How to Use the Microsoft Windows Recovery Console

The Recovery Console is a command-line tool that you can use to repair Windows if the computer does not start properly. You can start the Recovery Console from the Windows Server 2003 CD or at startup if the Recovery Console was previously installed to your computer.

Use the Recovery Console if you used the Last Known Good Configuration startup option and it was not successful and you cannot start the computer in Safe mode. Microsoft recommends that you use the Recovery Console method only if you are an advanced user who can use basic commands to identify and locate problem drivers and files.

To use Recovery Console, follow these steps:

1. Insert the Windows Server 2003 installation CD in your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.
2. When you are prompted during text-mode setup, press R to start the Recovery Console.

You can use the Recovery Console to:

• Access the drives on your computer.
• Enable or disable device drivers or services.
• Copy files from the Windows Server 2003 installation CD or copy files from other removable media. For example, you can copy a file that you need that was deleted.
• Create a new boot sector and a new master boot record (MBR). You might have to do this if there are problems starting from the existing boot sector