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Windows Does Not Start Normally With Bootgui=1 in the Msdos.sys

Article ID:136416
Last Review:January 19, 2007
Revision:1.3
This article was previously published under Q136416

SYMPTOMS

You may encounter one of the following symptoms with Windows:
After you make a change to your Windows environment your computer boots to a command prompt rather than into Windows.
Changes you make to entries in the Msdos.sys file may not seem to take effect.
When you perform a step-by-step boot and press either Y or N when you are prompted "Process your startup command file (AUTOEXEC.BAT)," you receive a message stating "Too many parameters" followed by the prompt "AUTOEXEC [Enter=Y,Esc=N]." No matter how you answer these prompts, Windows boots to a command prompt and does not prompt you to load the graphical user interface (GUI).
When you start your computer, it boots to the Windows boot menu instead of booting into Windows, even though the Msdos.sys file contains "bootmenu=0" or the Enable Startup Menu box is not checked on the General tab of the Advanced options for the System Configuration Utility (MSConfig).

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CAUSE

There is a Winboot.ini file in the root folder of the boot drive that contains "BootGUI=0" in the [Options] section.

If the Winboot.ini file exists, it is processed instead of the Msdos.sys file. The Winboot.ini file is created by Windows Setup to ensure restartability or to display a warning when there is an operation that needs to be manually restarted. When the operation is complete, the Winboot.ini file is normally deleted, and the Io.sys configuration settings are read from Msdos.sys.

NOTE: The Winboot.ini file is a hidden file.

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RESOLUTION

If your computer boots to a command prompt only and no error messages are displayed, you can safely delete the Winboot.ini file and restart your computer.

To delete the Winboot.ini file, follow these steps:
1.At an MS-DOS prompt, type the following command in the root directory
deltree drive:\winboot.ini
where drive is the drive where the Winboot.ini file is located.
2.Answer yes by typing y when you receive a prompt "Delete file 'winboot.ini'?"
3.Restart your computer.

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APPLIES TO
Microsoft Windows 98 Standard Edition
Microsoft Windows 95

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Keywords: 
kbenv kbprb KB136416

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