XP setup owned my machine

[Aragorn]

I wanted to get a clean version of Windows XP MCE to use to virus and spyware scan my working copy (to make it easier to find and remove root kits). So I put in my install CD and told it to install a new copy.

After it claimed to have copied all the files to my disk and wanted me to restart it started giving me an error that there was an invaild boot.ini file and then would not boot at all.

After that I tried to repair my origonal installation with the cd, that process completed but popepped some error messages as it was going about DLL with missing entry points and not being able to hook DLLs. Then when it rebooted and came to the set up your computer screen (the set of screens where is gets your time zone and such) it would not accept any input. No USB or P/S2 ports worked.

I have since managed to install a clean install that works great (I am posting this from that) but would like to get my old installataion back with all my settings and programs. Any ideas?

Rig Specs:
CPU = Athlon 64 3000+
MB = Gigabyte GA-K8NF-9
HD's = 4 Hitatchi 250 GB SATA drives
GPU = ATI All-In-Wonder x600 Pro 256 MB
Ram = 2x512 MB (I don't remember the brand)
PS = SurePower 600W (Techie Toys/Mad Dog
Belkin True MIMO wireless card
2x Sony DVD Burners
Generic Floppy Drive
Wireless KB and Mouse plugged in through P/S2 Ports
Additional mouse sometimes plugged into USB (wired)
Zalman 7000b HSF

 

[cowboytech]

They are buried under quiet a mess right about now. Let me know if I have this right; on the same hard drive you have two bad installs and one working install?
Some of simple programs are simple to get from where they are to install them on your current running operating system. The more complex programs are very complex to incororate back into a currently running operating system without the proper install files, some for all practical purposes are impossible. Unless you have experience and lots of time on your hands.

If you did the clean install on a different drive you have better options. but before I jumped into it I would scan all that data for; viruses, trojs, spys and hijackers, with multiple trusted tools, then save data that you created in the programs to something like a cd.
Did you try to repair either of your previous installs?