XP SP2 installed, now not able to log in

My roommate installed Service Pack 2 for Windows XP Home Edition, and now,
when he turns on the computer, the normal log-in window appears, but there
are no accounts to click on.

I hit ctrl-alt-delete twice to get the other log-in screen and tried to
log-in with his name and potential passwords. I also tried "Guest" and
"Administrator." None of these worked. It's as if all of the user accounts
have been deleted from computer, or Windows can't access them.

Any suggestions other than reinstalling? He has important files on his
computer.

Elliot wrote:
> My roommate installed Service Pack 2 for Windows XP Home Edition, and
> now, when he turns on the computer, the normal log-in window appears,
> but there are no accounts to click on.
>
> I hit ctrl-alt-delete twice to get the other log-in screen and tried
> to log-in with his name and potential passwords. I also tried "Guest"
> and "Administrator." None of these worked. It's as if all of the user
> accounts have been deleted from computer, or Windows can't access
> them.
>
> Any suggestions other than reinstalling? He has important files on his
> computer.

Well, I sure hope he backed them up. Regular backups are a Good Thing, and
one should always back up data before performing something like this.
That said, can you/he boot into safe mode and log in?

Tried to boot in safe mode. gave me the same screen with no names to click on.

"Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]" wrote:

> Elliot wrote:
> > My roommate installed Service Pack 2 for Windows XP Home Edition, and
> > now, when he turns on the computer, the normal log-in window appears,
> > but there are no accounts to click on.
> >
> > I hit ctrl-alt-delete twice to get the other log-in screen and tried
> > to log-in with his name and potential passwords. I also tried "Guest"
> > and "Administrator." None of these worked. It's as if all of the user
> > accounts have been deleted from computer, or Windows can't access
> > them.
> >
> > Any suggestions other than reinstalling? He has important files on his
> > computer.
>
> Well, I sure hope he backed them up. Regular backups are a Good Thing, and
> one should always back up data before performing something like this.
> That said, can you/he boot into safe mode and log in?
>
>
>