"Rundll32.exe entry point not found" error message when you open My Computer System Properties or the System Configuration Utility

If you have Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 1a (SP1a) installed on your computer, and you perform an in-place upgrade or a reinstallation (also known as a repair installation) of Windows XP SP1a, you may experience one or more of the following:

• When you right-click My Computer and then you click Properties, you may receive the following error message:
  Rundll32.exe Entry point not found
  The procedure entry RemoteAssistancePrepareSystemRestore could not be located in the dynamic link library winsta.dll.
• When you run the Msconfig.exe file to open the System Configuration Utility and then you click Launch System Restore, you may receive the following error message:
  Restrui.exe Entry point not found.
  
  The procedure entry RemoteAssistancePrepareSystemRestore could not be located in the dynamic link library winsta.dll
  Also, System Restore does not start.
• When you right-click My Computer and then you click Properties, the System Restore tab does not appear in the System Properties dialog box.

These problems may occur if Windows XP SP1a or Windows Update updates the Winsta.dll file and the repair installation does not restore the Winsta.dll file correctly. These problems may also occur if a virus scanning program interferes with the installation of a service pack.

To resolve these problems, follow these steps:

1. Restart the computer in safe mode:
   1. Restart your computer. While your computer is starting, repeatedly press the F8 key on your keyboard. On a computer that is configured to run under multiple operating systems, you can press the F8 key when the Boot menu appears.
   2. When the Windows Advanced Options menu appears, select an option, and then press ENTER.
   3. When the Boot menu appears again, and the words "Safe Mode" appear in blue at the bottom of the screen, select the installation that you want to start, and then press ENTER.
2. Open My Computer, and then open the C:\Windows\INF folder.
3. Right-click the sr.inf file, and then click Install.
4. When the installation process has completed, restart the computer.

If you continue to experience one or more of the problems that the "Symptoms" section describes after you have completed the previous steps, restart the computer in safe mode, and then reinstall Windows XP SP1a or install the latest Windows XP service pack.

To obtain Windows XP SP1a, visit the following Microsoft Web site: For additional information about how to obtain the latest Windows XP service pack, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section of this article.

For additional information about how to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: