Microsoft KB Archive/309481

= The Automatic Recovery screen is not displayed if the Bootstat.dat file is compressed =

Article ID: 309481

Article Last Modified on 1/7/2006

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows XP Professional
 * Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition

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This article was previously published under Q309481



SYMPTOMS
When you restart your computer after an unsuccessful attempt to start the computeror after a registry recovery, the Windows XP Automatic Recovery screen may not appear.



CAUSE
This issue can occur if the Windows\Bootstat.dat file is compressed on an NTFS partition.

If this is the case, the Automatic Recovery screen does not appear because Ntldr cannot write the Automatic Recovery flags to the Bootstat.dat file when it is compressed.



RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, decompress the Bootstat.dat file in the Windows folder. To do so:
 * 1) Right-click the Bootstat.dat file, and then click Properties.
 * 2) Click to clear the Compress contents to save disk space check box, and then click OK.

After you decompress the Bootstat.dat file, the automatic recovery feature works, even if the NTFS partition is still compressed.

Note If the issue still exists, rename Bootstat.dat to Bootstat.old, and then restart the computer.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the &quot;Applies to&quot; section.



MORE INFORMATION
When you restart your computer after a failed startup attempt or after a registry recovery, the computer displays the Automatic Recovery screen. This screen includes the following error message and the Windows Advanced Options menu:

We apologize for the inconvenience, but Windows did not start successfully. A recent hardware or software change might have caused this.

The Windows Advanced Options menu includes the following troubleshooting modes:
 * Safe Mode
 * Safe Mode with Networking
 * Safe Mode with Command Prompt
 * Last Known Good Configuration
 * Start Windows Normally

Additional query words: normal safe mode auto-recovery auto

Keywords: kbenv kbprb KB309481

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