Hi, my Windows Vista fails to start today. It only has a black screen which reads: 1. Insert your installation disc and restart your computer. 2. Choose your language settings, and then click next. 3. Click repair your computer. file:\windows\system32\config\system status: 0xc00000e9 info: windows failed to load because the system registry file is missing or corrupt I inserted the disc and restart my PC, but the same text then appeared again. I pressed Enter and "Windows Boot Manager" showed up and told me to choose an operating system to start. I chose Vista and several choices appeared: Safe Mode; Safe Mode with Networking; Safe Mode with Command Prompt; Last Known Good Configuration (advanced); Start Windows Normally I tried all of them progressively, but they didn't work. The text "insert your installation disc and restart your computer" appeared again and that was all. Since then, I have read many advices and instructions on the Internet. They all say to insert the disc, choose a language and click to repair to PC. But there is no "language selection" on my screen. What do I do wrong? Why can't I get further than to the first step? Any ideas how to fix the problem? Thank you for your time!
You need to set up your system to boot from the installation media. Usually the boot order can be changed in BIOS/UEFI. You might need to disable SecureBoot if it is enabled.
Sounds like the drive is going bad. Get a utility like Hiren's Boot CD and see if you can copy your files to another drive before attempting any repair.