Changed boot ini file to safe mode with networking but it wont boot

[gailbo]

Last night System Security 2012 infected my Thinkpad with XP os. So I read various helpful sites this morning and trying to start it in safe mode with networking didn't work. It got stuck in an endless loop checking for security. Then someone said, in a forum, that I could change the boot.ini to safe networking, so I went and did that. Now I can't open in normal mode at all and the system defaults to the endless loop caused by my change to the boot.ini area.

Then I read that pressing the F11 key would take me to system restore. So I did that, but there it requests a password. I put in the same password I put in every day to start up my system. It doesn't work so I can't get to the system restore menu at all.

Now someone is saying to use this BackTrack software which I'm downloading to a disk. But I'm nervous about that and the instructions seem over my head. I'm not all that technical.
At this point, I'd like to get in to my system, and change it to a previous state a week ago and hope that works for me.

Is there any guidance you have for me?

 

[gailbo]

I ended up starting it ...it took a long time but I finally was able to start it in safe mode. I truly don't know how/why. But when I did, I used system restore and I have my computer back.

You're right. I should have come here first!! Live and learn. Thanks for your fast response!

 

[gailbo]

Ugh. Over the weekend, Windows Security Defender showed up on my screen and, like the other malware in this thread, it started giving me lots of windows telling me I must do this or do that. I ignored them but my system was pretty much frozen. I couldn't get to any internet spots to find help because it put up some bogus Google screen up in front of anything I tried to get to. I could get to google to search for an answer, but when I clicked on anything, it gave me that bogus screen. So I finally got to my work computer and looked for answers.

I found some malware software and downloaded it aro 2011, I think it was. It didn't help...then I ended up with that on my system. This s/w examined my system and said I had 3900 errors....but fixed only 100 of them, supposedly...I had to pay to get the rest fixed. So I got out of there and did nothing further.

So then I downloaded AVG, the free one, and ran it through.

Then I rebooted and it wouldn't boot. Got the blue screen a few times, then I was able to get to last known configuration and use the computer for a bit. Then shut it down for the evening.

This morning, I couldn't even get the last known configuration to work...after a few blue screens. The last known config ended up in an endless loop "checking security chip". So I finally gave up.

Before I take this to a computer expert, is there anything I can do from home to fix this?

Oh...the other item that kept popping up was the Just in time debugging...over and over again. I found instructions to fix it in IE but the items they said I should check off were already checked off. So that didn't get fixed either. But in those few minutes last night when I used the computer for a few minutes, I didn't get the JIT screen after it being a continual issue for a few days.

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