How to run CHKDSK on Windows XP when XP won't start

Question

My Gateway running Windows XP attempts to start Windows, but then restarts and won't ever finish loading Windows.

I'd like to run CHKDSK to see if its a bad sector. However, since it can't load Windows, how do I get to the command-prompt to run CHKDSK?

I've searched here and on the internet, and haven't really seen any solid answers.

Solution 1

You could try booting to a BartPE livecd disk and running it that way. Be sure to include the checkdisk plugin

Solution 2

As @Rob suggested, you can also boot off of the Windows XP CD. When you boot up, it firsts asks you to Press a key to boot the CD, so do so. As it's loading, instead of pressing Enter to load setup, press R to load the recovery console. From there, choose the Windows installation, type the Administrator password, then run your CHKDSK C: /f /p.

Comments

[Rob]

With an XP disk.