Err Msg: STOP: C000026C Unable to Load Device Driver...

ID: Q160495

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0
Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0
Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server

SYMPTOMS

When you install Windows NT, start Windows NT from the hard disk, or start Windows NT from the three Setup floppy disks during a repair process, you may receive one of the following error messages:

STOP: 0xC000026C [Unable to load device driver] <driver_name>

-or-

STOP: 0xc0000221 [Unable to load device driver] <driver_name>

CAUSE

This behavior can occur when one or more of the following conditions exist:

There is a damaged device driver file on the hard disk.

There is a damaged device driver file on one of the three Setup floppy disks.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, use the appropriate method:

Floppy Disks

Create a new set of Windows NT Setup floppy disks by using the WINNT32 /OX command in Windows NT or the WINNT /OX command in MS-DOS. The Winnt32.exe and Winnt.exe files are located in the I386 on the Windows NT 4.0 CD-ROM.

Hard Disk

Use the Emergency Repair Disk to replace the missing or damaged driver file on the NTFS partition by following the procedure outlined in the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

ARTICLE-ID: Q164471
TITLE : Replacing System Files Using a Modified Emergency Repair Disk

Additional query words: blue screen c000026c c0000221 ntsetup

Keywords : kberrmsg kbsetup ntstop NTSrvWkst prodnt
Version : WINDOWS:2000; winnt:3.5,3.51,4.0
Platform : WINDOWS winnt
Issue type :