Getting to be an unfortunate habit.

Had bad weather while I was not home, and the power went off enough to
shut down the computer. When I attempted to re-boot, it took several tries - and during one of the tries, at the Windows welcome screen I got the following error;

Isass.exe - System Error
AnI/O operation initiated by the Registry failed unrecoverably. The Registry could not read in, or write out, or flush, one of the files that contain the system's image of the Registry.

I have no clue what that means - but I"m thinking I have some kind of fundamental problem with this computer - every week it seems there is a new and different error to deal with.The machine finally did reboot and come back online normally - except that it had the date at January of 2002. Odd. I changed the date to the current date - is that part of the problem?
Any thoughts, enlightenment, or suggestions as to what to do would be most appreciated.

Thanks again for any help - Martin - are you out there?

Trish

Hello Tryshz! I've just found your post and wondering wether you managed to fix the problem?

Regards

Martin

No...I sure have not.

I have to do something - now the computer is running glacially slow -
I cannot get any work done for the waiting for each thing I do to
complete.

I sure hope you can help me out....I simply don't know what to do.
Appreciate any help you can give me...

Trish

I have found googling any error message to be an invaluable place to start. The key, apparently is to determine if "we" are talking about Isass.exe or Lsass.exe, a capital "i" or a capital "l" ...the fomer is a trojan, and the latter is an MS file...at least that was I have read... check out these urls...

1. Computing.Net - Isass.exe - System Error

"Lsass.exe is good - Microsoft component that runs under sertain conditions

Isass.exe is the name of a program installed by a trojan which opens up a backdoor port. One way to see the difference between lsass.exe and Isass.exe is to click on the "image name" in task manager and see if it it lists with the "L" processes or actually is an "I." Changing the default system font also allows you to see the difference between a lower case "L" and an upper case "I" easier. I was having problems with a different trojan and almost became convinced I had the bad one - I'm glad I checked some more before I deleted the good file."

Backdoor.IRC.Ratsou.B - Symantec.com

2. lsass.exe-system error and an apparent solution...

"Russ Wanchisen...Jul 14, 2004, 08:41am EDT
Re: lsass.exe-system error
Good News everybody! After suffering from a (seemingly catastrophic) fatal: "lsass.exe - System Error, Object Name not found" boot msg, I was able to successfully recover the OS and get my PC back up & running again! (even without an XP install CD)!

Here's how I did it:

On a separate machine, I navigated over to Microsoft's website and looked into the details of creating a set of Windows XP Setup boot disks. I found all the necessary information here: ( How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks ). Since my home PC (the one with the lsass.exe error) was running XP Home Edition with SP1, the "winxpsp1_en_hom_bf.exe" file was appropriate for me. That program generated six (6) floppy disks which I subsequently used to boot up my XP Home machine and get into the "Microsoft Windows Recovery Console" mode as described here: How to install and use the Recovery Console in Windows XP "Recovery Console" mode is a DOS-like mode with limited access to the Windows directory system files (it supports FAT & NTFS file formats, but file access is limited to only the "root" OS sub-folders. User data files are not accessible in "Recovery Console" mode).

OK, now that I was able to boot from the floppies (and access the OS system files), I pretty much followed all the details presented by Charlie White as described in his article "Windows XP crashed? Here's help" (quick-link here: http://www.tunexp.com/faqs/windows_x...ed_heres_help/ ).

In summary, the instructions he provides allow you to effectively perform a manual system restore on your machine. So, now in the future, if your machine fails on boot-up, don't fret! First try to force a "manual system restore"... If all goes well, you should have your machine back up/running in no time!

Good luck!

Russ...N.B. All the details in Charlie White's article are correct except a small detail in Part 1 where you grab the original system repair files out of the "c:\windows\repair" subdirectory: Specifically, on my machine, the "c:\windows\repair\system" file was actually called "c:\windows\repair\system.bak" (note the ".bak" suffix). As such, the line where he says to
"copy C:\windows\repair\system C:\windows\system32\config\system",
should actually read:
"copy C:\windows\repair\system.bak C:\windows\system32\config\system

There are many other sites that offer up solutions...

Thanks much for your reply - and I am not sure if the problem is fixed
or not - I am very hesitant to re-boot my machine.

I went the links you provided, and did a bunch of reading - the file
in question was in the "good" place rather than the "bad" or dangerous
place. The trojan file seems to have something to do with passwords, and
the error I got said nothing about that.

If it is a trojan, how did it get past my Kaspersky anti-virus? This program
has stopped a few others that tried to get into my system, so why would
it fail now? I also have XP with service pack 2 (not 1, which the places I
followed links to indicated that would be a possible cause) - ditto not having
a firewall - which I do.

I am going to have to set it to do a check disc and bite the bullet and see if that cures it, or I come up with the same problem.

At any rate - I thank you all for the links and suggestions - hopefully I will be back soon with a good report. Sure am getting tired of these weekly massive errors.

Thanks again!
Trish

IF IT IS AN INFECTION READ THIS...

How did I get infected in the first place? - Geeks to Go!

But I have anti-malware...

1. any anti-malware is not infallible
2. you need two or three on board, so that if something slips through one, it wiill most likely get caught by the next line of defense
3. computers are no infallible either...they are as dumb as a brick and their only saving grace is speed or operation and then the is also dependent upon certain factors...they are as smart and secure as you make them.
4. after you download and install, and use sysclean, then be sure you have the following installed and operational and then updated...
5. the best anti-virus you can afford...AVG is free... I use PC-cillin Internet Security, along with Trend's Anti-Spyware, a separate program
6. the best anti-malware you can afford...Spybot: Search and Destroy to start, then maybe one or two others.
7. Trend's HiJackThis
8. which ever firewall comes with your OS...don't run more than one at a time, and be sure you are using the best
9. check syschat's suggestions for freeware and check "http://www.geekstogo.com/" as well for freeware and advice...

O.k., let's run sysclean...download and read the readme file...

SYSCLEAN from Trend Micro: Trend Micro

Be sure to read the readme.txt before using...from there on it's easy!

"If you are not a Trend Micro customer please download the following file.

Sysclean Package 3.1MB MD5 checksum: ed3e896a8e3652eb516893f6010104a1 *SysClean.com

NOTE: For instructions on how to use this package, consult the "How to Use" section of the readme file, readme_sysclean.txt. This file also contains the description and the different features of this package.

Note that for the Trend Micro Sysclean Package to be effective, you must download and place the latest pattern file in the same folder as the Trend Micro Sysclean Package."

Trend Micro: Trend Micro

"Virus Pattern Files / Cleanup Templates
The Virus pattern file protects customers against viruses.
The Virus cleanup template automatically removes the virus from the customer's system.

* Virus Pattern File (Official Pattern Release) - 4.633.00 << for normal use
[the next one has intermediary files not part of the older update above, and which will be part of the normal update in future...]
>> * Virus Pattern File (Controlled Pattern Release) - 4.634.17

You may run this in both regular mode or safe mode. I would suggest safe mode so that no running progs get in the way, or slow things down. The process, depending upon the size of your system could take up to 45 minutes. It is very thorough and examines every file. It kills on the go. When it first starts up you'll think that it will blow up...it unloads hundreds of wee killers...go make a sandwich

Don't worry about the reboot. Have your XP startup floppies at the ready...you will need 6 floppies and they go in one at a time, just follow the prompts to a reboot and startup...

How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks

Once you are back in business, get that registry cleaned up...

Hello Tryshz, if you can remember in one of our previous discussions, I mentioned making sure that your hard drive was running correctly to avoid any problems in the future.

Well, I'm going to say it again, especially after what's just happened after your power failure!

If you have made a recovery disk then use that first and it should fix the problem, if you haven't made one then carry on with your disk check to see if anything gets fixed.

If you have your CD around, you can use that to access the recovery console and then run a disk check from there as well and if there is anything that needs replacing it should get taken off the CD.

This may fix your Isass.exe problem, I'm would say that it is not an infection purely because the computer was shutdown without any notice, and they never like that!

I've lost a complete hard drive before by turning the PC on and off too quickly!

Once you've carried out all the necessary repairs, go to My Computer and insert a floppy into the drive and create a recovery disk. If you ever have this problem again the recovery disk should be your first option. Recreate the recovery disk at regular intervals to keep up to date.

Regards

Martin

Thank you all for your replies - and hopefully the problem can be fixed.

Martin, I didn't make a recovery disk - if you told me how to do that, somehow
I totally missed it, to my regret now. Is this a different thing than the "XP setup boot discs' that b1caez01 was talking about? Is it six discs or one? I truly don't mean to be thick-headed here, but the different terminology is throwing me off. I don't even think I have 6 floppie discs - will have to go and buy some.
How does one go about creating a 'recovery disc'? I certainly will create one, and keep re-doing that as it will help with this mess I am currently going through.

So....til I find out about that, I'm holding off doing the disc check - though I did run it on my smaller hard drive - oddly enough it ran right away without having to reboot the machine to have it do its thing. No idea on why that was so.
As soon as I get that info on the recovery/boot discs, I"ll run the disc check on
my main hard drive.

I really appreciate all the help and the patience with my shortcomings in knowing my machine and how it works - y'all have been life-savers, and
I am grateful for the help!

First thing tomorrow I'll get some floppies and then be back here to go to step two.

Trish

Hello Tryshz, follow this link for a step-by-step guide on how to make a recovery disc for vista: windows vista recovery disk step by step guide

This one is for XP ( except home edition ): Windows XP: Set up and Use Automated System Recovery in Windows XP - HelpWithWindows.com

The six disks Al is referring to contains all the necessary files to start your PC all the way up to the actual installation of XP and you can use them to access the recovery console, allowing you to troubleshoot your PC.

The Automated System Recovery disk I mentioned allows you to replace files from your installation before you have an operating system failure, and after having to re-install a clean copy of XP.

Regards

Martin

This is not a criticism, but a reminder to the reader, that the more info one can provide about what your are "running" in the way of a computer system and operating system... XP Home, or XP Pro, or Vista, etc., the better it is for those giving assistance. I use XP Home, and respond from that perspective only. My error was not stating that in my response...so, I made the same glaring error in my closing words...I assumed ;(

"Don't worry about the reboot. Have your XP startup floppies at the ready...you will need 6 floppies and they go in one at a time, just follow the prompts to a reboot and startup... How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks Once you are back in business, get that registry cleaned up."

mhookem: "The six disks Al is referring to contains all the necessary files to start your PC all the way up to the actual installation of XP and you can use them to access the recovery console, allowing you to troubleshoot your PC."

"Users of Windows XP Home are out of luck: ASR is not available on their system." Windows XP: Set up and Use Automated System Recovery in Windows XP - HelpWithWindows.com

Thus the need for the XP Home Edition route: and the 6 floppy diskettes... How to obtain Windows XP Setup boot disks

To: mhookem, et al; ... I wonder if there is any way to get some sort of an update to the XP-Home Edition that would compensate for the lack of the ASR...? There are literally, a pile of recovery progs out there, and I've got most of them, but I have yet to get one to work as well as the floppies from Microsoft. As well, all those ISO progs never work for me...and yes, I've been to quite a few sites to try to learn how to do it...but to no avail. Why can't these sites just make the copy to copy prog available rather than the user having to make one's own recovery disk? Every XP has the same setup configuration...and all you need are the files to get you going again, but what a rigamarole to make a burned recovery disk. Even supplying the recovery files and copying them to one's recovery disk would be a help...an ini file could tell the builder what and where... couldn't it...or am I not understanding what an ini file does?