Programs for restoring the windows bootloader. Adding a Windows XP boot entry to the boot menu and storage. Automatic recovery using USB drive
The Windows operating system is equipped with a huge number of built-in tools to provide protection against damage and loss of information. Despite this, there are often cases when the OS stops starting correctly. Most often, this occurs due to damage to the special boot record MBR on the hard drive, which stores Windows 7 startup data. This article describes in detail how to restore the bootloader.
Bootmgr program
BootManager or Bootmgr – special program, which is located in a special service sector hard drive, called MBR. It takes over control of the computer after the BIOS checks the functionality of all installed components and connects the HDD.
The manager reads data from a special table located in the very first or boot sector of the disk. This table indicates where the files necessary to start the system are located. When all the required information has been collected, the computer begins loading Windows.
If the program cannot find any necessary information, this will lead to Personal Computer will not be able to boot Windows and will give the user an error message. As a rule, this is a blank black screen with a single static inscription: “bootmgr is missing”. 
Similar consequences will occur if the entire boot sector of the hard drive is damaged. In this case, the address table may be in perfect order, but the manager program itself will not work properly. In this case, restoration is required.
Virus attacks
There are three main reasons why the Master Boot Record can become corrupted: virus attacks, system crashes or power outages, and incorrect OS installation.
While surfing the Internet, users may accidentally download some dangerous virus, which can change the MBR of the hard drive, causing damage to the installed on it operating system.
To counteract malicious scripts, there are special applications - antiviruses. It is highly recommended to install one of them on your computer. For example, you can use free software developed by Microsoft – Security Essentials.
The program is freely available for download on the page https://www.microsoft.com/ru-ru/download/details.aspx?id=5201. 
Problems with HDD
Another common cause of problems is system failures. If you turn off your PC while the operating system is running Power button and disconnect it from the power supply, files stored on the hard drive may be damaged. The same thing will happen if, while the system is performing some tasks, the voltage in the network suddenly disappears.
In order to protect your personal computer from such emergency situations, you should use a feeder uninterruptible power supply, and also turn off the PC using the Start menu, not the button.
Also, the bootloader program may be damaged if you installed several copies of operating systems on one hard drive. To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to install each copy of Windows on a separate logical partition. To fix the problem, use bootloader recovery.
Creating a bootable USB flash drive
Before repairing the Windows 7 boot loader, users need to find an installation DVD or create a special bootable USB flash drive. To do this, you will need an ISO Windows installer, a flash drive and specialized software. The UltraISO program is most often used for these purposes.
With its help, you need to burn the downloaded ISO image to a storage medium, after which you can begin the recovery process.
Boot sector recovery
A secure, high-quality computer opens up a wide range of possibilities for us. But even in the rare case when a licensed version of the operating system and an excellent antivirus are installed, there is always the possibility that one fine day, instead of the usual greeting, a notification about damage to the OC bootloader will appear on the screen.
The reasons for this are different, but they are not the ones that initially concern the user. He panics because he cannot access the necessary files. All this may not happen if the user knows how to restore the OS bootloader. Systemic ailments cannot be treated with just one reinstallation.
OS won't start
There are exactly as many sources that provoke the occurrence of computer errors as there are problems themselves. A lot of them. This version loves to scare users with various blue screens with plenty of English-language information. Having learned the origins of such unpleasant phenomena, effective “therapy” can be prescribed.
The main reasons are:
The appearance of messages about a damaged boot record may also indicate that an inquisitive administrator - a PC user - incorrectly specified information about the active partition of the hard drive.
What can be done
You can troubleshoot problems with the bootloader using system methods or by using information from external media. It all depends on the severity of the changes that have occurred.
The problem can be resolved most quickly only by special programs, the image of which would be useful to record and always store near the PC. Manual reconstruction requires a clear knowledge of the causes of problems and the algorithm of actions for each situation.
Video: Returning Windows to normal
Recovery using Windows
A user who has problems loading PC software should try the following methods of restoring the operating system:
Each of the above actions corresponds to a specific stage and cause of the problem. If you restore standard means fails, you can resort to recreating the boot record using special programs.
Options
Windows is equipped with a fairly powerful recovery option.
You need to work with it according to the following algorithm:
Sometimes after pressing F8 you may not see the line “Troubleshooting...”. This means that all the necessary information is stored in the root of the hard drive and other methods must be used to return to a working state.
Using the command line
The command line is a standard assistant for correct resumption of work. She is considered one of additional options launchers that offer all versions of operating systems.
It's also a good idea to try to recreate the last known good configuration. If there is a slight deviation, restoring the Windows 7 bootloader from command line will be quick and inexpensive.
The resumption of work using it is carried out according to the following plan:
Windows remembers the operating parameters and enters them into the registry.
Booting from a flash drive
If system methods for recreating the working state do not produce any results, you can try restoring the Windows 7 boot loader from a flash drive or other portable storage medium. Of course, they cannot be clean.
If you have a recorded Windows installer image on a flash drive or disk, you can use it to resume booting.
The action plan is as follows:
Everything can be done without installation disk. You just need to record the recreating image. However, you will need a little time and access to a computer running a similar operating system.
Programs for work
It will never be superfluous to purchase a licensed one or burn media on which a special program for resuming the OS boot will be located. Such things quickly and without spending money restore working PC parameters. You also do not need to have any special applied knowledge.
The following are used software in the following way:
Programs for resuming the Windows boot record have enough large set useful utilities. Therefore, you will not have to use any additional information from the Internet or media with the operating system when working with them.
Multiboot
One of the assistants for a PC user can be the Multiboot program.
It has the following features:
You should work with it according to the following algorithm:
After all operations are completed, the computer will reboot on its own. System reconstruction details are displayed in the additional information tab.
Bootice
This utility has similar capabilities to the Multiboot reconstructor, so we will not repeat the list.
The algorithm is as follows:
In a similar way, you can restore the settings of any operating system.
Acronic
Software Acronic has quite powerful functionality. It is one of the best for Windows. It’s extremely easy to work with, so it’s worth recording its image in advance.
The plan for reviving the PC's working condition is as follows:
This software has a very simple interface. In addition, it allows you to reconstruct various elements operating system, not just the boot record.
The appearance of black and blue windows notifying us that Windows cannot be started is, of course, an unpleasant phenomenon, but it can be eliminated. Windows 7 has its own powerful resume options. In addition, an installation disk with the OS and a number of special programs can always help resolve such problems.
There shouldn’t be any particular difficulties in working with them the way everything is done in automatic mode. If manual editing is necessary, the utilities can provide mini-tips. It is advisable to burn an image with such data to a disk or flash drive in advance.
Hello friends! In today's article, we will recreate the Windows 7 boot loader. In what cases can this be useful?For example, Windows 7 does not boot and displays errors associated with a faulty bootloader, for example: "An operating system was not found" (Operating system not found), BOOTMGR is missing. Press ctrl+alt+del, NTLDR is missing when booting Windows 7.Or maybe you transferred Windows 7 from your hard drive to solid state drive, but the system does not start from the SSD and displays an error or shows a black screen.You are trying to restore the operating system boot, but you are unable to do so.In such cases, you need to delete and then create againhidden section - System Reserved (Reserved by the system, volume 100 MB), this partition contains the Windows 7 download files.
When installing Windows 7 on a laptop or computer with a regular BIOS ( HDD MBR), a hidden System Reserved partition is automatically created (Reserved by the system, volume 100 MB), the purpose of which is to store and protect operating system boot files.This partition always has the following attributes: (Active, System, Primary partition), and the operating system installed on your computer starts from it.
If you assign a drive letter to this partition and in the folder options (view) set the parameters "Show hidden files" and uncheck the "Hideprotected system files", then inside you will see a "Boot" folder (containing a boot configuration store file - BCD), and a boot manager file "bootmgr".
For the success of our business, let’s remember the Windows 7 boot mechanism and the program will help us BOOTICE.
First of all, after turning on the computer, control is received by the BIOS subroutine, which checks the functionality of all components of the system unit, then the BIOS looks in its settings for the priority device for booting (hard drive, flash drive, DVD drive) and, having found one (for example, a hard drive) disk) reads the MBR boot record from it (Windows 7 is usually installed on an MBR partitioned disk).
MBR is located in the first sector boot disk, has a size of 512 bytes, and contains NT 6.x program code,
Which searches for the active partition from which the operating system can be loaded, this active partition After this, control passes
Operating system (in our Windows case 7) this is a program and for it to work (start loading) you need to run it executable file OS:winload.exe or winload.efi. ZThe bootloader releases these files. ZLoader is a small program. Filewinload.exe starts MBR- the loader, and the filewinload.efi starts the EFI boot loader. Windows 7 in most cases is installed on a disk with an MBR boot loader.
Windows 7 boots in the following order:download manager"bootmgr" file processes the available information in the boot store (BCD file), and this is the menu, display time, list of operating systems (if there are several), and so on, if the data is correct, then the operating system is loaded. But! If at least one of the files I mentioned (bootmgr or BCD) turns out to be incorrect or missing altogether, then we are guaranteed to have problems booting the system.It often happens that the integrity of these files is violated due to some reason (careless user actions, installation of third-party boot managers, viruses, etc.), in this case standard actions to restore the bootloader may not help and then it is best to delete this partition completely, then format and create the download files again. How can I do that.
We delete the hidden System Reserved partition (Reserved by the system, volume 100 MB) and create it again using the built-in systemdiskpart command line utilities
We boot from the Windows 7 installation flash drive. If you don’t find the ISO image of the seven, you can use the download. Windows flash drive 8.1 or Win 10.
In the initial system installation window, open the command line using the keyboard shortcut Shift+F10.
Enter the commands sequentially:
diskpart
lis vol (this command displays letters, numbers, marks, size and file system. BUkva partition 100 MB (C:). Volume 1. Bukva section with installed Windows 7 - (D:).
sel vol 1 ( selecting the volume with which we will work - 100 MB (C:). Volume 1)
del vol ( delete the 100 MB volume).
After deleting a volume, an unallocated area of 100 MB appeared on the disk.
creat par prim ( create the main partition in this unallocated area)
format fs=ntfs ( create an NTFS file system on the partition)
assign letter C ( assign the letter C to the created partition)
activ ( make the section active)
exit (exit diskpart)
bootsect /nt60 C: /mbr ( this command writes to hard drive required codes PBR ( Bootmgr) and MBR (NT 6.x))
bcdboot D:\windows /s C: ( create a bootloader for Windows 7 located on (D:),bootloader location (C:))
The download files have been successfully created.
This method suitable for those who have several hard drives, and they have an OS with a bootloader installed.
On these diskswe don't usebootrec /fixmbr and bootrec /fixboot toolsto update MBR and PBR codes. These commands only work on hard drive 0.
The bootsect command works with the disk that we specify. T The same applies to bcdboot.Without the /s parameter, bcdboot works with the active partition on hard disk 0. ANDThe /s parameter we use indicates the active partition of the desired hard drive.
Sometimes it happens that the operating system bootloader crashes. In most cases, normal Recovery helps. Windows startup 7, however not always. You can also try to restore the system. If this does not help, then read below. detailed instructions, how to restore Windows 7 bootloader.
Remember: you cannot install an older operating system after a lower one, that is, if you install Windows XP, Windows 7 will not boot, since the master boot record (MBR) will be overwritten by the old system.
To restore the Windows 7 bootloader, we will use the recovery environment, where we will need the command line. I will write and describe all the commands below. But first, let's look at what MBR is. The MBR (master boot record) is the very first sector on the disk, which contains the partition table, as well as a small boot loader utility that specifies from which part of the disk the operating system will boot. If the MBR contains incorrect information about the location of the OS, then Windows 7 will not start and will most likely display a similar error: “BOOTMGR is missing press CTR-Alt-Del for restart.”
To fix the operating system bootloader, we will need a Windows 7 installation disk, which will contain the Bootrec.exe utility we need, or a recovery disk. This utility will register a new boot sector using certain commands.
Well, let's get started. We boot from the installation disk with Windows 7 or from the recovery disk, the message “Press any key to boot from CD...” will pop up and immediately press any key on the computer, otherwise booting from the disk will not happen
In this window you need to select System Restore
Next, you need to wait a little, at this moment the installed OS is searched and errors that prevent the system from loading are analyzed
In most cases, problems are found automatically, after which you will be offered to fix them automatically. To do this, simply click on the Fix and restart button, after which the system will reboot and Windows 7 will boot without errors.
However, if the problems remain the same or the system does not offer to fix the errors automatically, then in the same window you need to select the OS that needs to be restored (usually there is only one). Click Next
Here we click Startup Recovery
We wait until the recovery tool eliminates the operating system startup errors. If suddenly this method does not help, then select the command line in the recovery tool
The Command Prompt will open, in which you need to enter the Bootrec command and press Enter
You will see information about the capabilities of this program. Enter the command Bootrec.exe /FixMbr - select the master boot record
It will show us in the window that the operation is completed. This indicates that the first sector of the boot partition of the hard drive contains new entry. Next, enter the command Bootrec.exe /FixBoot, which will write a new boot sector to the disk.
For many years, Microsoft has been improving the operating system recovery system. Windows systems, and in Windows 7 and Windows Vista it works almost automatically. If you boot from the installation Windows disk 7 and click " System Restore" ("Repair Computer"), system Windows recovery will be launched and will independently try to correct all errors that it finds. It can fix a large number of problems, however, it is quite likely that the bootloader is damaged, and the recovery system cannot cope with this problem. In this case, you can restore the bootloader manually using the Bootrec.exe utility.
The Bootrec.exe application is used to fix errors associated with bootloader corruption and, as a result, the inability to start the Windows 7 and Windows Vista operating systems.
Sequencing
Description of keys for launching the Bootrec.exe utility
Bootrec.exe /FixMbrLaunched with the /FixMbr switch, the utility writes a Windows 7 and Windows Vista-compatible Master Boot Record (MBR) to the system partition. Use this option to resolve problems with the master boot record being corrupted, or if you wish to remove non-standard code from it. In this case, the existing partition table is not overwritten.
Bootrec.exe /FixBoot
Launched with the /FixBoot key, the utility writes a new boot sector compatible with Windows 7 and Windows Vista to the system partition. This option should be used in the following cases:
- The Windows Vista or Windows 7 boot sector has been replaced with a non-standard boot sector.
- The boot sector is damaged.
- Has been installed previous version Windows operating system after Windows installations Vista or Windows 7. For example, if Windows XP was installed, NTLDR (Windows NT Loader, Windows NT loader) will be used, the code of the standard NT 6 loader (Bootmgr) will be overwritten by the Windows XP installation program.
It should be noted that a similar effect can be achieved using the bootsect.exe utility, also located on the Windows 7 bootable media. To do this, you need to run bootsect.exe with the following parameters:
Bootsect /NT60 SYS
The boot sector of the system partition will be overwritten with BOOTMGR compatible code. You can learn more about using the bootsect.exe utility by running it with the parameter /help.
Bootrec.exe /ScanOs
Launched with the /ScanOs key, the utility scans all disks for installed Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems. In addition, when using it, a list of found systems is displayed that are this moment are not registered in the Windows boot configuration data store (Boot Configuration Data (BCD) Store).
Bootrec.exe /RebuildBcd
Launched with this key, the utility scans all disks for the presence of installed Windows Vista or Windows 7 operating systems. Found operating systems are displayed in a list from which they can be added to the Windows boot configuration data store (Boot Configuration Data Store). Also use this option if you want to completely rebuild the boot configuration data store. Before doing this, you must delete the previous storage. The set of commands could be as follows:
Bcdedit /export C:\BCDcfg.bak attrib -s -h -r c:\boot\bcd del c:\boot\bcd bootrec /RebuildBcd
The example above exports the current boot configuration store to C:\BCDcfg.bak, removes its system, hidden, and read-only attributes, removes it with DEL, and rebuilds it with bootrec /RebuildBcd.
Enlarge picture
Of course the utility Bootrec.exe is very functional, however, it will not help if, for example, the Windows boot loader file bootmgr damaged or physically missing. In this case, you can use another utility, also included in the Windows 7 distribution media - bcdboot.exe.
Recovering the boot environment using BCDboot.exe
BCDboot.exe is a tool that is used to create or restore a boot environment located on the active system partition. The utility can also be used to transfer download files.
The command line in this case might look like this:
Bcdboot.exe e:\windows
Replace e:\windows with the path that matches your system.
This operation will repair the corrupted Windows boot environment, including the boot configuration data (BCD) store files, including the bootmgr file mentioned above.
Syntax of bcdboot command line parameters
The bcdboot.exe utility uses the following command line parameters:
BCDBOOT source]
source
Specifies the location of the Windows directory used as the source when copying boot environment files.
Optional parameter. Sets the boot environment language. The default is English (US).
Optional parameter. Specifies the drive letter of the system partition where the boot environment files will be installed. By default, the system partition specified by the BIOS firmware is used.
Optional parameter. Enables detailed logging mode of the utility operation.
Optional parameter. Combines the parameters of the newly created and existing boot storage record and writes them to the new boot record. If an operating system boot loader GUID is specified, combines the boot loader object with the system template to create a boot entry.
Summary
The article discussed the principles of working with the bootrec.exe and bcdboot.exe utilities, which are used to resolve problems associated with the inability to start the Windows 7 operating system due to a damaged or missing bootloader.
