Installing The Recovery Console

[DaveH]

many people don't realize the power of the recovery console or what it does so here's a quick way to install it, and a guide to it's switchs and what they do.

* Installation the Recovery Console *

(Replace D:\ with your cd-rom or installation source directory)

START<>RUN:D:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons

this will install your recovery console

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*Well, whoopy-do I've installed a console, what do I do with it?*

Okay Okay, here's what you CAN do

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[ATTRIB]

Changes attributes on one file or directory.

ATTRIB -R | +R | -S | +S | -H | +H | -C | +C filename

+ Sets an attribute.

- Clears an attribute.

R Read-only file attribute.

S System file attribute.

H Hidden file attribute.

C Compressed file attribute.

More than one attribute can be set or cleared at a time. To view attributes, use the dir command.

[batch]

Executes commands specified in a text file.

BATCH Inputfile [Outputfile]

Inputfile Specifies the text file that contains the list of commands to be executed.

Outputfile If specified, contains the output of the specified commands. If not specified, the output is displayed on the screen.

Batch cannot be one of the commands included in the Inputfile.

cd/chdir

Displays the name of the current directory, or switches to a new directory.

CHDIR [path]

CHDIR [..]

CHDIR [drive:]

CD [path]

CD [..]

CD [drive:]

CD .. Specifies that you want to change to the parent directory.

Type CD [drive:] to display the current directory in the specified drive. Type CD without parameters to display the current drive and directory.

The chdir command treats spaces as delimiters. Use quotation marks around a directory name containing spaces. For Example:

cd "\winnt\profiles\username\programs\start menu"

Chdir operates only within the system directories of the current Windows installation, removable media, the root directory of any hard disk partition, or the local installation sources.

[chkdsk]

Checks a disk and displays a status report,

chkdsk [drive:] [/p] | [/r]

[drive:] Specifies the drive to check.

/p Check even if the drive is not flagged dirty, bad.

/r Locates bad sectors and recovers readable information (implies /p).

Chkdsk may be used without any parameters, in which case the current drive is checked with no switches. You can specify the listed switches.

Chkdsk requires the Autochk.exe file. Chkdsk automatically locates Autochk.exe in the startup (boot) directory. If it cannot be found in the startup directory, chkdsk attempts to locate the Windows 2000 Setup CD. If the installation CD cannot be found, chkdsk prompts for the location of Autochk.exe.

[cls]

Clears the screen.

[copy]

Copies a single file to another location.

copy source [destination]

source Specifies the file to be copied.

Destination Specifies the directory and/or file name

for the new file.

The source might be removable media, any directory within the system directories of the current Windows installation, the root of any drive, the local installation sources, or the cmdcons directory.

The destination might be any directory within the system directories of the current Windows installation, the root of any drive, the local installation sources, or the cdirectory. The destination cannot be removable media. If a destination is not specified, it defaults to the current directory. Copy does not support replaceable parameters (wild cards). Copy prompts if the destination file already exists. A compressed file from the Windows 2000 Setup CD is automatically decompressed as it is copied.

[del/delete]

Deletes one file.

del [drive:][path]filename

delete [drive:][path]filename

[drive:][path]filenameSpecifies the file to delete.

Delete only operates within the system directories of the current Windows installation, removable media, the root directory of any hard disk partition, or the local installation sources.

Del and delete do not support replaceable parameters (wild cards).

[dir]

Displays a list of files and subdirectories in a directory.

dir [drive:][path][filename]

[drive:][path][filename] Specifies drive, directory, and/or files to list.

Dir lists all files, including hidden and system files.

Attributes available to files/folders

a Files ready for archiving h Hidden

c Compressed p Reparse Point

d Directory r Read-only

e Encrypted s System file

[disable]

Disables a Windows system service or driver.

disable servicename

servicename The name of the service or driver to be disabled.

Disable prints the old start_type of the service before resetting it to SERVICE_DISABLED. You should make a note of the old start_type, in case you need to enable the service again.

The start_type values that the disable command displays are:

SERVICE_DISABLED

SERVICE_BOOT_START

SERVICE_SYSTEM_START

SERVICE_AUTO_START

SERVICE_DEMAND_START

[diskpart]

Manages the partitions on your hard disk volumes.

diskpart[/add | /delete] [device-name | drive-name | partition-name]

/add Create a new partition

/delete Delete an existing partition

device-name Device name for creating a new partition (such as \Device\HardDisk0)

drive-name Drive-letter based name for deleting an existing partition (such as D:)

partition-name Partition-based name for deleting an existing partition and can be used in place of the drive-name argument (such as \Device\HardDisk0\Partition1)

size Size of the new partition, in megabytes

If no arguments are used, a user interface for managing your partitions appears.

[enable]

Enables a Windows system service or driver.

enable servicename [start_type]

servicename Name of the service or driver to be enabled.

start_type How the service or driver is scheduled to be started. Valid start-type values are:

SERVICE_BOOT_START

SERVICE_SYSTEM_START

SERVICE_AUTO_START

SERVICE_DEMAND_START

Enable prints the old start_type of the service before resetting it to the new value. Note the old value, in case it is necessary to restore the start_type of the service. If you do not specify a new start_type, enable prints the old start_type.

[exit

Quits the Recovery Console and restarts your computer.

[expand]

Expands a compressed file.

EXPAND source [/F:filespec] [destination] [/Y]

EXPAND source [/F:filespec] /D

source Specifies the file to be expanded. May not include wildcard (* and ?) characters.

Destination Specifies the directory for the new file. The default is the current directory.

/y Do not prompt before overwriting an existing file.

/f:filespec If the source contains more than one file, this parameter is required to identify the< specific file(s) to be expanded. May include wildcards.

/d Do not expand; only display a directory of the files which are contained in the source.

The destination might be any directory within the system directories of the current Windows installation, the root of any drive, the local installation sources, or the Cmdcons directory. The destination cannot be removable media. The destination file cannot be read-only. Use the attrib command to remove the read-only attribute. Expand prompts if the destination file already exists unless /Y is used.

[fixboot]

Writes a new boot sector onto the system partition.

fixboot [drive:]

drive:Specifies the drive to which a boot sector will be written, overriding the default choice of the system boot partition.

[fixmbr]

Repairs the master boot code of the boot partition.

fixmbr [device-name]

device-name Optional name that specifies the device that needs a new MBR. If this is left blank then the boot device is used.

If fixmbr detects an invalid or nonstandard partition table signature, it prompts you before rewriting the MBR.

[format]

Formats a disk for use with Windows 2000.

format [drive:] [/q] [/fs:file-system]

[drive:] Specifies the drive to format.

/q Performs a quick format.

/fs:file-system Specifies the file system to use (FAT, FAT32, or NTFS)

[help]

Displays information about commands supported by the Recovery Console.

help [command]

command Any Recovery Console command.

[listsvc]

Lists all available services and drivers on the computer.

[logon]

Lists the detected installations of Windows 2000, and requests the local administrator password for those installations.

[map]

Lists the drive letter to physical device mappings that are currently active.

[map [arc]]

arc Tells MAP to use ARC paths instead of Windows 2000 device paths.

[md/mkdir]

Creates a directory.

md [drive:]path

mkdir [drive:]path

Mkdir only operates within the system directories of the current Windows installation, removable media, the root directory of any hard disk partition, or the local installation sources.

[more/type]

Displays a text file to the screen.

more [filename]

type [filename]

More or type displays a text file.

[d/rmdir]

Removes (deletes) a directory.

rd [drive:]path

rmdir [drive:]path

Rmdir only operates within the system directories of the current Windows installation, removable media, the root directory of any hard disk partition, or the local installation sources.

[en/rename]

Renames a single file.

ren [drive:][path]filename1 filename2

rename [drive:][path]filename1 filename2

You cannot specify a new drive or path for your destination file.

Rename only operates within the system directories of the current Windows installation or cds/diskettes etc

DO NOT FOOL WITH THESE LAST TWO

set - Displays and sets Recovery Console environment variables.

systemroot - Sets the current directory to %SystemRoot%.

[dai49]

i have always steered clear of the recovery console because i did not know how to use it.

find this very useful thanks top post

[rstryker]

great ... thanks for the info