The specific error is:

PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA

Technical Information:

STOP: 0x00000050 (0x80097004, 0x00000001, 0x80515103, 0x00000000).

This guide will help you get your computer back into a bootable state and get rid of the rootkit. To do this, you will need a Windows XP installation disc in order to access the repair options.

Step 1: Insert the Windows XP disc and restart your computer.  When the computer initially starts, you should see “Press any key to boot from CD” message which you must do.  If you do not see this message, you may need to configure your computer to boot from the CD drive.

When the content on the CD has finished loading, you should be presented with a screen that looks like this:

Step 2: Press the ‘R’ key to access the recovery console. You should now be presented with what looks like a DOS prompt.

You may see multiple options when asked which installation you would like to log into. The one you want should look something like the one in the picture, “C:\WINDOWS”. Enter the password for the Administrator account when prompted. If you haven’t set up a password for the Administrator account, just press Enter.

Step 3: Enter the following command (since Windows isn’t case sensitive, you don’t need to worry about any capital letters):

chdir $ntuninstallkb977165$\spuninst

and press Enter.

Now enter the command:

batch spuninst.txt

and press Enter

Once that procedure has finished, type ‘exit‘ and press Enter to restart your computer, and don’t forget to remove the CD.  When your computer restarts it should be able to boot into Windows. We now need to perform a few final steps to remove the rootkit.

Removing the Rootkit

First we need to download and install Microsoft Security Essentials. Once it is installed, it should update itself automatically with the latest virus definitions. From the ‘Home’ tab, set the radio button to ‘Quick’ and press ‘Scan now’.

The scan might take anywhere from 10-20 minutes (or more if you’re on a particularly slow computer). Once it has finished scanning, it will present you with the option to clean up any items it found. Go ahead and do this, after which you may be asked to restart your computer.

It should now be safe to run Windows Update again, since Microsoft Security Essentials takes care of the virus that caused the problem.

Since there’s probably other malware residing on your system, it would be a good idea to install and run Malwarebytes as well, just in case. Also, make sure you’re running an antivirus program and that it’s up to date.

Please let us know how it works in the comments, or if you have any questions!

The post Fix: Windows XP Gets Blue Screen Error after Windows Update (KB977165) first appeared on Techerator.

The specific error is:

A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer.
…
Technical information:

*** STOP: 0x0000007E (0xFFFFFFFFC0000005, 0xFFFFF800020393AA, 0xFFFFFA60021EE7D8, 0xFFFFFA60021EE1b0)

So far, we have found two methods to fix this problem.  Try the first method (using Safe Mode), and if that doesn’t work try the second method (using System Restore).

Method 1 (Safe Mode)

Step 1: Restart your computer and continuously tap the F8 key while it is restarting.  You will eventually see the ‘Advanced Boot Options’ screen, where you need to select the Safe Mode option.

Step 2: Click the Start Menu and type Programs and Features in the search box.  Press enter when the Programs and Features option is selected.

Step 3: Select View installed updates in the top left of the window.

Step 4: Locate Update for Microsoft Windows (KB973879) in the list of updates.  You can sort by name for easier searching by clicking the Name column.  Click Uninstall at the top of the list.

Step 5: Click Restart Now.  Your computer should now function properly.  If not, try Method 2 below.

Method 2 (System Restore)

Step 1: Restart your computer and continuously tap the F8 key while it is restarting.  You will eventually see the ‘Advanced Boot Options’ screen, where you need to select the Repair Your Computer option.

Step 2: Select your keyboard layout, which will typically be ‘US’.

Step 3: Enter your username and password.  If you have no password, just click OK.

Step 4: Click System Restore in the System Recovery Options menu.  This may take a few minutes to launch so be patient.

Step 5: When the System Restore window opens, click Next.  Select the most recent system backup and click Next.

Step 6: Make sure your main drive is selected (most likely C:) and click Next.  Click Finish in the next screen.  Click Yes to the warning dialog.

Step 7: When the restore has finished, you shoud receive a successful completion message.  Click the Restart button.

Step 8: When your computer  has restarted, click the Start Menu and type Programs and Features in the search box.  Press enter when the Programs and Features option is selected.

Step 9: Select View installed updates in the top left of the window.

Step 10: Locate Update for Microsoft Windows (KB973879) in the list of updates.  You can sort by name for easier searching by clicking the Name column.  Click Uninstall at the top of the list.

Step 11: Click Restart Now.  Your computer should now function properly.

Have you experienced this problem?  Tell us about it (including the model of computer you have) in the comments.

The post Fix: Windows Vista 64-bit Gets Blue Screen After Windows Updates first appeared on Techerator.

This guide will show you how to use the Recovery Console feature provided on the Windows installation CD to repair your system files and get your computer working again.

Potential Symptoms

The computer turns on, but:

• Windows begins to load and then immediately restarts.
• An “Improper Shutdown” message is displayed with the option to boot into Safe Mode, but the computer restarts when this is selected.
• The “Blue Screen of Death” (as shown in this article’s picture) is displayed when starting the computer.

Prerequisites

1. You must acquire the Windows installation disk for the version of Windows you are currently using.  This may be different than the “recovery disk” that your computer manufacturer may have provided with the computer, so it is possible that the steps below may not apply to your CD.  Contact your manufacturer if you are unsure.

• Warning: The system recovery disks provided by the manufacturer may restore your computer to its original factory state!  This would result in the loss of your data, so please be careful.
• Note: If you have Windows XP SP2 or SP3, you cannot use a Windows XP SP1 CD to run the recovery console.

1. You need to know the Windows administrator password for your computer (if you have no password, this will be blank).

Procedure

1. Insert the Windows installation CD and reboot your computer.  As the computer restarts, look for the message “Press any key to boot from CD” message do so immediately.
2. After loading, you will see a blue screen with some options.  Press the R key to enter the recovery console.
3. Select the Windows installation you wish to log onto (you may only have one).
4. You will be prompted to enter the administrator password for the computer. If you do not have a password, just press enter.
5. You will now see a MS-DOS console screen where you can enter the following commands to repair your system:

• Type fixboot and press enter.
  • This will re-write the Windows boot record. This can resolve problems if your computer cannot locate the operating system.
• Type chkdsk /R C: and press enter.
  • This initiate a disk checking function and repairs damage it encounters.
  • If this test completes successfully, reboot the computer to see if the problem has been resolved.
• Optional: If the above two commands didn’t work, you can try typing ‘fixmbr’ in the recovery console and pressing enter.
  This can potentially cause damage to the system’s partition table, so use this only if all other options fail and you only have a single partition on the disk.

If you follow these steps and the problem still persists, you may have to check for  malfunctioning hardware or reinstall your operating system.  Have any extra suggestions to help with Windows system problems?  Share them in the comments!

The post Windows Won’t Boot? Try The Recovery Console first appeared on Techerator.