Q: I had Linux installed as a dual boot with Vista. I got rid of the Linux partition and thecomputer was fine and working until I restarted it the next day. I got a GRUB loader Error 22 message and computer wouldn’t do anything. My computer came with Vista on it so I didn’t have the install disc for that but I did for Windows XP. I installed XP on drive D hoping I could somehow get drive C to boot up again at some point. I can see all my files from drive C and can access some of them like pics through the My Computer thing. The only way I can get to the C: or D: prompt is to put in the XP disk and go into recovery. I’ve tried all kinds of commands but still unable to boot from C. My Acer laptop has all kinds of extra buttons and they won’t work now since I’m not running Vista. How do I get my computer to boot drive C again?
A: With hindsight, what you should have done was to restore your Vista master boot record (MBR) before you removed Linux. You do this by going to a command prompt and typing Bootrec.exe /FixMbr. All is not lost though, you should still be able to restore your MBR from the command prompt generated by your XP disc or from a DOS floppy, simply get to the C: prompt and type the command as above. This will, however, stop you booting from the XP partition.
You can repair the bootloader from a command line
Originally featured in PCU120
