two start up options!

wozelbeak

Daemon Poster
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1,324
after being a complete dickhead, i have ended up with two operating systems showing up on start up of my computer.
when i switch on the offending laptop it starts, then goes to a black screen which asks which os i want to start from. the first option is "windows xp pro" which has aways been installed, the second one is for "windows xp stetup". this has appeared because i tried to do a repair using a xp pro disc, then aborted half way through. i dont know why i was doing the repair, as there were not any issues bothering me really?
both systems are installed on the c drive.
i know its a bit of a noob question, but is there any way of me removing the "windows setup" option from the boot process?
this is the system that is automatically selected when it boots up. so if im not in attendance when booting, it tries to boot from the setup option, then goes into installing the windows xp pro which i aborted.

any help will be appreciated.
 
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/827324

After you upgrade to Microsoft Windows XP and restart your computer, you may receive the Windows XP startup menu with the following options:

* Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
* Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Setup
* Microsoft Windows XP Professional (If Windows XP Professional was installed)
* Microsoft Windows XP Professional Setup (If Windows XP Professional was installed)

If you select Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition or Microsoft Windows Professional, the computer starts correctly. If you select Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Setup or Microsoft Windows XP Professional Setup, the computer restarts, or Windows XP Setup restarts.

To resolve this issue, edit the Boot.ini file to remove the Setup reference from it or restore the computer to its previous configuration.

Edit Boot.ini

1. Click Start and then click My Computer.
2. Double-click the drive letter where Windows XP is installed.
3. On the Tools menu, click Folder Options.
4. Click the View tab.
5. Click the Show hidden files and folders button.
6. Click to clear the Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) check box.
7. Click OK.
8. In My Computer, double-click the Boot.ini file to open the file in Notepad.
9. Under [operating systems], remove the line that refers to Windows XP Setup.
10. Change the "default=" line to match the installation location.

For example, the remaining line under "[operating systems]" may be the following line:

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect

If so, change the "default=" line to the following line:
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
11. On the File menu, click Save.
12. Restart the computer.

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Restore the Computer to Its Previous Configuration
If Windows XP Setup was not completed, use one of the following methods to restore your previous operating system.
Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows Millennium Edition

1. To start the computer, use a startup disk that was created in the previous operating system.
2. At the command prompt, type:
sys c:
3. Press the ENTER key.

The boot sector is restored to its previous configuration.
4. Remove the startup disk, and then restart the computer.
5. After your earlier version of Windows starts, explore Drive C and delete the following folders:
* $win_nt$.~bt folder
* $win_nt$.~ls folder

Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Windows NT 4.0

1. Start the computer.
2. After the BIOS completes the power-on self test (POST), the Startup menu appears briefly. The timeout may be set to one second. Therefore, you must be alert.
3. As soon as the POST is completed, press the UP ARROW key repeatedly (do not hold down the key) to stop the Start menu timer.
4. When the Startup menu appears, select your previous operating system (it may be listed first), and then press the ENTER key.
5. After the computer starts your previous operating system, click Start, and then click Run.
6. Type:
C:
7. Click OK.
8. Right-click the Boot.ini file, and then click Properties.
9. On the General tab, click to clear the Read-Only check box.
10. Double-click the Boot.ini file to edit the file in Notepad.
11. Remove the following line:
c:\$win_nt$.~bt\bootsect.dat="Windows XP Installation/Upgrade"
12. On the File menu, click Save.
13. On the File menu, click Exit.
14. In the Drive C window, delete the following folders:
* $win_nt$.~bt
* $win_nt$.~ls
 
Control Panel>System>Advanced
Under startup and recovery click settings
uncheck the box that says time to display boot options or something like that. The first box i think
 
cheers net and tiger,
tiger i went your route, then selected 0 seconds and changed the preference to the original operating system.
bingo it worked.

happy days.
 
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