In this article, we will define NTLDR, explain common causes and errors associated with NTLDR, and provide several solutions to fix NTLDR error.
Most PC users have encountered the error "NTLDR is missing". At the same time, most of the users, in fact, do not know what NTLDR is and how to solve this problem.
What is NTLDR?
NTLDR, short for NT Boot Loader, is the boot loader for all editions of operating systems. The NT bootloader usually starts from the main hard drive, however it can also use a CD, DVD or flash drive to boot.
The NT bootloader contains three files. So let's take a look at which ones:
- ntldr, main loader.
- NTDETECT.COM, required to boot an NT-based OS, discovers the basic hardware information needed for a successful boot.
- boot.ini, contains the boot configuration (if absent, NTLDR will default to \Windows on the first partition of the first hard drive).
NTLDR starts with a system partition volume boot record, which is usually written to disk with the Windows FORMAT or SYS command.
Common Causes of "NTLDR Missing" Error
Sometimes users may receive the following messages when they try to start their computer.
"NTLDR is missing
Press any key to restart".
Figure 1. First example of an error related to NTLDR.
Boot: Couldn't find NTLDR
Please insert another disk".
"NTLDR is missing
Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to restart"
Figure 3. The third example of an error related to NTLDR. Do you know what to do in a similar situation, why NTLDR is missing and how to fix the NTLDR error?
In general, there are many possible factors contributing to the absence of an NTLDR problem.
Often the problem with the NTLDR error is that your computer started to boot from a different source. For example, it can be a DVD, CD, or USB drive inserted into an optical drive.
In addition, this problem may appear due to the fact that the system contains corrupted and misconfigured boot-related files (NTLDR, NTDETECT.COM and Boot.ini).
Now all we need and can do is spare no effort to try to find out the real cause and find an appropriate solution.
How to fix "NTLDR is missing" error?
In general, if you encounter an NTLDR error, you can try the following methods to fix the issue.
Solution 1 – Restart your computer
Restart your computer. The occurrence of the NTLDR error may be an accident.
Solution 2 – Disable all removable media
Because the error "NTLDR is missing" often occurs because the BIOS is trying to boot from an external drive, you can try unplugging all external drives and ejecting all removable media such as CDs, DVDs, memory sticks, and USBs.
Solution 3 – Change Boot Priority in BIOS
In addition, you can check the BIOS boot order to make sure that the hard drive with OC is in the first position in the boot priority. To check the boot order, do the following:
Note. Make sure the selected device has Windows boot files.
- Step 1. Restart your computer.
- Step 2 Press the desired key to open the BIOS menu. All key names are usually displayed on the first screen when starting the PC. Basically the keys to enter the BIOS menu: Esc, Del, F2, F8, F10 or F12.
- Step 3 If multiple keys are shown on the screen, find the key to open "BIOS", setup or "BIOS menu".
- Step 4 Use the arrow keys to select a tab Boot. Move the hard drive to the top of the priority list. (The following is an example BIOS bootloader configuration screen.)
Figure 1. Changing and setting the hard drive to the first position in the BIOS boot priority. Solution 4 – Reset the active partition
When using the built-in Windows Disk Management tool to determine the active partition, you may encounter problems starting your computer. Thus, your PC may boot with a similar error:
NTLDR is missing
Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to restart.
It is worth noting that only one system partition can be active. If you select a partition with a different OC, you must first mark its system partition as active before restarting the computer.
Now, to fix this problem, you can reset the active partition. To do this, you can use the utility MiniTool Partition Wizard.
MiniTool Partition Wizard is a smart choice for most general users to set a partition as active, as this tool offers wizard-based work, high security, and excellent performance.
Detailed steps and instructions for using this utility are described below.
- Step 1. The first thing you need to do is to boot your computer with the MiniTool Partition Wizard Bootable Disc to enter Boot Mode. Here, please select the first option Partition Wizard, to enter the main interface of the MiniTool Markup Wizard.
Figure 1. Click on the first section of the Partition Wizard. - Step 2 Now select or right click on active partition and select function "Set Inactive" on the left action bar or pop-up menu.
Figure 2. Select an active partition and give it the Set Inactive function. - Step 3 Select the target partition you want to set as active and then click on "Set Active".
Figure 3. Set the target partition to Set Active. - Step 4 In this window, you can view the target partition that has been marked as active. After that, you need to click on the button Apply in the top left corner and click Yes to perform the preview effect.
Figure 4 Preview the target section, then click the Apply button to apply all changes and proceed to the preview. - Step 5 Ready! Thus, we have eliminated the error related to NTLDR. Now your computer will boot as before.
Solution 5 – Update your motherboard BIOS
You may get an NTLDR related error even if the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) version is out of date on your computer.
So, make sure you have the latest BIOS installed on your computer. If not, contact your computer manufacturer to find out how to obtain a new BIOS version, and then install the latest BIOS update available for your computer.
Solution 6 – Replace all IDE cables
Error "NTLDR is missing" It can also appear if the IDE cables that go to the hard drives are damaged inside your computer. By doing so, replace the IDE cables if you suspect it may be defective.
Note. Before installing/replacing the IDE cable with a new one, you need to turn off the computer and the power supply to it, and then open the processor case.
Solution 7: Restoring the MBR boot record
The problem with NTLDR can also appear if the Master Boot Record (MBR) is corrupted. In this situation, the only solution is to restore the Master Boot Record (MBR).
- In the main interface of MiniTool Partition Wizard, select the disk whose MBR is corrupted, and then click "Rebuild MBR".
Figure 1. Right-click on the partition that has a corrupted MBR boot record, and then select Rebuild MBR. - Finally click the button Apply to perform MBR recovery. When the Partition Wizard completes all operations, exit the program and boot from your local hard drive again.
Solution 8: Reinstall Windows
If none of the solutions listed and described worked for you, it is safe to assume that the only solution that will fix the error "NTLDR is missing", is a complete reinstallation of Windows. This solution will almost certainly resolve any NTLDR errors, but it will delete the data. Therefore, it is recommended that you back up all necessary data before reinstalling Windows. The disk backup feature provided by MiniTool Partition Wizard will help you copy all partitions and data from one disk to another in several steps as shown below.
- Step 1. First, boot your computer using the MiniTool Partition Wizard boot disk.
- Step 2 Then, in the main interface, select the disk you need to copy and select the function "Copy Disk". In the image below we choose "Copy Disk" from the left action bar to show how to clone an MBR system disk to GPT.
Figure 1. Right-click on the desired hard drive, then select Copy Disk. - Step 3 Then select the drive that will keep a copy of the source drive as the destination drive, and then click Next.
Note: The destination drive must be large enough to contain all the content on the source drive, and you also need to back up any important data to that destination drive in advance as all data on it will be deleted.
Figure 2. Select the drive where you want to save the contents of the target partition, then click the Next button. - Step 4 Then select the appropriate copy method to determine the location of the target disk, and then click the button Next.
Figure 3. Select a copy method, and click Next. - Step 5 After that press the button Finish to return to the main interface.
- Step 6 Finally click the button Apply in the top left corner to complete the 7 pending operations.
Figure 4. Click on the Apply button to confirm all changes. Solution 9: Replacing the hard drive
If you are still getting the error "NTLDR is missing" After reinstalling Windows, most likely you will encounter a hard drive hardware problem. In this situation, the only way to resolve the error is to install a new hard drive as a system one.
After reading our article, you will notice that many factors can lead to the problem " NTLDR is missing". And this article describes several methods that will help you resolve the error " NTLDR is missing". You can choose the appropriate option to fix this problem. Hopefully you can solve this error without any obstacle.
Advice. To avoid losing important data caused by various factors such as NTLDR errors, you'd better backup this data to any of the external drives.
Moreover, if you have any questions or suggestions about the problem "NTLDR is missing" please leave comments below.
Video: How to fix the NTLDR is missing error?
Video: NTLDR is missing - What to do?
In this article, I want to talk about errors when booting a Windows XP computer. In some cases, the error “NTLDR is missing” appears, which at first plunges you into a stupor. No matter how many times you restart your computer, this error will not go away by itself, although below it says “Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to restart”. In other cases, you only see a black screen and a prompt to insert a boot disk, which means that the boot record is corrupted.
Solving the problem "NTLDR is missing"
Literally, this error means the following: "NTLDR file not found at the root of the boot partition." This file is vital, it is the boot loader of the Windows XP operating system. Some are simple, but in most cases this can be avoided and not wasted time.
The error says that the file has been deleted, possibly during the next cleaning of the hard drive or as a result of a virus attack. Remember, if you are not sure, then in no case do not delete files in the root of the "C:" drive. The solution is simple - you need to restore this file and, possibly, some others, for example NTDETECT.COM. Further we will assume that the restoration of both of these files is meant.
Using the Windows XP installation disc
I also archived the rest of the boot files: bootfont.bin, boot.ini and MS-DOS files. You can also copy them to yourself, it will not be worse. Please note, on different computers, here is the most common version for a system with one installed Windows XP on the first partition in the folder "C:\Windows". To put these files on your computer, you need to copy them through any file manager or explorer.
Since the "NTLDR" file is hidden, in order to see and copy it in Windows Explorer, you need to enable the display of hidden files.
After copying the files to the root of the C: drive, we reboot. If the error "NTLDR is missing" still appears, then look further.
Too many files in the root
With a large number of files in the root of the boot disk, such an error may occur. The "NTLDR" file may exist, but due to the peculiarities of the NTFS file system and the boot mechanism, it may not be visible at this stage of the OS boot.
Remember what actions you were doing before the error appeared. Perhaps they installed a new program and did not pay attention to the installation path, and as a result the program was installed in the root folder, or they simply copied a bunch of files. To solve this problem, you need to delete the extra files. For this you need:
- Boot from disk to portable version of Windows
- Delete all files in the root of drive C: except ntldr, ntdetect.com and boot.ini
- Or delete everything and restore files as in the previous paragraph
Boot record problem
Windows XP will not boot if the boot record is corrupted. It contains all the information about the download process.
BCUpdate2
To restore the boot record, we will use a utility developed by Microsoft « BCUpdate2 » . You can’t just download it from the Microsoft server, so take it from me.
We write it to the boot disk, start from it and enter the command:
Bcupdate2.exe C: /f /y
The program should answer: "The boot code was updated successfully"
Recovery Console
Boot into the recovery console and give the commands:
fixboot c:
If it does not help, then boot again and issue the command:
fixmbr
Only here you need to be careful, because. you can lose information about partitions if the problem was physical or the system is infected with viruses. It is recommended to pre-install with special anti-virus images. If the sections are still lost, we use to restore information.
Boot disk not active
In order for the operating system to boot, the disk must be marked as "Active" at the partition level. The issue is resolved from the recovery console, see how I did it in Windows 7 when I got the error "", but the essence is the same.
In order to make the boot disk active, you can boot from a LiveCD that contains some kind of partition management program, such as Paragon Partition Magic or Acronis Partition Expert. Select your disk there and mark it "Active" using the context menu of the right mouse button.
hardware problem
There are times when data from a disk is simply not read. This may be due to the following issues:
- Faulty loop. If the problem is floating, then try replacing the cable.
- Hard disk failure. These are physical bads (BAD's), poorly readable sectors, problems with the electronics or the disk engine. Some problems can be solved with the help of special programs, usually temporarily, but in general.
- Problems with the motherboard. Very rare, but still. If the boot from this hard drive on another computer goes a little further (the OS does not fully boot on a computer with a different configuration), then you need to repair or change the motherboard.
You turned on your computer and there was a boot error when you started the Windows 10 operating system NTLDR is missing, press Ctrl+Alt+Del to Restart. What to do? Is there any way to fix the situation? Let's figure it out! First of all, I want to warn you that when this error occurs, it is very often impossible to save data.
If your hard drive has crashed, which is very likely on older PCs, then the only way out of the situation is to buy a new one. All data on the old media is usually permanently lost. Even when the hard drive is alive, the only thing that can restore the computer after the NTLDR is missing error is formatting the system disk and reinstalling the operating system.
Instructions on what to do with the error NTLDR is missing
Step 1. Try switching the hard drive to another free slot on the motherboard.
So we will exclude the possibility of some kind of failure in the operation of the motherboard associated with the operation of a particular SATA or IDE port.
Step 2 Try replacing the cable connecting the hard drive and the motherboard with a new one. We do this in order to be sure that the NTLDR is missing error is not caused by damage to the cable or its connectors.
Step 3. Check the device boot priority in the BIOS.
It often happens that after connecting a second hard drive, the motherboard itself automatically puts it first in the boot order. And since there is no operating system on it, the bootloader quite logically gives the error “NTLDR is missing” - Windows is not there and there is nothing to boot!
When you turn on the computer, press the "Delete" key (usually F2 on laptops) to enter. There should be a section responsible for boot settings - something like boot settings. And already in it - setting the boot sequence - Boot Priority. Make sure that the hard drive on which Windows is installed is in the first place. If you do not know this, we make it easier. First, we put one disk first and try to boot. Boot error "NTLDR is missing" again?! Ok, let's go to the BIOS again and set the priority to the second disk and check it again.
Step 4 We boot using the installation disk or USB flash drive with Windows.
At the stage of starting the installation, you need to click on the link "System Restore". As soon as a blue window appears with a choice of action, select: "Diagnostics" - "Advanced options" - "Command line".
Step 5 Restoring the boot record. To do this, Microsoft operating systems have special utilities. To use them, enter the commands in the command line in turn:
bootrec /FixMbr
bootrec /FixBoot
bootrec /RebuildBcd
After each of them, press the Enter key to start the execution. It should turn out something like this:
Reboot and check. If the NTLDR is missing error in Windows 7 or Windows 10 appears again, proceed to the next step.
Step 6 Repeat step 4 again to open the command prompt. Make the boot partition active. We enter the command diskpart to open the built-in Windows partition editor. We enter the commands:
sel disk 0
list volume
So we select the first hard drive and look at the list of its logical drives:
We find the section that has a mark in the “Info” column - System. For me it will be Volume 1 . Select it with the following command:
sel volume 1
And make it active:
Exit the program by entering the command exit. Reboot and check.
Step 7. If none of the previous actions helped, most likely one of the files was deleted or damaged:
Ntldr Ntdetect.com
You can try to restore them from the installation DVD or flash drive. To do this, you will need to repeat step 4 again, and then enter the command at the command line:
diskpart
list volumes
exit
In the list of disks we find a DVD or USB flash drive. In my screenshot above, this is drive Z. Next, we enter commands that will restore damaged files from the installation media:
copy z:\i386\ntldr c:\
copy z:\i386\ntdetect.com c:\
After that, reboot and check.
P.S.: If, after all our advice, the NTLDR is missing message appears again, try reinstalling Windows. And even if this does not help, apparently your hard drive has come to an end and it's time to change it to a new one.
This error occurs quite often, it is eliminated quite easily, but not everyone knows how this is done and often reinstall the system.
Why did this error appear:
- The computer user himself erased the Ntldr and Ntdetect.com system files from the "C:" section, unaware of their importance.
- It is possible that the system "hung" or was turned off by pressing the power button on the system unit or through an electrical outlet, thereby inadvertently damaging the boot data. Proper shutdown is performed from the menu "Start" - " Shutdown».
- The message "" may appear as a result of changing the active partition on the hard disk. In order for the bootloader to function normally, it is necessary that the system files are on the active partition.
- The storage medium worked out its time and began to issue the corresponding errors about malfunctions. This is due to the wear of the hard drive and the coating of the surface of its pancakes with defective sectors.
- The fourth reason is unlikely, but it should not be ruled out either. This is an infection of the system with malware, i.e. virus. Alternatively, if you can’t decide which one, read the note on this site and choose the one that suits you.
All the steps below WILL NOT REMOVE photos, documents and programs you have installed! The data that was before the error will remain in the same state. You will only restore corrupted system files.
The error is corrected in the following simple way:
This option is more complicated than the previous one, but if you want to fix your “iron friend” yourself, read how to do it.
The NTLDR is missing error is typical for Windows computers. Inexperienced users who encounter such a problem for the first time panic and see a full format of the disk as the only solution. But few people know about the true causes of this error. It can be fixed while keeping all important information on the device.
What does the NTLDR is missing error mean?
During the boot process, when a black screen appears and NTLDR is missing, the user is prompted to press the CTRL + ALT + DELETE key combination to restart the system. If this does not help and Windows does not boot, then you need to identify the cause of the error that occurs and eliminate it.
The operating system will not boot until the error is fixed
"NTLDR" stands for "New Technology Loader", that is, the operating system loader. The resulting error indicates that the Ntldr and Ntdetect.com files, which are responsible for loading Windows, cannot be accessed.
The NTLDR is missing error can occur on any Windows operating system from XP to 10.
Causes of the error and ways to solve the problem
Hardware failure
The most annoying thing is the iron malfunction. In this case, the hard drive or motherboard controller may be broken. The only solution is to replace the broken parts.
Physical failure of the hard drive Connecting an additional hard drive
The user connects a new hard drive with a large amount of memory, designed to store various files and, of course, does not contain an operating system. This changes the priority of the disks, and the new device rises to the first place, from where the computer tries to boot.
In this case, there will be one solution for all operating systems:
- We reboot the computer and start the BIOS using the DELETE key (most often) or F2, or another, depending on the device. All actions here are carried out only using the keyboard, the mouse can be safely removed to the side.
- Go to the "Advanced" or "Boot" section and look for the "Hard Disk Boot Priority" item. In the first place we put the old hard disk, which contains the operating system.
- We save the changes by pressing the F10 key (there will be a hint at the bottom or on the right), and restart the computer.
How to prioritize hard drives in the BIOS Conflict between two installed operating systems
When using multiple operating systems on the same computer, they may conflict with each other. In this case, we need a boot disk with Windows. We insert it into the drive and wait until the system boots.
For XP version
- When the message "Installing Windows" appears, press the R key. The recovery console will appear.
- We press the number corresponding to the disk on which the installed operating system is located. Now the command line will work exclusively with this boot partition.
- To fix the conflict, you need to enter only two commands: first - fixboot, and then - fixmbr.
To fix the error, enter the fixboot and fixmbr commands Troubleshooting Windows XP (video)
For Windows 7, 8 and 10
Troubleshooting Windows 7 (video)
System file corruption
The Ntldr and Ntdetect.com system files can be corrupted by both the user and malware.
- In the first case, you must use the command line and follow the instructions from the previous paragraph.
- In the second case, the introduction of the fixmbr command may cause the virus to destroy the partition table. Therefore, before recovery, it will be correct to use an antivirus. You can do this by connecting the disk to another computer or by booting from a special disk from the antivirus software manufacturer.
Any user of the Windows operating system can encounter the NTLDR is missing error. If the problem is not in the hardware, then the instructions in this article will help you recover your data. Good luck!