DMI pool data error after no h/w changes?
 

I have one of my old computers at work, and the accountant is using it. She's a totally paranoid won't-touch-anything non-computer user, so I'm confident she hasn't been dicking around with it too much.

Here's the thing:

I installed Mandrake on this computer on a secondary 10GB hard drive over a year ago. It was a dual installation after the factory-installed Windows XP Home.

I never really got the hang of Mandrake, and bought a new computer shortly after and moved this old computer to the office.

When I moved it to the office, I reformatted that 10GB HD to create more storage space. The accountant only uses Windows XP, so I figured there was no harm in deleting the Linux stuff.

I just let LILO (I think it was LILO) run when the computer booted, and it's been fine (Windows is the default system so it just selects Windows and keeps going).

Everything has been fine for over three months.

Until today.

Now when the computer boots, I get
Verifying DMI Pool Data ......
L 01 01 01 01 01 01

and about eight dozen zero-ones and then the computer hangs.

I'm not using Linux on this computer any more.

Like I said, I never really got the hang of it, so I'm a total newbie. It strikes me as really weird that this suddenly became a problem after months of nothing.

Is there any simple way to rectify this problem? Make an XP boot disk and then somehow try to fix LILO with a text editor (scaaary!!!)?

Thanks!

Whoa, CRAP.
 

More checking...

In the BIOS, I can't see the old 10GB drive any more (I'm looking in the part where you set IDE masters and slaves, and the 40GB HD is turning up, but I can't see the 10GB HD).

And I CAN'T BOOT FROM CD. It just goes to the DMI Pool Data and hangs. I tried with the CD as the second boot device (after floppy) and it hung at the DMI Pool Data.

I then set the CDROM as the primary boot device (floppy second) and it still hung.

I then removed HDD-0 as a boot device, having just floppy and CDROM, and it STILL hung.

NOW I'm getting freaked out!

Help??