Why is my Server 2008/Vista installation missing NTLDR?

A. This is good news. Vista and later no longer use the old boot files, such as NTLDR, boot.ini, and ntdetect.com. Instead, the system reads the hidden Bootmgr file--on the root of the active partition--and uses content from the boot folder and the Boot Configuration Database (BCD), which contains information about the OSs available on the machine.

If you receive error messages on boot about a missing NTLDR file, your boot sector probably has problems and should be fixed with the recovery option on the Server 2008/Vista media. You can use the Fix Startup Environment option or use the Recovery Environment and manually run the Bootrec /fixboot command.