Anybody else have this problem?

[Chief Tony]

Windows XP will not start at all,even in safe mode.Anybody know anything about about how to fix it before I take it to a pro?

 

[The Brain]

Yeah... you try last known good. If that doesn't work you can try to do a repair install. If that doesn't work you're pretty much fucked. If you have the available space you can reinstall XP on top of itself to recover the files, but in the end you're gonna have to reformat.

PS... I'm a professional. If you want proof I'll charge you for what I just offered.

 

[Thelt]

Do you have a start up disk? You might be able to use that to get going.

 

[mathmajors]

Could be a bad sector.

Use the install CD to access the recovery console, then run chkdsk /r. Keep running it until it reports no errors. Type 'exit' and boot into safe mode, then reboot into normal mode.

Just did this the other day when our building lost power and almost fucked over one of our admin PC's. No repair, no rebuild.

 

[mathmajors]

Then again, if the BIOS isn't seeing the hard drive in the first place...

 

[The Brain]

Then again, if the BIOS isn't seeing the hard drive in the first place...

I had one of those the other day, but oddly enough it was a digital camera that was fucking it up.

But from looking at his problem description I don't think this is the issue. If his Bios couldn't see the HD he would've never gotten to the prompt to load in Safe Mode. That's why I also think its not a Disk issue.

 

[PantherMills]

Try to turn off all peripherals and then try to boot. I've got an epson printer and when it's on, the computer will not boot. I'm sure there is a fix, but it's easier to turn the printer off.

 

[mathmajors]

But from looking at his problem description I don't think this is the issue. If his Bios couldn't see the HD he would've never gotten to the prompt to load in Safe Mode. That's why I also think its not a Disk issue.

Right. I didn't reread it before putting up that 2nd comment. Could still be a surface error, though.

 

[kickazzz2000]

I have a dud computer that just stopped booting one day.

I ended up getting a new computer but would really like all my shit that was on the old one ((irreplacable) photos, (replaceable) pron, etc).

What if I took the drive and installed it as a slave in a working machine? Could I recover the stuff that I want? The recovery disk didnt work.

 

[mathmajors]

I have a dud computer that just stopped booting one day.

I ended up getting a new computer but would really like all my shit that was on the old one ((irreplacable) photos, (replaceable) pron, etc).

What if I took the drive and installed it as a slave in a working machine? Could I recover the stuff that I want? The recovery disk didnt work.

Prolly.