XP Safe Mode boot hangs after load of KDCOM.DLL

[tps95]

My lan connection stopped working. Not finding anything obviously wrong I rebooted XP. It hung during the boot.

I saw:
- Intel splash screen
- Sony splash screen
- black screen with a blinking "dash" cursor
- cursor went down one line
- cursor went down another line
- hung on an even blacker screen

I tried a safe mode boot and saw the above sequence. Just before going to the "even blacker" screen the following messages appeared (this somewhat frrom memory)

Multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)/windows/sytem32/ntoskrnl.exe
Multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)/windows/sytem32/hal.dll
Multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)/windows/sytem32/kdcom.dll

Everything hung after the display about kdcom.dll.

To see if memory was involved I removed both memory cards (500 MB each) and booted using twice, using just one card of memory at a time. Both safe mode boots failed as above.

I am stuck at this point. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[Gilliosa]

I am currently repairing a dell that has that exact same issue. That kdcom.dll file seems to be the issue. This is what I did to fix. I'm sorry that it's long but hang in there. If you're tech savvy, just skip through what ever you already know.

Boot From Disk
Insert your Windows XP disc and boot from it. If you don't know how to boot from a disc, during the Sony splash there is, hopefully, a legend that pop's up briefly (most often at the top right of the screen but not always). It will usually say two things: SETUP and BOOT MANAGER. Next to those will be the keys to press to start either. Press the one for the BOOT MANAGER. Unfortunately its not the same for every computer, but usually its something like F10 or F12.

Enter Repair
So once your fully booted into the XP disc, you'll have three options. Choose the REPAIR option by pressing R.

Select Installation
Recovery Console is command based. You'll be asked for the drive that your Windows is installed on. Typically its "1" unless you have multiple installs.

CD Drive Letter
When you get to the prompt C:\WINDOWS>, you will need to figure one thing out before moving on and that's what your CD drive letter is. Try typing "D:" without quotes. When D:\> comes up, type "DIR" without quotes. If a list comes up that has "I386" in it, then remember your drive letter is "D." If not then replace "D" in the above directions with "E."

The Repair
Once you have found your disc drive letter, follow each of the following commands line by line.

C:\WINDOWS\>CD system32
this will move you to the system32 folder

C:\WINDOWS\system32>COPY kdcom.dll C:\
this copy is a backup in case things don't work

C:\WINDOWS\system32>DEL kdcom.dll
this will delete the original not the backup

C:\WINDOWS\system32>COPY D:\I386\kdcom.dl_
replace the D if you have to with whatever your disc drive letter was above. the kdcom.dl_ is not a typo either.

C:\WINDOWS\system32>REN kdcom.dl_ kdcom.dll
renames kdcom.dl_ you copied to kdcom.dll

C:\WINDOWS\system32>EXIT
reboots your computer.


If all is right in the world, you should be able to boot right up without issue.

I'll keep watching this over the next few days to see if you post back. Please reply if you have any questions, if the repair worked, or if it didn't work. I found your post right before I did the repair on my clients computer and just copied as I went so I hope it does work for you.

 

[sduffys]

BRILLIANT! I feel awful that others had this - yet Gilliosa - your instructions worked to a T. Thank you very much.

I am currently repairing a dell that has that exact same issue. That kdcom.dll file seems to be the issue. This is what I did to fix. I'm sorry that it's long but hang in there. If your tech savvy, just skip through what ever you already know.

 

[Gilliosa]

You're welcome and what a relief. I was worried that it would be hard to follow the instructions.
I do have one question though, now that your computer can boot into Windows, is your internet working? That dell I was working on still couldn't connect.

 

[teedub]

Gilliosa -

Hey there...found your posts via Google for "freezes on kdcom.dll". REALLY appreciate the instructions. Worked like a charm! Cheers to good people like yourself!

Todd W
Monkton, Maryland

 

[circawhen]

what a great thread! this has been a pain for me as well. everything in the instructions work perfectly until the very end: i get an error message that says "parameter is not valid". after re-entering the same line again and again i got frustrated and rebooted my computer. unfortunately the problem got worse since i forgot to re-enter the file i copied in case something went wrong.
any tips on a remedy to my situation would be appreciated. thank you.

 

[tps95]

Gilliosa:

Thanks for the great info. Unfortunately my Sony did not come with a boot CD and it does not appear to have Recover Console enabled/installed (I am still checking with this). As I understand it your idea was to replace the existing kdcom.dll with a good one. Lacking the boot CD I went to BootDisk.com and downloaded a CD .iso that would boot a minimal DOS with CDROM drivers. Using a free ISO builder I was able to incorporate extra files on the boot CD. I added a kdcom.dll that I hoped was good.

Well replacing kdcom.dll worked, so that's great! HOWEVER the XP boot in Safe Mode did not complete! Instead it went further but it stalled on agp440.sys (a driver). I got what I hoped was a good agp440.sys but the XP boot still stalled at the same place. So now I am in search of a better copy of agp400.sys!

I will post again with my results.

Thanks again for a very handy posting.

 

[Gilliosa]

everything in the instructions work perfectly until the very end: i get an error message that says "parameter is not valid".

circawhen,
I would be glad to help you out but I am going to need a little more information. The thing about running commands is that they can only be input one way. If you can tell me what you were typing that was giving you a bad parameter message, I'll verify what your typing and tell you if you need to change anything.

THIS GOES FOR ANYONE:
The commands that I put in are in CAPS. Every command has parameters or instructions. If you get stuck on anything like a "parameter is not valid" message, you can always get help at the command line. This is achieved by typing the command followed by a /? next to it. For example, this is what you get from help with the rename command:

>REN /?
Renames a file or files.

RENAME [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.
REN [drive:][path]filename1 filename2.

Note that you cannot specify a new drive or path for your destination file.

If in the end you still need help, post it.

 

[circawhen]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR RESPONSE:
REN kdcom.dl_ kdcom.dll This is the line i wrote that says, "the parameter is not valid" then says, "try /? for help"

i greatly appreciate all your help, not just for myself, but for others in this mess!
thank you!!

 

[Gilliosa]

Well replacing kdcom.dll worked, so that's great! HOWEVER the XP boot in Safe Mode did not complete! Instead it went further but it stalled on agp440.sys (a driver).

tps95,
I'm sorry to hear that you are having more issues. Unfortunately, that system file is not on the XP disk.
I just did a little research and may have a solution. That driver is actually a graphics card driver so you might have to reinstall the driver but the solution can be found on Microsoft's support site. This is the link. Just scroll down to the Resolution tab and follow the instructions, using your recovery disk in the place of the Windows Disk.

Please keep me informed. If it works for you, it may work for others, too.

 

[Gilliosa]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR RESPONSE:
REN kdcom.dl_ kdcom.dll This is the line i wrote that says, "the parameter is not valid" then says, "try /? for help"

circawhen,
It looks like everything is good but here are a couple things to try.
1. Make sure that "kdcom.dl_" is in the folder by typing DIR. This is going to tell you EVERYTHING in the folder, and let me tell you, it is a lot. But fortunately its alphabetical. By hitting the space bar, you will be able to scroll a page at a time. Just make sure you don't pass it or you will have to re-enter the DIR command and start over (done it countless times). Hitting ESC on the keyboard will quit the scrolling and bring you back to the command line. If you don't see it in there, re-copy it. If you do:

2. Instead of REN type RENAME which is the same thing but might make a difference.

There is one thing I noticed that I forgot to state, or clarify rather. I'm going to make an edit above but do make sure that your command line reads:

C:\WINDOWS\system32

Where C: is whatever your Windows install is on.

 

[circawhen]

thank you thank you i found the file in the directory: KDCOM.DL_
it's in capitals and everything else is lowercase.
does that make a difference? i did try to use the entire word "RENAME" to no avail. should i try to lower case the kdcom.dl_ file?
look forward to hearing from you soon. much appreciated

 

[Gilliosa]

thank you thank you i found the file in the directory: KDCOM.DL_
it's in capitals and everything else is lowercase.
does that make a difference? i did try to use the entire word "RENAME" to no avail. should i try to lower case the kdcom.dl_ file?
look forward to hearing from you soon. much appreciated

Changing the case should not make a difference but you can try it. I just copied the kdcom.dl_ file to my desktop and renamed it kdcom.dll through command prompt. The kdcom.dl_ is all caps but when I rename it kdcom.dll, it's all lowercase. One thing you might try is deleting the file kdcom.dl_, make sure it is gone using the DIR command again, re-copy it from the disk, and then try renaming it again.

There is one other thing I you could try if that doesn't work.

Again start with deleting the kdcom file from system32.
C:\WINDOWS\system32>del kdcom.dl_

Next you need to get to the root of the drive.
C:\WINDOWS\system32>cd..
C:\WINDOWS>cd..
C:\>

Now let's go to your desktop. You will have to use quotes on when ever there is a folder name with spaces.
C:\>cd "documents and settings"

C:\Documents and Settings>dir
this will show you your user account name. you need to type it into the next command as you see it

C:\Documents and Settings>cd "username/desktop"
replace username with your account name

You should be at your desktop now. This is a long way of going about this but it will help insure that all the names of folders are right. Now, copy the kdcom.dl_ file:

>copy D:\i386\kdcom.dl_
verify the copy with the DIR command

>ren kdcom.dl_ kdcom.dll
hopefully this works this time. verify with the DIR command again

>move kdcom.dll C:\WINDOWS\system32
if the move command doesn't work, replace it with COPY. again you can verify with DIR but this time you will do it as follows

>dir C:\WINDOWS\system32
if things work then finish with:

>EXIT


Let me know what happens

 

[circawhen]

C:\WINDOWS\system32>cd..
C:\WINDOWS>cd..

does it require the "cd.." with the two periods at the end? when i add the periods it does not work.
thanks ahead for your response.

 

[circawhen]

please disregard my previous post regarding the "cd.." LOL
i am disoriented from this ordeal and can't even do a basic command now...LOL
anyway, after several attempts of trying to get to "documents and settings" i keep getting a accessed denied message, which is ridiculous since i'm logged as administrator.
any help would be greatly appreciated THANK YOU ThANK YOU

 

[Gilliosa]

after several attempts of trying to get to "documents and settings" i keep getting a accessed denied message

That's odd. I'm not sure why you're denied. I guess using the desktop is out. Try just using the root of your drive C:\. I usually have access issues there. If you copied the old kdcom file to there just rename it to kdcom.bk and then copy the one from your windows disk there. Try renaming it to the kdcom.dll. If the renaming works then copy it to the system32 folder (>copy kdcom.dll c:\windows\system32)

In the mean time, I'll look for other solutions.

 

[tps95]

circawhen wrote :

after several attempts of trying to get to "documents and settings" i keep getting a
accessed denied message

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Windows Vista and Windows 7 things have been moved around. You are clicking on a shortcut to "documents and settings" that was created for program compatibility --- BUT you are not allowed to click on it

Try:

c:\Users\<userid>\Desktop

 

[circawhen]

i think i blew it. i erased the kdcom.dll by accident out of the root c folder. i tried getting it back off the disc but to no avail. it seems nothing worked in the end. if there is a remedy to getting the kdcom.dll file back i'd love to hear it.
this has been frustrating.

 

[tarikqk]

Gilliosa - YOU ARE MY HERO..........

The process worked like a charm!!!!

I am currently repairing a dell that has that exact same issue. That kdcom.dll file seems to be the issue. This is what I did to fix. I'm sorry that it's long but hang in there. If you're tech savvy, just skip through what ever you already know.

Boot From Disk
Insert your Windows XP disc and boot from it. If you don't know how to boot from a disc, during the Sony splash there is, hopefully, a legend that pop's up briefly (most often at the top right of the screen but not always). It will usually say two things: SETUP and BOOT MANAGER. Next to those will be the keys to press to start either. Press the one for the BOOT MANAGER. Unfortunately its not the same for every computer, but usually its something like F10 or F12.

Enter Repair
So once your fully booted into the XP disc, you'll have three options. Choose the REPAIR option by pressing R.

Select Installation
Recovery Console is command based. You'll be asked for the drive that your Windows is installed on. Typically its "1" unless you have multiple installs.

CD Drive Letter
When you get to the prompt C:\WINDOWS>, you will need to figure one thing out before moving on and that's what your CD drive letter is. Try typing "D:" without quotes. When D:\> comes up, type "DIR" without quotes. If a list comes up that has "I386" in it, then remember your drive letter is "D." If not then replace "D" in the above directions with "E."

The Repair
Once you have found your disc drive letter, follow each of the following commands line by line.

C:\WINDOWS\>CD system32
this will move you to the system32 folder

C:\WINDOWS\system32>COPY kdcom.dll C:\
this copy is a backup in case things don't work

C:\WINDOWS\system32>DEL kdcom.dll
this will delete the original not the backup

C:\WINDOWS\system32>COPY D:\I386\kdcom.dl_
replace the D if you have to with whatever your disc drive letter was above. the kdcom.dl_ is not a typo either.

C:\WINDOWS\system32>REN kdcom.dl_ kdcom.dll
renames kdcom.dl_ you copied to kdcom.dll

C:\WINDOWS\system32>EXIT
reboots your computer.


If all is right in the world, you should be able to boot right up without issue.

I'll keep watching this over the next few days to see if you post back. Please reply if you have any questions, if the repair worked, or if it didn't work. I found your post right before I did the repair on my clients computer and just copied as I went so I hope it does work for you.

 

[grovesby]

You're THE MAN Gilliosa! I just ran into this problem and was able to fix it in two minutes following your instructions. Thanks!

 

[Guest]

To tps95:
I did replaced the kdcom.dll using ubuntu live cd with a good one from another pc. When I tried to restart my pc in safe mode, it froze ina .sys (don't remember which one). But it was juast a matter of time... While I was searching for the new problem, the pc continued booting... so I suggest to give 10 more minutes to your pc.

Gilliosa:

Thanks for the great info. Unfortunately my Sony did not come with a boot CD and it does not appear to have Recover Console enabled/installed (I am still checking with this). As I understand it your idea was to replace the existing kdcom.dll with a good one. Lacking the boot CD I went to BootDisk.com and downloaded a CD .iso that would boot a minimal DOS with CDROM drivers. Using a free ISO builder I was able to incorporate extra files on the boot CD. I added a kdcom.dll that I hoped was good.

Well replacing kdcom.dll worked, so that's great! HOWEVER the XP boot in Safe Mode did not complete! Instead it went further but it stalled on agp440.sys (a driver). I got what I hoped was a good agp440.sys but the XP boot still stalled at the same place. So now I am in search of a better copy of agp400.sys!

I will post again with my results.

Thanks again for a very handy posting.

 

[tps95]

Best answer selected by tps95.

 

[tps95]

I kept discovering more files that needed to be repaired. Eventually I did an "update in place" or "repair install" (not to be confused with the "repair with recovery console" option. I chose "Install" when booting from the XP CD and was then asked if I wanted to update the XP that was already installed. I did and that apparently fixed most of the corrupted files. Unfortunately the final reboot at the end of the update did not complete. So I sent the machine off to a repair shop.

The repair shop says it is fixed, am not convinced. I will pick the machine up tomorrow and see.

My (very negative) thinking is that the hard disk is failing and corrupting some I/Os. Most I/Os seem to work but when doing a reboot or an install/update something always winds up being corrupted....

I will update this thread one more time once I know what is going on.

Bottom Line: Using the Recovery Console to repair individual corrupted OS files works. Using an XP Install and selecting "update existing copy of XP" works for situations where more than a few files are corrupted. In my case I may have a bad disk.

 

[vt2018]

i have the same problem with my netbook. same kdcom.dll. safe mode does not work. no set up cd. netbook has firmware but can't access it.

 

[tps95]

I was able to buy an XP CD from a local repair shop for a small fee. I needed my Windows XP code/key. That was found on a Microsoft certificate of authenticity sticker found of the back of my PC.