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    PQSERVICE & MBR Problems

    Discussion in 'Acer' started by Kanjikun, Jun 10, 2010.

  1. Kanjikun

    Kanjikun Newbie

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    Model: Travelmate 5520

    I've a serious problem and I need help...here's the background:

    The laptop has 3 partitions, ACER for Vista, DATA for miscellaneous user data and PQSERVICE which is a hidden partition that contains recovery information.

    Well, the laptop became really slow so I thought I'd format and reinstall the ACER partition. I pressed ALT-F10 during POST and used the Acer tools to do the job. It formatted well, but the laptop crashed during Vista installation. Now whenever I try to boot the laptop I get a message about Windows not being able to boot properly, which is obvious since the installation didn't finish.

    What's even worse is that I can't use the recovery tools anymore - doing ALT-F10 does nothing since I guess the MBR was overwritten by the vista installation. I formatted the failed Vista partition from Ubuntu Live CD but I've no means of accessing the PQSERVICE partition now that the MBR is broken with the left-over Vista's one. How can I repair it so that it points to the correct files in the PQSERVICE partition again?
     
    Kanjikun, Jun 10, 2010
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  2. TehSuigi

    TehSuigi Notebook Virtuoso

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    Welcome to the forums, Kanjikun. Hopefully, we'll be able to help you.

    Did you burn your recovery DVDs using eRecovery before things crashed? It would be your PQSERVICE partition on two DVDs which you could use to boot and return your system to functionality.
     
    TehSuigi, Jun 10, 2010
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  3. Kanjikun

    Kanjikun Newbie

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    No, I did not. The only place for the recovery files is now the PQSERVICE partition, which is intact (I see the files from Ubuntu LiveCD) but unaccessable due to Vista's boot loader.
     
    Kanjikun, Jun 11, 2010
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  4. TehSuigi

    TehSuigi Notebook Virtuoso

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    Hm. Well then, I see there are three options here.

    1. Acquire a regular Windows Vista installation DVD from your favourite less-than-legal torrent site, and use the license key on the bottom of your machine for a complete clean install. As long as you install it to C:, however, your D: partition should be safe. You'll lose a lot of the Acer customizations and drivers, so go get those from here when you're done.

    2. Order your recovery DVD from Acer (yes, it'll cost money, that's why you burn them when you first start up your machine) and run Linux until they arrive.

    3. Try some of the advice in this guide.
     
    TehSuigi, Jun 11, 2010
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