I got cocky and wanted to try unlocking the 2 other cores on my Phenom 550 processor. All the posters said if it doesn't boot, you can always relock them and go back to the original configuration. RIGHT! It didn't boot, I reconfigured in BIOS, and it still wouldn't boot! I got the dreaded File \Boot\BCD error (Couldn't read Boot Configuration Data). Went back into BIOS to check things and noticed that the HDD booting order had changed, so I set it back to boot from the C drive. Got the same error! For 3 days I've been trying all combinations of Startup Repair, /chkdsk, /fixboot, /fixmbr, /rebuildbcd, System Restore, etc. Nothing worked (do they ever?). I tried System Image Recovery (I've faithfully used the MS Backup System Image every 2 weeks), but it failed with a "corrupted file or directory" error. Using DOS 'list volume' cmd, I could see that all the other volumes on the HDD's were NTFS, except for the C (boot) volume which was RAW. By this time I was pretty much resigned to having to re-install Win 7. Then I found this tutorial System Image Recovery . By going back into System Recovery Options -> System Image Recovery, selecting Format and Repartition Disk, BUT Excluding ALL the disks except the C drive, I got System Image Recovery to restore my Windows 7. AND IT BOOTED!
Moral of the story: The answers are out there, I just wish they were easier to find...