Uninstall MS Updates that crippled my S/W

I bought a used POS system that has Windows Embedded 7 on it and it has been working great for over a year now. The other day I powered it down and I noticed it said it was installing 67 updates. When I powered it back on it continued to install the remaining updates and then loaded the desktop. Now every time I run the POS Menu program I get the following error:

The process performance counter is disabled, so the requested operation cannot be performed.

I can press ok, and then about 10 seconds later the same error pops back up. I have pressed the button 10 or 20 times hoping it would eventually open the POS Menu, but no luck so far.

I’m a technician by trade, but I have never worked on a Windows Embedded system. Everything seems to be locked down on the desktop. The start menu only has a search box with the power menu to the right. The search box is disabled, so you can’t run any commands. The only icon on the desktop is a shortcut for the POS Menu. I can open the task manager but I can’t run any commands from it either.

All I want to do is uninstall those updates so things can return to the way it was, or resolve the error message if possible. I loaded Hiren’s BootCD and gained access to the file system. Hiren seems to pack a lot of tools, but I didn’t see anything that could uninstall MS updates or even run the MS system restore. I did notice there were many users in the Users directory but how can I attempt to load any of them if the system doesn’t allow you to change users? I also noticed using Hiren’s BootCD doesn’t give you access to the User Accounts applet in the control panel either. So even if I could change users, how would I create a new user?

I also ran Windows Recovery using a UFD. From there I was able to run system restore. System restore listed one restore point and it was only a few days ago. Getting excited at this point, I clicked next, only to be disappointed again. Error: There is not enough disk space to restore the disk.

I called the company that supports the system but they want me to purchase a support package at $260 a month, which is just absurd! What’s funny is the guy I talked to said any PC repair person should be able to resolve this issue quickly. Maybe I’m just off my game.

Any suggestions?

Thank you
Mike

I don't have any experience with such a system either but...
Since you can run Hiren's would a Windows Repair Disk won't work?
Another would be no "Advanced Boot Options" available (F8 menu during booting)?

GokAy said:

I don't have any experience with such a system either but...
Since you can run Hiren's would a Windows Repair Disk won't work?
Another would be no "Advanced Boot Options" available (F8 menu during booting)?

Yes, I mentioned I could run Windows Recovery which is where I was able to run the system restore.

The Advanced Boot options menu loads but if I select the Repair Computer option I get a Windows Error. I can't remember the exact error at this moment. Luckily I can boot Windows Recovery from USB drive. But I still don't know how to uninstall those updates, or create a user account so I can have full access. If I knew how to load another user account, I could reset its password and load it but I'm not certain how you access the windows logon when you have no permissions and everything is practically disabled at the desktop.

My short term goal is to get the POS Menu working again, but my long term goal is to get full access so I can at least implement a backup program so I don't have to deal with this crap again if it happens in the future.

Can you boot into Safe Mode? You can try uninstalling in Safe Mode.

Option 5 of User Account - Reset Password in Windows 7.
You can try use it to enable accounts and change their passwords.