Manifest Parse Error…
You receive the following message: “Manifest Parse error: Invalid at top level of document” when installing Windows XP for the first time and the installation fails because it cannot correctly parse the CONTROLS.MAN file. At no point does Microsoft’s installation program allow you to select an alternate source location for the file. It doesn’t even allow you full command prompt access. And the Recovery Program is useless, as it doesn’t even allow you to copy directories or copy using wildcards!
That’s what happened to me, too, after I decided to give Microsoft one more chance to have one of its operating systems on my main computer. I must be a glutton for punishment, because rather than scrapping it completely, I decided to figure out how to get around the problem. Old habits, like most computers running Microsoft operating systems, die hard.
I’ve heard everything from “it’s a copy protection scheme” to “it locks you out after three installations”. I’ve even heard of hundreds of people who have experienced the error from fresh-out-of-the-shrink-wrap, boxed versions of Windows XP. I couldn’t even get my freshly opened XP CD direct from Dell to work properly. Also, many folks prefer to install from CD copies and keep the original disks in close-to-pristine condition, yet rumors abound that as many as 60-70% of the copies experience this same problem. It must be another one of those undocumented Microsoft features.
The /i386/asms/6000/msft/windows/common/controls/controls.man file on the CD is corrupt. Copy your entire CD to your harddrive, use my version of the CONTROLS.MAN file (don’t forget to change the file extension!), and burn another CD. In theory, you could copy the entire i386 directory to your harddrive, replace the damaged file, and then run \i386\winnt.exe to install, but if you really want a reliable and stable system, it is not wise to install the XP operating system over an existing, older OS. So burning a CD is the only viable option for a fresh, clean install.Whether the new OS works well enough to dissuade me from breaking down and purchasing an iMac remains to be seen…
I have Win XP Corp edition and the same thing happened to me. Your solution at the top was right on, and now I am up and running perfectly! Also, I am making it a point to spread the word, thanks!
Am having the same problem as the rest. When I tried to install XP Pro, during setup I got a bunch of files not loaded correctly. Told to hit ESC to continue but XP may not load correctly.
Eventually I got through it but then the Manifest
Parse Error. My question, being a total novice, is
how is the Controls.man file replaced? When I tried to copy the CD to my harddrive using Adaptec, immediately it instructs to put a fresh CD in and it starts to burn. There isn’t any time or way to copy anything. And what are the exact
steps to replacing the Controls.man file? These may be stupid questions but I’ve only used a PC for a few years and am self-taught. If anyone out
there can discuss the process throughly, I’d
really appreciate it. Thanks.
Thank you so much your info about changing the files in controls. Helped me a lot and made šhìttÿ Windows finally work. Too bad Microsoft didn’t have the brains to figure it out.
– thxs again dave
ANOTHER SUCCESS STORY!!
Richard, you are a genius! Also, thanks to all for the postings, combined, I was able to figure out a resolution for this on my system. BTW, contrary to popular belief, this is NOT a copyright protection scheme by MS, it’s a bad design. Surprise! I know this because I downloaded XP Pro AND Home from MSDN and got the same exact error (I was burning them at 40x; bad idea looking in hindsight.) I went through two paths to fix this and they both worked. They are nothing new from what’s mentioned above, but I just wanted to share
1. TEMPORARY SOLUTION: Copy the i386 folder to a FAT32-formatted hard drive. Used winimage to extract CONTROLS.MAN and overwrote the bad file on the HDD. Ran c:\i386\winnt and installed as normal.
2. PERMANENT, FASTER SOLUTION: I burned the XP ISO using Nero 5 at 1x (2x did NOT work!!) also chose finalize, burn proof, and disk at once and that did the job! Now, I have a working, bootable XP Pro CD!
Thanks for all of the input. This is a GREAT site! Nice work, Richard!
Your fix solved my ‘Manifest Parse Error…..’ problem too. After my first failure I formatted the Hard Disk, copied the contents of my (copied) XP Pro CD onto it. I then patched in a new and correct Control.Man file. When my second XP install fell over in the same place I simply removed the CD, rebooted and when prompted I pointed the installation file at the /I386 directory on my hard disk. I was later asked to replace the XP CD but the installation continued and worked fine. Many thanks Richard.
I, myself, had this same problem, and I have three CD-capable Readers on this machine. A Cyberdrive CDRW 40/16/48, an Artec/Ultima DvD, and an old SCSI Yamaha 4600TICP. Got the same error on every one. Will try your fix now, and see if she works.
I had the same error as everyone else… I used a different Windows XP CD to install the OS and that worked fine. I think perhaps the fixed the file on different types of CDs, or perhaps different versions of the file work better on different computers. First I was using Windows XP Pro (OEM) then I switched to a different version of XP Pro… Basically, try a different CD with a different version.
Hey, Hey, Hey! I think it worked! I copied controls.man from WinXP home version. Thanks!
Well, for those of you that want a little different approach… here is how I did it. I used WinISO and made an ISO of my Windows XP Pro CD. Then using WinISO replaced the contents of the “Controls” directory. (Consists of three files - controls.man, controls.cat, and one other one)
Using Roxio EZCD Creator 5.1 Platinum I burned the new ISO back to a fresh new CDROM. Worked just like magic…
Saved my system! My friend tried it, but couldn’t change controls.man, until i told him it was read-only… some people don’t notice the obvious things. Now if I could just figure out why my system locks and goes BBBBZZZZZZZZZZ through my speakers…