corrupt registry/hard drive

[matt 2LT]

ive had this big problem for a while now where windows will not start, i get a screen telling me part of the registry is corupt.

i have now found the windows cd, and gone into the "recovery console" but its telling me that i don't have a hard drive connected. and says the same if i try to reinstall windows.

yet if i disconnect the hard drive and start it i get a different screen, so its not that its got a loose connection.


so does this mean the hard drives fked?

and a case of get a new hard drive, then install windows?

and is there any way to recover my files?

cheers

[matt 2LT]

well ive just tryed to connect it to my spare computer, but the broken one uses a red cable (sata?) and the spare uses a big fat grey cable. so i couldn't try that.

ive tryed messing around with all the settings, but from what i can see, its not detecting the hard drive.

so i think i will try buying a cheap HD and see if it is the hard drive that is the problem, and if it then works, hope i can connect it as a secondry HD and recover my files.

and as ive been saying for the last few years, i should really back up my files sometime.

[matt 2LT]

no just checked the old one doesn't have them.

but what i might have one last go at is, connecting the HD from the spare PC using the grey cable from the floppy drive, and see if it fires.

[matt 2LT]

yes just tryed that, its too small.

the one from the cd drive fits, is it safe to use this?

[matt 2LT]

well windows starts , but its wanting me to activate windows, so will just reinstall it on a new HD, as this one is only 30GB.

i can then try getting the data off the other.