BleepingComputer.com: Need Help Recovering from Windows XP repair

Quote

You'll have to do it manually...

You can restore the defaults for the Start Menu, Accessories and Administrative Tools as follows:

• Restore Accessories Program Files Menu with accrestore.zip for XP
  
  • Extract (unzip) the tool, double-click on it to run and ensure that the following check boxes are checked (as shown below):
  
  
  
  • Then click on the Restore button.

==============================================================================

To manually recreate "All Programs" entries, follow these steps...

• Download App Paths
  
• Double click on AppPaths.exe to run the program.
  
• Keep the program open.

In this example I'll recreate an entry for Avast antivirus program.

• Go Start>All Programs.
  
• Right click on Avast entry, click "Properties".

NOTE. Make sure, you right click on Avast program, NOT on Avast folder.

• You'll see this window:

Due to the damage caused by the infection, you'll find "Target" box empty.

• Go back to AppPaths window and find Avast entry.
  
• Right click on Avast line, click "Edit".
  
• A pop-up window will open:

• Highlight everything in "Path" box, right click on it, click "Copy"
  
• Go back to Avast "Properties" window, right click inside "Target" box, click "Paste".
  
• IMPORTANT! Add quotation marks at the beginning of the path and at the end
  
• Click OK and you're done.

In case, program's link shows as (empty):

• Open Windows Explorer, navigate to Avast folder in Program Files
  
• Right click on Avast ".exe" file, click "Create shortcut":

• Copy that shortcut, go back to Start menu.
  
• Right click on avast!Free Antivirus, click "Paste".
  
• You'll see Avast shortcut recreated replacing (empty) entry.

Alternatively....
...you paste that shortcut in:
(XP) - C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Avast
(Vista/7) - C:\ProgramData\Start Menu\Programs\Avast

Quick launch will be repaired once you add some shortcuts to it. It looks like some sort of temp cleaner got your backed up shortcuts or they were never backed up by the infection properly.

Broni, you have a method of recreating some of the default shortcuts right?

Yes, posted them in my previous reply.

Sorry but I didn't see that there was a page 2 of responses. I will try the program listed above. Somehow this message seems to be appearing in front of my previous message.

This post has been edited by jkford: 21 June 2011 - 01:47 PM

I finally figured out how to manually add short cuts to the quick launch and it now works. Once I added a short cut to the quick launch folder, I was able to drag and drop the others onto the quick launch bar. Now the only thing left (that I have identified) is to get back the files in the administrative tools folder. Does anyone know how to do this? To they have to be added manually also? If so, does anybody have a list of all the files?

Please, re-read my reply #16.

The apppaths doesn't help my situation. There are no short cuts in my folders to copy and paste targets. My folders are all empty. I have been manually creating short cuts to the executable files and dragging and dropping the short cuts into the appropriate start menu folders. It works but takes awhile. Many times the appropriate file is difficult to identify because of cryptic names or multiple executable files. At present, the only thing that I have not been able to fix is the administrative tools folder that is found in the control panel. I guess I will need to go to another xp computer and make a list of the files and targets if possible. Otherwise everything else seems to back to normal.
Thanks for everything.

This post has been edited by jkford: 22 June 2011 - 09:39 PM

You're not able to....
....you can restore the defaults for the Start Menu, Accessories and Administrative Tools as follows:

• Restore Accessories Program Files Menu with accrestore.zip for XP
  
  • Extract (unzip) the tool, double-click on it to run and ensure that the following check boxes are checked (as shown below):
  
  
  
  • Then click on the Restore button.

I ran the accrestore program and it restored the system tools (one of the choices on the menu) but it did not do anything to my empty administrative tools folder. I can't remember for sure, but aren't these two different things?

Please download SystemLook from one of the links below and save it to your Desktop.
Download Mirror #1
Download Mirror #2
64-bit users go HERE

• Double-click SystemLook.exe to run it.
  
• Vista\Win 7 users:: Right click on SystemLook.exe, click Run As Administrator
  
• Copy the content of the following box into the main textfield:
  

  :dir
  C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu /s
  

  
  
  
• Click the Look button to start the scan.
  
• When finished, a notepad window will open with the results of the scan. Please post this log in your next reply.

Note: The log can also be found on your Desktop entitled SystemLook.txt

Thought perhaps I could revert to unhidden to provide the following;

Troubleshooting Windows XP-Kelly's Korner
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp.htm

http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_abc.htm

Administrator Tools Missing: Open a Search window and do a find for *.msc files in C:\Windows\System32.
You can create the missing shortcuts by pointing them to the correct file.
Perfromance-perform.msc
Services-services.msc
Event Viewer-eventvwr.msc
Component Services-comexp.msc(C:\Windows\System32\Com)
ComputerManagement-compmgmt.msc
Data Source(ODBC)-obdcad32.exe

Also included
Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 Configuration-mscorcfg.msc
Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 Wizards-ConfigWizards.exe
Target-C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v.1.14322\

Or, perhaps someone here could look at the following .reg fix to confirm if it would work.

Administrative Tools-Restore
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/regs_edits/msi.reg