Explorer Performed Illegal Operation

[Madtripper]

I am currently trying to help someone with a compaq pc. It runs win98 and its for an insurance agent. When the owner tried to install a program recently, the machine crashed and now as soon as windows starts, the shell crashes. I checked autoexec.bat and a few other files in dos but can't find anything out of the ordinary. There is some important data on the unit so formatting is a last resort. If anyone has any ideas, please drop a note. It acts the same even in safe mode and the program installed is for insurance purposes and not common. (Not sure on the name) I realize adding a new hardrive and booting off it is an option but I'm hoping I can use dos to eliminate the problem.


Tripper

 

[Peacekeeper100]

You can try to reinstall windows. Just run it like an upgrade. It usually worked for me when windows won't boot. It can cause side effects though. You can try it if everything seems to work right leave it, but it might be better to install it, pull the info off, and then reformat.