you do find that you need to reinstall Win Me and don't want to lose all
your currently installed programs and data, that is if your recovery CD has no
option than to return your PC to the state it was in when first shipped you
may want to check the following.

Boot from a floppy and then using the DOS command DIR check out the folder
C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS
If it contains twenty or so CAB files including BASE2.CAB, three DRIVER*.CAB
files, NETWORK*.CAB files and a dozen or so WIN*.CAB files plus setup.exe you
should be able to carry out an in place reinstall by running setup.exe.
However this can cause other problems especially if you had previously
upgraded from IE5.5 to IE6 (See below) and possibly if you had installed an
early (beta) version of Windows Media Player 9 (WMP problems can be avoided by
renaming wmploc.dll to wmploc.old before reinstalling Win Me). You would also
need to reinstall some critical patches even though the Windows Update site
would not show them as being required due to the original "IsInstalled" flag
remaining set in the registry. The Belarc Advisor
(http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html) would help you here in identifying
which patches needed to be reinstalled.

If you have installed IE6 ideally this needs to be uninstalled before
(re-)installing Win Me. If this is the case you might want to have a look at
MS KB 312451 - "How to Remove Internet Explorer 6 by Reinstalling Windows"
(http://support.microsoft.com?kbid=312451) and also KB 293907 - "How to
Uninstall Internet Explorer 6" (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=293907).
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



felch > wrote:

> I miss-spoke.
> I was ASSUMING that by explorer it meant IE.
> I have found some information that certain .dll files are
> stored on c: THere was a MS bulletin that required me to
> copy a certain .dll file from the CD-ROM to the harddrive.
> I am going to try this first.
> My only other option seems to be to let the recovery disk
> re-install Windows Me. I don't want to go that far yet. I
> don't know if everything will be wiped. That isn't the end
> of the world, I have backups, but the effort involved is
> substaintial.

[Felch]

Thanks Mike-
That seem like the most solid advice I have found.

The .dll file that is being requested is "msvcrt.dll" is
there anywhere that I could get a copy of that one file
instead?

Again thanks for the help.

Felch

>-----Original Message-----
>If you do find that you need to reinstall Win Me and
don't want to lose all
>your currently installed programs and data, that is if
your recovery CD has no
>option than to return your PC to the state it was in when
first shipped you
>may want to check the following.
>
>Boot from a floppy and then using the DOS command DIR
check out the folder
>C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS
>If it contains twenty or so CAB files including
BASE2.CAB, three DRIVER*.CAB
>files, NETWORK*.CAB files and a dozen or so WIN*.CAB
files plus setup.exe you
>should be able to carry out an in place reinstall by
running setup.exe.
>However this can cause other problems especially if you
had previously
>upgraded from IE5.5 to IE6 (See below) and possibly if
you had installed an
>early (beta) version of Windows Media Player 9 (WMP
problems can be avoided by
>renaming wmploc.dll to wmploc.old before reinstalling Win
Me). You would also
>need to reinstall some critical patches even though the
Windows Update site
>would not show them as being required due to the
original "IsInstalled" flag
>remaining set in the registry. The Belarc Advisor
>(http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html) would help you
here in identifying
>which patches needed to be reinstalled.
>
>If you have installed IE6 ideally this needs to be
uninstalled before
>(re-)installing Win Me. If this is the case you might
want to have a look at
>MS KB 312451 - "How to Remove Internet Explorer 6 by
Reinstalling Windows"
>(http://support.microsoft.com?kbid=312451) and also KB
293907 - "How to
>Uninstall Internet Explorer 6"
(http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=293907).
>--
>Mike Maltby MS-MVP

>
>
>felch > wrote:
>
>> I miss-spoke.
>> I was ASSUMING that by explorer it meant IE.
>> I have found some information that certain .dll files
are
>> stored on c: THere was a MS bulletin that required me to
>> copy a certain .dll file from the CD-ROM to the
harddrive.
>> I am going to try this first.
>> My only other option seems to be to let the recovery
disk
>> re-install Windows Me. I don't want to go that far yet.
I
>> don't know if everything will be wiped. That isn't the
end
>> of the world, I have backups, but the effort involved is
>> substaintial.
>
>
>.
>

[Mike M]

Felch,

MSVCRT.DLL is contained in WIN_13.CAB of the Win Me CAB set.

You can extract the file from DOS as follows.
Boot to DOS using a Win Me boot floppy. Do not choose Minimal Boot from the
options as otherwise the EXT command will be unavailable.
Type EXT at the DOS prompt. This should start Extract Command Line Helper.
Enter the path to the Windows CAB files. This should be either
C:\windows\options\cabs (OEM location) or perhaps C:\windows\options\install
(location if installed using Microsoft media).
Enter MSVCRT.DLL when asked for the name of the file to extract
Enter C:\Windows\System when asked for the location to place the extracted
file.
Now click Y.

This should, if all goes according to plan, replace your existing copy of
msvcrt.dll with a new copy. Here's hoping that that is all that is needed to
get you going again but ......
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



Felch > wrote:

> Thanks Mike-
> That seem like the most solid advice I have found.
>
> The .dll file that is being requested is "msvcrt.dll" is
> there anywhere that I could get a copy of that one file
> instead?
>
> Again thanks for the help.

[Felch]

Mike-

I used the setup.exe file sucessfully!
Thank you very much.
I have been struggling with this problem unsucessfully for
a couple of weeks.

Keep up the good work!!!

Thanks again!
Felch
>-----Original Message-----
>If you do find that you need to reinstall Win Me and
don't want to lose all
>your currently installed programs and data, that is if
your recovery CD has no
>option than to return your PC to the state it was in when
first shipped you
>may want to check the following.
>
>Boot from a floppy and then using the DOS command DIR
check out the folder
>C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS
>If it contains twenty or so CAB files including
BASE2.CAB, three DRIVER*.CAB
>files, NETWORK*.CAB files and a dozen or so WIN*.CAB
files plus setup.exe you
>should be able to carry out an in place reinstall by
running setup.exe.
>However this can cause other problems especially if you
had previously
>upgraded from IE5.5 to IE6 (See below) and possibly if
you had installed an
>early (beta) version of Windows Media Player 9 (WMP
problems can be avoided by
>renaming wmploc.dll to wmploc.old before reinstalling Win
Me). You would also
>need to reinstall some critical patches even though the
Windows Update site
>would not show them as being required due to the
original "IsInstalled" flag
>remaining set in the registry. The Belarc Advisor
>(http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html) would help you
here in identifying
>which patches needed to be reinstalled.
>
>If you have installed IE6 ideally this needs to be
uninstalled before
>(re-)installing Win Me. If this is the case you might
want to have a look at
>MS KB 312451 - "How to Remove Internet Explorer 6 by
Reinstalling Windows"
>(http://support.microsoft.com?kbid=312451) and also KB
293907 - "How to
>Uninstall Internet Explorer 6"
(http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=293907).
>--
>Mike Maltby MS-MVP

>
>
>felch > wrote:
>
>> I miss-spoke.
>> I was ASSUMING that by explorer it meant IE.
>> I have found some information that certain .dll files
are
>> stored on c: THere was a MS bulletin that required me to
>> copy a certain .dll file from the CD-ROM to the
harddrive.
>> I am going to try this first.
>> My only other option seems to be to let the recovery
disk
>> re-install Windows Me. I don't want to go that far yet.
I
>> don't know if everything will be wiped. That isn't the
end
>> of the world, I have backups, but the effort involved is
>> substaintial.
>
>
>.
>

[Mike M]

Felch,

Ah, so you went for a reinstall. I thought that you might have to. Now
please don't forget to use Belarc Adviser to check for any patches that were
previously installed that might now have been broken following the reinstall -
something unfortunately currently beyond the capabilities of the Windows
Update site which can only detect whether the patch has been installed at some
time in the past. You may also have problems with Internet Explorer as
reinstalling Win Me has probably returned you to IE5.5 but that can be
remedied once you've got other things straightened out.

Cheers and thanks for letting us know how you managed to get on.

Oh, FYI, if you have a CD burner you might want to burn a copy of your
windows\options\install folder as insurance "just in case". This would then
mean you aren't totally reliant on the manufacturer's recovery CD.
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



Felch > wrote:

> Mike-
>
> I used the setup.exe file sucessfully!
> Thank you very much.
> I have been struggling with this problem unsucessfully for
> a couple of weeks.
>
> Keep up the good work!!!

[felch]

You are correct in that the IE went back to 5. Once that
was corrected, everything is normal
I used the Belarc Adviser and used it to find the patches
required for Windows Me.

Thanks again


>-----Original Message-----
>Felch,
>
>Ah, so you went for a reinstall. I thought that you
might have to. Now
>please don't forget to use Belarc Adviser to check for
any patches that were
>previously installed that might now have been broken
following the reinstall -
>something unfortunately currently beyond the capabilities
of the Windows
>Update site which can only detect whether the patch has
been installed at some
>time in the past. You may also have problems with
Internet Explorer as
>reinstalling Win Me has probably returned you to IE5.5
but that can be
>remedied once you've got other things straightened out.
>
>Cheers and thanks for letting us know how you managed to
get on.
>
>Oh, FYI, if you have a CD burner you might want to burn a
copy of your
>windows\options\install folder as insurance "just in
case". This would then
>mean you aren't totally reliant on the manufacturer's
recovery CD.
>--
>Mike Maltby MS-MVP

>
>
>Felch > wrote:
>
>> Mike-
>>
>> I used the setup.exe file sucessfully!
>> Thank you very much.
>> I have been struggling with this problem unsucessfully
for
>> a couple of weeks.
>>
>> Keep up the good work!!!
>
>
>.
>

[Mike M]

Felch,

GREAT!

One last question if I may. What if any problems did you have in
(re)installing IE6? Did you have to take any special action or did it install
without problem?

Thanks again for providing such useful feedback which can then be used to help
others.
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



felch > wrote:

> You are correct in that the IE went back to 5. Once that
> was corrected, everything is normal
> I used the Belarc Adviser and used it to find the patches
> required for Windows Me.
>
> Thanks again

[Rick T]

Mike M wrote:

> Felch,
>
> MSVCRT.DLL is contained in WIN_13.CAB of the Win Me CAB set.
>
> You can extract the file from DOS as follows.
> Boot to DOS using a Win Me boot floppy. Do not choose Minimal Boot from the
> options as otherwise the EXT command will be unavailable.
> Type EXT at the DOS prompt. This should start Extract Command Line Helper.

Oh, for #&$^&%# <g>

I've been using full command and as of today for the first time typed it
in without needing to check /? .... and there's a helper program???

grrrrrrrrrrrrr <g>


Rick

[Felch]

Mike-

I had to uninstall both IE5 and IE6 start up files- as per
a MS bulletin. and re-install IE6
Also- I had one issue with an update for a driver of my
modem. Once loaded from the MS site, I got tapisrv errors
and had to redo the ENTIRE thing from setup!

Wish I knew what went wrong to begin with.

Thanks again

>-----Original Message-----
>Felch,
>
>GREAT!
>
>One last question if I may. What if any problems did you
have in
>(re)installing IE6? Did you have to take any special
action or did it install
>without problem?
>
>Thanks again for providing such useful feedback which can
then be used to help
>others.
>--
>Mike Maltby MS-MVP

>
>
>felch > wrote:
>
>> You are correct in that the IE went back to 5. Once that
>> was corrected, everything is normal
>> I used the Belarc Adviser and used it to find the
patches
>> required for Windows Me.
>>
>> Thanks again
>
>
>.
>

[Mike M]

Thanks Felch,

Sorry to press you on this but can you remember which KB you followed? Was it
KB 312451 - "How to Remove Internet Explorer 6 by Reinstalling Windows"
(http://support.microsoft.com?kbid=312451), I suspect not as this doesn't
mention startup files.

As for your modem problems, as a matter of policy I try never to install
hardware driver updates from the Windows Update site preferring instead to use
those from the manufacturer's web sites.

Regards,
--
Mike Maltby MS-MVP



Felch > wrote:

> I had to uninstall both IE5 and IE6 start up files- as per
> a MS bulletin. and re-install IE6
> Also- I had one issue with an update for a driver of my
> modem. Once loaded from the MS site, I got tapisrv errors
> and had to redo the ENTIRE thing from setup!
>
> Wish I knew what went wrong to begin with.