Computer Crashed

[Sasso1]

I have just had an SOS from my younger son who has lost all his photos/letters & music etc, and "s**s" law he had forgotten to back up.
The message on his PC reads " Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt;
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM
YOU CAN ATTEMPT TO REPAIR THIS FILE BY STARTING WINDOWS SET UP USING THE ORIGINAL SET UP CD ROM
THE CORRUPTIONN ON YOUR WINDOWS IS TOO EXTENSIVE TO PERFORM THE RESTORE OPTION YOU SELECTED.... Any suggestions please. Sasso1

[ACtheTROLL]

so use the CD - boot using it - when the option appears - select repair -

alternatively use ultimate boot cd knoppix or ubuntu to copy the files (if they are still intact) to a usb disc
and then do a full reinstall

I'd reccomend doing a full disk check once the files are safe - unless he knows what caused the problem - could well be a faulty (or if lucky) or badly corrupted disc