Help: Windows could not start because...

[Milo]

My cousin got this problem on her laptop today.

"Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt: \windows\system32\config\system"

What does this mean and how do I fix it for her.

[SkyDog]

That "system" file is actually the system hive of the registry. If she's one of the .01% of the world that actually creates an Emergency Repair Disk ahead of time, you can use that to replace the file. Otherwise, reinstalling Windows over itself should take care of the problem.

[eshbach]

no need to do a full reinstall, use the repair feature on the cd.

[sourdaisy]

Originally posted by eshbach
no need to do a full reinstall, use the repair feature on the cd.

It depends on the version of Windows. Only the latest version have a repair function.