Today, there are quite a few cases when errors occur when loading Windows of any version, starting with NT and ending with Windows 8. A huge number of articles have been written about them. But the most unpleasant situation is the occurrence of a message even before the start of loading the "OS" type "NTLDR is missing. Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to restart. " What are the reasons for its appearance and what to do, we will now try to decide.
What is NTLDR?
To begin with, a few words about what the concept of “NTLDR” is. In essence, this is an abbreviation derived from the abbreviation NT Loader. This is the main component of loading the “OS”, containing three components responsible for its launch: the ntdetect.com files, boot.ini, and, in fact, the ntldr file itself.
If at boot of the system the boot loader determines that at least one of them is missing or damaged, instead of a normal start, the system will display something like “NTLDR is missing ...” on the black screen. What to do, let's understand.
In passing, it is worth noting that the ntdetect.com file plays the role of a specific determinant of the startup type, the ntldr file contains the boot code, and the boot.ini file with the commands contained in it itself, tries to form the launch process and its main parameters on the basis of two other components.
Why is there a loading error?
So, we have on the screen of the monitor the error message "NTLDR is missing". What to do? First of all, do not panic. In fact, most often the hard drive is simply not detected. Of course, it may happen that the hard drive “flew”. But we will proceed from the situation that it works fine and not go into such extremes.
As for the operation of the hard drive, you must immediately check the cable connection. You never know, maybe he just fell out of the connector or inserted loose. This is often observed when the insides of a stationary computer (not a laptop) are cleaned from dust.
On the other hand, the reason may be that the hard drive is simply disabled in the BIOS as the first priority device for loading the “OS”. It is clear that you just need to change the boot options in the Boot Device Priority menu or something similar (depending on the manufacturer and BIOS version).
Sometimes there may be a situation related to the accidental removal of the above specified download components or their damage due to infection by viruses or malicious codes. The recovery option for such a case will be discussed a bit later. Well, with viruses, and so everything is clear - you need to scan the system for threats.
Less often, but still there are situations when an excessive number of files are present in the root directory (C: \). Here the specifics of the functioning of the NTFS file system itself are triggered. The fact is that with a large number of files in the root directory, it distributes them into arrays, each of which is assigned a specific index. The files themselves are ordered strictly in alphabetical order. When loading, access occurs only to the array with the first ordinal index, in which all three loading components may not be present.
In such a situation, it is better to use tools for safe cleaning of computer debris in the form of optimizer programs, and in the parameters you must specify not only the deletion of residual, but also unused files or empty folders.
NTLDR is missing: how to fix the error in the simplest way?
Now directly about the correction of the situation programmatically, if the error is repeated again and again. Consider as an option the absence of the necessary boot components in the root directory.
The task is solved quite simply. On a working computer with the same version of the system, you just need to copy the files to a floppy disk or flash drive, and then transfer them to the desired terminal, having previously set the download priority as a floppy disk or a removable USB device.
The system should boot without problems, after which it will be possible to copy the files to the root directory.
Using Recovery Console
But let's say the text “NTLDR is missing” is displayed again. What to do in this situation (if the first method did not help)? Of course, use the recovery console. It can be located either on the original installation disk with Windows, or on the system disk of emergency recovery, for example, for the Seven.
It is clear that the drive in the BIOS is installed as a priority device to boot. After starting, you need to press the "R" key to directly call the recovery console and select the desired option (as a rule, press the "1" key) and confirm the selection ("Enter" key). Recovery will start automatically.
You can use bootloader recovery by going to the command line, where you need to enter “C: Windows \ fixmbr” or “C: \ Windows \ fixboot”. In principle, both methods work.
You can do even easier - simply copy the original files from the disk directly to the root directory. Suppose a drive in the system has a letter designation “E”. To copy, enter the following lines:
- copy e: \ i386 \ ntldr c: \;
- copy e: \ i386 \ ntdetect.com c: \.
After that, you can simply remove the disk from the drive and reboot the system.
NTLDR is missing: what to do (Win 7)
In Windows 7, if you understand, by and large, you can also perform the above steps, but, as practice shows, there is a simpler option.
Suppose, when you load the "seven" on the screen appeared something like "NTLDR is missing." What to do with this disaster? Use a utility specially developed for Windows 7 called Multiboot (by the way, it was specially developed for Windows Vista and 7).
Now it's up to the small. You need to boot from any disk like LiveCD or something else in order to gain access to the execution of the file of the downloaded program. After its launch, the menu with the option “Restore the Windows 7 bootloader on all disks” and the “Run” button will be automatically displayed. That's all.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it remains to say that when a system boot error occurs with the subsequent issuing of a message such as “NTLDR is missing”, restoring the system startup is not such a difficult matter. And indeed, they say that fear has large eyes. Here are many users who start to panic, believing that the Winchester just rained down. Not a good situation, but, as practice shows, basically the reasons may not be at all in this.
However, in some cases, even if the hard drive crashes, you can use unique utilities such as HDD Reanimator to remagnetize it and repair damaged sectors of the disk surface.