Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Off Topic Stupid Windows Error

Does any wonderful techie have any idea what this problem could be and possibly how to fix it without reinstalling windows (which i really don't want to do) --

I have windows XP pro, and every time I boot up my laptop, it starts to install something. I have no idea what it is because it just says "Copy". And then when it gets to a certain point, it has an Internal Error 2908. I searched the error on microsoft.com, but I didn't get many answers, and I also searched google for "trying to install copy", and i got a few hits, but the pages were down, and the one page had a question exactly like mine, but no answer.

My computer still works fine, but it is just really annoying to have that pop up every time I turn my computer on.

Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks!

- Laura

Have you tried opening up the control panel, and looking into add/remove programs? If you see the program listed there, you can remove it.

Pelican

It could be a virus or worm. Have you updated your antivirus software recently? You can also go to Norton's site at http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/vinfodb.html. You can do a key word search there.

I'm thinking it's a Welchia variant but that's just an educated guess. There's a fix welchia program that'll detect & get rid of it, but you have to turn off the service that's producing the error message. There's instructions on Norton's site.

My antivirus software is definitely up to date, and it scans every Wednesday and Sunday, so I am pretty sure it isn't a virus. I am also almost positive it isn't any kind of spyware because I run adaware and spybot and window washer several times a week. The problem is that it doesn't give me a name of what it is -- it just says "COPY." So I can't go through the add/remove program things. I am pretty good with computers, so I have tried all of the obvious troubleshooting things (virus checking, spyware checking, add/remove suspicious things, and searching me c drive for anything unfamiliar). I even ran the virus removal tool Emily recommended, and it didn't detect the virus.

I saw on Microsoft.com that the error I seem to be getting is possibly something to do with Microsoft Office, but I have no idea if there is something wrong with my MS Office.

Thanks for your help!

- Laura

Hi,

See this maybe will give you an idea.

Windows Installer Error Reference for Windows Installer 2.0

http://desktopengineertraining.com/msierrors
Troubleshooting Windows XP, Tweaks and Fixes for Windows XP
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp.htm


MAF

Laura,

Do you have more than one user profile on your machine? If so, make sure you are logged in with Administrator privileges. Right click on My Computer (or whatever name you have given your computer) from the Desktop or Windows Explorer and choose Manage. Under System Tools click on Event Viewer and look through the logs (application, security, system) for more specific information on the error (double-clicking on a warning, error or information line will give more info). Let me know what you find. You may also want to check which Services and applications are started in the Services and Applications section of the management console.

May I ask what make and model laptop you have and what version of XP Pro(ie,do you have sp1 installed)? Are you regularly updating Windows?

AmyN

Thanks for the links, Maria, and Amy, I checked the log of events, and the one that is for the installation that pops up every time on my comptuer is ID 1001 source MsiInstaller.

Detection of product '{D1D8C9C4-89BE-4F37-9EC4-B80E3C239C41}', feature 'Copy' failed during request for component '{58A8E462-C498-4378-BFFA-E0A57C43D405}'

I believe those addresses have someting to do with my registry, but I am not sure if I trust myself to mess with the registry.

I have a Dell Lattitude 400, and I am running XP pro, SP1. And, yes, I do regularly update Windows.

If I were to just reinstall windows, would that take care of the problem? Would I lose any of my data files/installed programs?

Thanks!
- Laura

Laura,

There should be another Warning in the log which gives the path of the failed component. This should give you a clue as to the 'product' being installed. Most probably the folder that the component should have been in has been deleted. If you can determine what product is being installed then we can probably fix it by supplying the missing info.

If you can't find the info in the log, try going into you registry and searching for the first key string you gave (copy and paste the stuff between the {}) Don't worry about being in the registry, you won't be attempting to make any edits.

Here's how: from the Start menu select Run and type in the following: Regedt32 (make sure you have Admin privileges). Once the Registry editor is open go to the View menu and select Find Key. Paste in the key string from the log and hit the Find Next button (make sure Match Whole Word is not checked). Hopefully the string will be found and the associated installed product. You can just quit the registry once you have retrieved the info.

Amy

I found the registry key associated with the error, and I removed it, and I searched for anything else that said it was associated with 'copy', but I am still getting the error. I believe it is possibly associated with the .NET framework, but I removed everything that said .NET, and I am still getting the installer every time I start Windows.

I am at my wit's end .

- Laura

Laura,

There are a few MSI package cleaners out there. They clean up incomplete and damaged installs. Look at this link: http://www.installsite.org/pages/en/msi/tips.htm Also, this link: http://myitforum.techtarget.com/articles/6/view.asp?id=6725

Amy

I figured out what my problem is! The 'Copy' is actually related to my roommate's HP printer and that software rather than the .NET framework. Now I just have to figure out how to deal with it .

Thanks for your help, Amy! Those links helped me realize it wasn't the problem I thought it was.

- Laura