The Recovery Console is a feature of the Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 operating systems. It provides the means for administrators to perform a limited range of tasks using a command-line interface.
Its primary function is to enable administrators to recover from situations where Windows does not boot as far as presenting its graphical user interface. The recovery console is used to provide a way to access the hard drive in an emergency through the command prompt.
The Recovery Console can be accessed in two ways, either through the original installation media used to install Windows, or by installing it onto the hard drive and adding it to the NTLDR menu. However, the latter option is much more risky than the former one because it requires that the computer can boot to the point that NTLDR loads, or else the Recovery Console will not work at all.