Ron Schenone

From Fred Langa – How To Do A Non-Destructive Repair Of Windows XP

Posted by on Apr 29, 2008 | 7 Comments

Well I wasn’t looking for it, but there it was. An article from Fred Langa posted back in January 19, 2006 on how to do a non-destructive repair of Windows XP. Which made me wonder. With so many of us sticking with Windows XP for awhile longer, it might be beneficial to post this great article and where it is located, to assist those of us who may experience problems with XP down the road.

Fred says it best:

It’s one of those software design decisions that makes you scratch your head and wonder, “What were they thinking?”

The “it” in this case is XP’s most powerful rebuild/repair option, and yet Microsoft chose to hide it behind seeming dead ends, red herrings, and a recycled interface that makes it hard to find and (at first) somewhat confusing to use.

But it’s worth exploring because this option lets you completely and nondestructively rebuild, repair, or refresh an existing XP installation while leaving already-installed software alone (no reinstallation needed!). It also leaves user accounts, names, and passwords untouched and takes only a fraction of the time a full, from-scratch reinstall does. And unlike a traditional full reinstall, this option doesn’t leave you with two copies of XP on your hard drive. Instead, you end up with just the original installation, but repaired, refreshed, and ready to go.

Fred takes us you a step by step, complete with screen shots, on how to do a complete repair of Windows XP while keeping all of your precious stuff completely in working order. It doesn’t get any better than this.

Thanks Fred. You are still missed.

Comments welcome.

Complete Fred Langa with screen shots are here.

[tags]fred langa, windows xp, repair, non-destructive, step by step, screen, shots, [/tags]

  • Ken

    You don’t have to miss Fred!

    He is on the Windows Secrets staff!

    Check out the home page: https://windowssecrets.com/

    There are many more helpful hints, articles, and other information that is most worthwhile!

  • http://wp3.lockergnome.com/nexus/blade/ Ron Schenone

    Hi Ken,
    I am aware he merged with WS. It is that he hasn’t posted anything for well over a year. :-)

  • Don Naphen

    Yes Ken, Fred is still alive and well, but he didn’t “merge” with WS, but rather sold them his valuable membership list and took on a meaningless title. Check out which is probably the longest running blog within this blog .. KEYWORD: FRED LANGA. It goes on forever, dating back to when Fred disappeared and then reappeared. Fred hasn’t written an article (such as the one referred to by Ron) since the “merge”. He actually did an indepth article on the importance of inserting a USB connector correctly so as not to do damage to the pc! A far cry from his former meat & potatoes articles that were so welcome and informative.

    Many former paid subscribers went on a rant following Fred’s actions with WS, sending emails to him … never a reply back to anyone, including me. No individual email addresses are ever listed on the WS site, so it’s impossible to ascertain if negative emails are screened and dumped by someone higher up in the food chain. Most readers on Ron’s blog that were subscribers to Fred’s newsletter have long since bailed out of the WS offering. A real shame … draw your own conclusions after reading the threads.

  • http://wp3.lockergnome.com/nexus/blade/ Ron Schenone

    Hi Don,
    I was trying to be kind in my assessment using the word ‘merge’. I think your assessment as to what actually happened is more accurate.
    Regards, Ron

  • Don Naphen

    IT’S OFFICIAL: FRED LANGA IS GONE FROM THE CHARTS !!!

    Hi Ron; well I just received a copy of WS from a friend of mine who’s a paid subscriber. Contained within the newsletter is Fred’s FINAL column. It was a rather lengthy post mortum article in which he explains why he’s getting out of the business after 30 years. As a point of interest: the article was included also in the “free” version. Now I ask myself: the “free” version never carried his column, so why would it be of interest to anyone there, since it was never available, and many would never have heard of him in the first place! LOL

    I guess this is the final nail in the coffin for Fred’s presence. OR, until he decides to create a new PAY PER VIEW site somewhere else when the money runs out!

  • http://wp3.lockergnome.com/nexus/blade/ Ron Schenone

    Hi Don,
    Thanks for the info. I read his goodbye message.

  • http://twitter.com/angiechaplin Angie Chaplin

    How are lists compatible with SMM programs like HootSuite?