Recipe 20.3. Using Boot Log to Trace Problems

Problem

You need to determine which driver and services are starting at boot-up and may be causing Windows to malfunction due to recent changes in hardware or system configuration.

Solution

Using Windows startup menu

1. Restart your PC and press the F8 key at the end of the BIOS to access Windows' start menu.

2. Select the Enable Boot Logging option and let Windows start up.

3. Log onto Windows if prompted.

4. Open Windows Explorer, navigate to the Windows directory.

5. Locate and double-click the NTBLOG.TXT file to open it with Notepad or the default editor for text files. Review the log file contents to determine suspicious drivers or services that could be causing Windows to malfunction.

Discussion

The boot log function records all of the drivers and services loaded (or not) during Windows startup when you run Safe Mode, Safe Mode with Networking, and Safe Mode with Command Prompt. This wealth of information can tell you a lot about the state of drivers and bootability of your system configuration. You can also turn on the bootlog feature by checking the /BOOTLOG checkbox on the BOOT.INI tab using the MSCONFIG program.

See Also

More information about the boot log, options, and log entries can be found at MS KB 127970 and MS KB 833721.