{"id":851,"date":"2005-12-28T20:08:00","date_gmt":"2005-12-28T14:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/28\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/"},"modified":"2026-10-13T13:35:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T08:05:57","slug":"ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Fix &#8220;NTLDR is Missing&#8221; Error (Windows XP, 10 and 11)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Seeing &#8220;<strong>NTLDR is missing. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart<\/strong>&#8221; when you turn on your computer? It means the PC can&#8217;t find the Windows startup file it&#8217;s looking for. I got this error years ago on a Windows XP PC and fixed it without formatting the hard drive. Today the message usually has a much simpler cause, such as a USB drive left plugged in. Here&#8217;s how to fix NTLDR is missing errors in 2026, on old Windows XP machines and on Windows 10 and 11 PCs that show it unexpectedly.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-39681\" src=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/ntldr-missing-error.jpg\" alt=\"NTLDR is missing error on boot\" width=\"416\" height=\"288\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/ntldr-missing-error.jpg 416w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/ntldr-missing-error-150x103.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/ntldr-missing-error-300x207.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 416px) 100vw, 416px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Quick answer:<\/strong> Remove all USB drives, memory cards and discs and restart. If the error stays, open your BIOS\/UEFI setup and make sure your main Windows drive is first in the boot order. On Windows XP, copy the <code>ntldr<\/code> and <code>ntdetect.com<\/code> files back to C:\\ from a Windows XP CD, or use Recovery Console with <code>fixboot<\/code> and <code>fixmbr<\/code>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_89 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6adb69ebca652\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"ez-toc-cssicon\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6adb69ebca652\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#What_is_NTLDR\" >What is NTLDR?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Common_causes_of_NTLDR_is_missing\" >Common causes of NTLDR is missing<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#How_to_fix_NTLDR_is_missing_all_computers\" >How to fix NTLDR is missing (all computers)<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#How_to_fix_NTLDR_is_missing_on_Windows_XP\" >How to fix NTLDR is missing on Windows XP<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Windows_10_and_11_fix_BOOTMGR_and_boot_errors\" >Windows 10 and 11: fix BOOTMGR and boot errors<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Frequently_asked_questions\" >Frequently asked questions<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Does_%E2%80%9CNTLDR_is_missing%E2%80%9D_mean_my_hard_drive_is_dead\" >Does &#8220;NTLDR is missing&#8221; mean my hard drive is dead?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Why_do_I_get_NTLDR_is_missing_on_Windows_10\" >Why do I get NTLDR is missing on Windows 10?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2005\/12\/ntldr-is-missing-press-any-key-to-restart\/#Will_fixing_NTLDR_delete_my_files\" >Will fixing NTLDR delete my files?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_NTLDR\"><\/span>What is NTLDR?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><strong>NTLDR<\/strong> (NT Loader) is the boot loader used by Windows XP, Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003. When the computer starts, the BIOS loads the boot sector, which then looks for NTLDR to start Windows. If NTLDR can&#8217;t be found, you get the &#8220;NTLDR is missing&#8221; error.<\/p>\n<p>Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10 and 11 don&#8217;t use NTLDR. They use <strong>BOOTMGR<\/strong> (Windows Boot Manager). So if you see &#8220;NTLDR is missing&#8221; on a modern PC, the computer is almost certainly trying to boot from the wrong drive, often an old disk or USB stick with leftover XP-era boot code.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Common_causes_of_NTLDR_is_missing\"><\/span>Common causes of NTLDR is missing<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>A USB flash drive, memory card, CD or DVD that isn&#8217;t bootable is set as the first boot device.<\/li>\n<li>Wrong boot order in BIOS\/UEFI, or the main drive isn&#8217;t detected.<\/li>\n<li>Missing or corrupt <code>ntldr<\/code>, <code>ntdetect.com<\/code> or <code>boot.ini<\/code> files (Windows XP).<\/li>\n<li>Damaged boot sector or MBR, or a loose or failing hard drive cable.<\/li>\n<li>A failed upgrade or a cloned disk with the wrong partition set as active.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_fix_NTLDR_is_missing_all_computers\"><\/span>How to fix NTLDR is missing (all computers)<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Remove external media:<\/strong> unplug USB drives, card readers, external disks and eject any disc, then restart.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Check boot order:<\/strong> press the setup key at startup (often <strong>F2<\/strong>, <strong>Del<\/strong>, <strong>F10<\/strong> or <strong>F12<\/strong>) and set your Windows drive or <strong>Windows Boot Manager<\/strong> first.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Check the drive is detected:<\/strong> if the BIOS doesn&#8217;t list your hard drive or SSD, reseat its cables (desktop) or get the drive tested. It may be failing.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_fix_NTLDR_is_missing_on_Windows_XP\"><\/span>How to fix NTLDR is missing on Windows XP<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>This is how I fixed it on my Windows XP PC. Since NTLDR was missing, I put a fresh copy back:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Get <code>ntldr<\/code> and <code>ntdetect.com<\/code> from the <code>i386<\/code> folder of a Windows XP CD, the PC&#8217;s recovery CD, or another PC with the same Windows version.<\/li>\n<li>Boot from a bootable disc or USB drive with a command prompt. (In my case the XP CD wouldn&#8217;t help, but a Windows 98 boot disc worked.)<\/li>\n<li>Copy both files to the root of the C: drive.<\/li>\n<li>Restart. My PC then let me run the manufacturer&#8217;s system recovery (F10 on that PC), which repaired Windows while keeping all my files.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Alternatively, boot from the Windows XP CD, press <strong>R<\/strong> for the <strong>Recovery Console<\/strong>, and run:<\/p>\n<pre><code>fixboot\r\nfixmbr\r\nbootcfg \/rebuild<\/code><\/pre>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerhope.com\/issues\/ch000465.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Computer Hope<\/a> has more troubleshooting steps for XP-era systems.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Windows_10_and_11_fix_BOOTMGR_and_boot_errors\"><\/span>Windows 10 and 11: fix BOOTMGR and boot errors<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If your modern PC still won&#8217;t start after checking the boot order:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Boot from a Windows installation USB (make one with Microsoft&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/software-download\/windows11\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Media Creation Tool<\/a> on another PC).<\/li>\n<li>Choose <strong>Repair your computer \u2192 Troubleshoot \u2192 Startup Repair<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>If that fails, open <strong>Command Prompt<\/strong> from the same menu and run:<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<pre><code>bootrec \/fixmbr\r\nbootrec \/fixboot\r\nbootrec \/rebuildbcd<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>On UEFI systems, <code>bcdboot C:\\Windows<\/code> recreates the boot files. If you need to back up files from a PC that won&#8217;t boot, a Linux live USB or the recovery Command Prompt can copy them to an external drive. Our guide to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2013\/01\/how-to-format-usb-pen-drives\/\">formatting a USB flash drive<\/a> helps prepare one.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Frequently_asked_questions\"><\/span>Frequently asked questions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Does_%E2%80%9CNTLDR_is_missing%E2%80%9D_mean_my_hard_drive_is_dead\"><\/span>Does &#8220;NTLDR is missing&#8221; mean my hard drive is dead?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Usually not. Most cases are caused by boot order or missing boot files. But if the BIOS can&#8217;t see the drive at all, the drive may be failing.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_do_I_get_NTLDR_is_missing_on_Windows_10\"><\/span>Why do I get NTLDR is missing on Windows 10?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Windows 10 doesn&#8217;t use NTLDR, so the PC is booting from another drive, such as a USB stick or old disk. Remove it or fix the boot order.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Will_fixing_NTLDR_delete_my_files\"><\/span>Will fixing NTLDR delete my files?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>No. Copying boot files, Startup Repair and bootrec commands don&#8217;t touch your documents. Avoid formatting or reinstalling until you&#8217;ve tried these steps.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seeing &#8220;NTLDR is missing. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart&#8221; when you turn on your computer? It means the PC can&#8217;t find&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":39681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-computers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=851"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65256,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851\/revisions\/65256"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}