I have been struggling with this issue for a week or more now.

I have done a clean install(many, many many clean installs, clearing db and install and reboots inbetween) of DNN 4.9. (I had to do an auto install with the wizard, as it would not let me past the Database Connection Screen).  The database has tables and records in them, so database connection appears to have worked OK.

System is Windows server 2003, SQL Server 2008 Express, IIS 6.

I can browse to localhost/dotnetnuke/default.aspx, and it brings up the default portal home page, but only after an error on Line 44 - Object Expected.  On debugging this points to a line of code in the Search.js file in the initSearch function:

var searchInfo - $get('SearchInfo')

If I ignore the error and click on the login button, I see the same error and nothing happens 9ie no logion page appears, the default page reappers with a new session id in the URL string)

if I try putting the ?ctl=login on the URL, i getthe same JScript error, but the login page appears.  But when enetering username: admin and password: dnnadmin - again nothing happens other than the change in the session id string in the URL.

Please help.