I just started using an HP Pavilion laptop computer. I installed VCom Fix-It Utilities on it and restarted the system as directed. Now it is locked with a screen called "Rescue Disk". I can't turn it off or use ctrl-alt-del to restart the system. Nothing works. I think this program locked everything up because another virus program was installed but I can't get into the computer to delete Fix-it. How can I turn this computer off, or at least get to a prompt so I can delete something? I tried putting the Windows XP CD in the drive and it did nothing--nothing helps. What should I do? I'm desparate here.
Do you have rescue disks or start up disks? Windows 2000 has start up floppies, I'm assuming that Windows XP can also make start up floppies. How To Create a Boot Disk for an NTFS or FAT Partition in Windows XP http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;305595&Product=winxp OR How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;310994&Product=winxp
Try this: Power up the computer, hold down the F8 key, and start up the computer in Safe mode. Next, roll back the computer to a restore point taken before the time when you installed VCom Fix-It. Alternatively, once the computer is started in Safe Mode, click on Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel and remove (uninstall) VCom Fix-It. If you can't succeed in starting the computer in Safe Mode, your best and perhaps only recourse is to enter the computer's BIOS setup, make sure it is set up to boot from the CD-ROM drive first (before booting from the hard drive). Put the restore CD in the CD-ROM drive and reboot. If the restore CD is a proper one and undamaged, the restore CD should start up, and give you the choice to boot from CD or hard drive. Choose "Boot from CD", and you will then be guided through a reinstall of Windows XPee. Choose any and all options to over-write the current hard drive information completely. If you are within spitting distance of Harvard, MA, bring the computer in and we'll straighten it out for a fee... Ben Myers