How to Disable the "Automatically Restart" Feature in Windows XP

When Microsoft released Windows XP Home and Professional in 2001, there was a major emphasis placed on dealing with the dreaded "Blue Screen of Death" or BSOD for short. In Windows 98 and ME when there was a problem with your computer, a Blue Screen of Death would appear with some information about what caused the problem.

Most people did not know what to do with the BSODs, so they ended up taking their PCs into a repair shop. Frequently the solution was to simply reboot the PC. So to better deal with these problems, Microsoft included an "automatically restart" feature in Windows XP that would automatically restart the computer when a Blue Screen of Death appeared.

While this sounds good in theory, some BSOD's appear over and over again on each boot up. When this happens, the computer boots, hits a BSOD, restarts, and hits another BSOD so it restarts again. This Blue Screen of Death loop is difficult to escape.

If you are not currently afflicted by this problem we suggest you follow these steps below to prevent it from occurring:

• Left click on Start
• Right click on My computer
• Left click on "Properties"
• Left click on the "Advanced" tab
• Uncheck the check box next to "Automatically Restart"
• Left click on Apply and left click on ok

1. Find your original Windows XP CD that came with your computer
2. Insert your Windows XP CD into your CD drive
3. Restart your computer
4. Press a key when you see "Press any key to boot from CD.."
5. After the CD boots, press enter
6. Press F8 to agree to the terms
7. Press the R key on your keyboard
8. Let the process proceed

DO NOT attempt to reinstall Windows if you do not have the Repair option!

You may also have to reinstall some drivers, so have your Motherboard CD and any other driver disks handy. Don't forget to download your Windows Updates, as all previous updates were removed during the repair process.