System32 Error...help!

Technical Support Forum

I tried turning on my Laptop yesterday and got a black screen, it shows the DOS logon then a message reading:
Windows cannot start up because the Windows/system/config/system32 file is corrupted or missing. I read online that someone else had this problem and it continued even AFTER wiping everything out and reinstalling the OS.

Any Suggestions? Is this a virus? Am I doomed?