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I'm working with Windows CE 5 and, before realizing that this was the wrong reg key, I changed the value of HKLM>init>Launch10 from shell.exe to my own program. I know now that I should have changed Launch50.

So when my physical device boots up I just get an empty screen, and since shell is actually used for communication between the dev box and the device I can't connect to it from my computer.

Thoughts/Ideas?

Update
- If there is a way to perform a factory reset I don't know it, the inside of the device is cut of from me due to security screws, the parts I can access don't provide me with any options.
- No other apps launch, though I expected some to, so there is no way to launch anything. the network connectivity and usb don't even turn on at this point.
- The platform normally has debugger connectivity through ActiveSync, but it isn't working since I made the change. Remote Registry is how I made the change to begin with.
- When I took out the batteries there was a small plate I was able to remove which had a port under it, but I'm not familiar with the type. It looked a lot wider with a lot more pins then a normal serial connection.
- I was trying to figure out the KITL connection thing but don't have it setup, not sure if it will work or not.
- The OS is not on removable media as far as I know, or if it is I can't tell and can't physically get to the media.

Now for the good news: the device supports a "Safe Boot" option which I've been able to access. This loads the device into a slimmed down version of Windows CE so that you can repair the system. However the version is so slimmed down that I can't connect to it remotely. What can I do to change the image so it will rebuild the registry?

Resolved I called the vendor and they were able to show me where the registry hive was. I deleted the hive and the OS booted up. Only problem was that all of my installed applications stopped working/were not seen as installed anymore. Fortunately I have several of these devices so once I knew where the registry folder was I just copied the files from a working one onto the dead one and that fixed it.

dsolimano
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Peter
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1 Answers1

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So the OS is no longer launching the shell - this could be problematic, depending on the capabilities of the device (which you've told us little about).

  • Can you restore to a factory state? If so, that will reverse your change.
  • Can you cause other apps to run (i.e. does the platform have some OEM-specific "launch" stuff)? If so, you could run an app to restore that registry key
  • Does the platform have debugger connectivity? Using Remote Registry Editor from the platform tools could be a way to recover it
  • Is there a way to re-flash the OS? It's heavy-handed, but may be the only way to restore it
  • Do you have a KITL connection option? You could use that to make a tools connection.
  • Can you change the OS image? That will invalidate the MD5 hash of the existing registry and force it to build a new one.
  • Is the OS itself on removable media? Plugging it into a PC and deleting the registry hives would likely recover.

If you don't have any of these at your disposal, you might be the proud owner of a new brick - contact the OEM and see if they can recover it for you.

ctacke
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  • Depends on what the "safe" OS allows. Can you browse the file system? Does that file system match the original (i.e. they see the same physical files)? You might be able to find the original OS registry files (hive if you're lucky, but that's not guaranteed) and simply delete them, or just booting a new OS may have rebuilt them. Look for system.hv and user.hv (they'll be hidden by default, so change explorer to show hidden files). – ctacke Mar 29 '12 at 03:43