I suppose one could use the Hiren's bootable CD, which loads a stripped down win XP image. The CD has tools like most Linux rescue disks have, but there are limitations. I just don't seem to get as much done with it than I do with a Slax or Bactrack.

One problem running a windows session is if the machine's NTFS is infected it could alter the live image, too. It's possible a root kit, trojan or such could recognize the environment and defeat any attempts to recognize (let alone fix) it.

After having looked into Samsung's gaffe a little more I'm relieved. I doubt we'll see too many similar problems.

This incident makes me wistful for the days when the BIOS chip could be peeled off the mobo and replaced... a bricked UEFI system could be fixed in the field, simply, cheaply and swiftly, if the pertinent parts of the UEFI boot system were on a replaceable chip.