The Recovery Console is a command-line option that allows you to repair a system that won't start or load Windows 2000. Just about the only thing that will prevent you from loading Windows 2000 will be a bad hard disk or defective memory modules. You have three options for invoking the Recovery Console: booting from the Windows 2000 Setup Disk 1, booting from the Windows 2000 CD, or selecting the Recovery Console option from the list of available startup options.

Installing the Recovery Console as a startup option is easier than you think. Begin by inserting the Windows 2000 CD in your CD-ROM drive. Next you'll need to open a Command Prompt window, from Start/Programs/Accessories and type: "d:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons". Be sure to replace d: with the letter you have selected for the CD-ROM drive in your system. Then, just follow the prompts. After a few minutes, the installation process will be complete. The Recovery Console will be available the next time you reboot your system, it will show as an option in the boot menu.

Even though you have the Recovery Console as a bootable option, you'll still be able to access it from the CD-ROM drive just in case the hard disk has problems booting. For a system with a bootable CD-ROM drive that won't start using the hard disk, you can boot using the Windows 2000 CD and insert the Windows 2000 Install floppy disks as requested. Select the option to repair your Windows 2000 installation, then select the Recovery Console option when it becomes available. With the Windows 2000 Recovery Console you can obtain limited access to NTFS, FAT, and FAT32 volumes without starting the Windows graphical interface. In the Recovery Console you can:

Use, copy, rename or replace operating system files and folders.

Enable or disable services or devices from starting when you next start your computer.

Repair the file system boot sector or the Master Boot Record (MBR).

Create and format partitions on drives.

Note that only an administrator can obtain access to the Recovery Console so unauthorised users cannot use any NTFS volume.

Full details of all the Recovery Console options can be found here.