Author Topic: PC Laptop Mayday!!!  (Read 9005 times)

Offline StereoNut

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PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« on: August 10, 2014, 09:01:24 PM »
Help!  I don't know what to do with this, especially since I don't have a boot up disk for this laptop.  (See screen-grab attached.)

Is their a keyboard sequence that I can use on a re-start to overcome this!?!

Please advise.
SN
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Offline sleepyguy24

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #1 on: August 10, 2014, 09:23:45 PM »
Evening

Check out this thread.

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/512313/on-start-up-computer-tells-me-no-bootable-device-insert-boot-disk/

Re-start the laptop and either hold the F8 key or press it repeatedly during the start-up. You can hopefully then re-start the laptop in Safe Mode.

Is the battery of the laptop in question quite old? Sometimes that can be the key. A fresh fully charged battery can stop these blue screens of doom sometimes.

I hope you aren't having a hard drive problem.


Offline BobM

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #2 on: August 11, 2014, 10:20:21 AM »
Might be worthwhile to run some tests and checks on the hard drive once you get it to boot properly. Try this, to start ...

1. Open My Computer by double-clicking on the icon on the desktop.
 
2. Right-click on the drive letter that you wish to check for errors (usually C:) and click on the Properties menu item.
 
3. Choose the Tools tab and click on the Check Now... button.
 
4. Two options are available in the next window:
 Automatically fix file system errors will correct many file system errors detected. This is highly recommended.
  
 Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors will perform a search for areas of the hard drive that may be damaged or unusable. If found, this tool will mark those areas as "bad" and prevent your computer from using them in the future. This is a very useful feature but may extend the scan time as much as a few hours.
 
5. Click Start.
 
6. Allow the Error Checking program to run its course until complete.
 
7. Restart the PC if prompted to do so.
 
Then you can go to one of these ...

 Scandisk - Users running Microsoft Windows who're still able to get into Windows can utilize the already installed disk checking tool Scandisk to find and repair any errors on their hard drive.
 Chkdsk - Another Windows command line utility to test the hard drive. If you're unable to boot into Windows, boot from the Windows CD enter the recovery console and run: chkdsk /f to fix errors.
 TestDisk - Fantastic free and open source utility to test and fix different hard drive errors.
 Seagate SeaTools - Fantastic and free program that is used to test all computer hard drives.
 HDD health - Another great program that utilizes S.M.A.R.T technology to display a hard drive's statistics, such as the temperature of the drive, it's overall health, and every other SMART attribute.
« Last Edit: August 11, 2014, 10:22:32 AM by BobM »
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Offline StereoNut

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #3 on: August 11, 2014, 10:29:01 AM »
Thanks, Bob!
"Friends, Romans & Countrymen; lend me your ears"

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Offline richidoo

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #4 on: August 11, 2014, 11:00:03 AM »
http://forums.toshiba.com/t5/General-Troubleshooting/Intel-UNDI-PXE-2-1-build-083-Error-on-start-up/td-p/339080

Try to boot into safe mode as Sleepy said, by tapping F8 once per second after BIOS starts, choose Safe mode no networking, or even Safe mode DOS.  If you can't get anything to run from the HD, then burn this to a bootable format (flash USB or CD-R) and run the hard drive test.
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

One failure mode for hard drives is the platter bearing fails, letting the platter wobble. Wow and flutter ya know...  When a hard drive loses its mechanical location ability it will write good data in the wrong place, then the OS gets hosed, end of story.

New laptop might be the wisest choice. Lenovos are good, but so are Toshiba. I hope you didn't lose any valuable data Bill.

Offline tmazz

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #5 on: August 11, 2014, 11:11:00 AM »
These are all good ideas.... once he is able to get the computer to boot. Butthe immediate problem is that the machine is failing at the bios level and never getting started. First things first he needs to somehow get the machine to recognise some kind of boot device and then from there he can look into all of these suggested trouble-shooting programs.

Too bad Jerome is not still around, this kind of thing would have been right up his alley.
Remember, it's all about the music........

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Offline richidoo

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #6 on: August 11, 2014, 12:14:44 PM »
The BIOS is working. It is able to load UNDI (whatever that is) and the network card, then fails to find a bootable drive, because the hard drive does not respond to BIOS.  Then it recognizes the failure and tries again.  If there were a bootable USB drive installed it would boot to that. Might have to set BIOS to boot to USB, but it should try everything on the list before giving up. I may have stopped trying after it sensed error on HD. In that case, you have to change the boot device order in BIOS, so that it will try the USB drive before it tries the broken HD and gets stuck.

You might want to reseat the hard drive connections by removing and inserting it a couple times to clean the contact pins. Very unlikely to help, but the controller did suggest check cable, so worth a shot.

Newegg has drives for $50, and Windows 7 for $100.

Offline StereoNut

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #7 on: August 11, 2014, 12:52:07 PM »
Yo Richidoo, welcome back home!  I appreciate the suggestions that everyone has made so far, but the best thing I can do right now is go visit Tmazz tonight and have him take a look at it! :roll:

Luckily, it was a machine used mostly for surfing the www and to run PC based programs for my wife's school stuff that won't run on Mac.  Let's see if Tom can do a Vulcan Mind Meld with it tonight and get it running!?! :rofl:
"Friends, Romans & Countrymen; lend me your ears"

• Primaluna Dialogue Tube Pre-Amp
• N.Y.A.L. Moscode 600 Amp
• Bolder/EE Minimax DAC
• Cambridge D-500SE CDP
• Von Schweikert 2012 Mod.VR-4 Gen.III speakers
• VPI Prime/Soundsmith MMP3/DV20x2H
• T.W.L

Offline tmazz

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #8 on: August 11, 2014, 01:06:58 PM »
The BIOS is working. It is able to load UNDI (whatever that is) and the network card, then fails to find a bootable drive, because the hard drive does not respond to BIOS.  Then it recognizes the failure and tries again.  If there were a bootable USB drive installed it would boot to that. Might have to set BIOS to boot to USB, but it should try everything on the list before giving up. I may have stopped trying after it sensed error on HD. In that case, you have to change the boot device order in BIOS, so that it will try the USB drive before it tries the broken HD and gets stuck.

You might want to reseat the hard drive connections by removing and inserting it a couple times to clean the contact pins. Very unlikely to help, but the controller did suggest check cable, so worth a shot.

Newegg has drives for $50, and Windows 7 for $100.

I agree that the BIOS itself is working, but the machine is hitting the failure point somewhere before the bios finishes it's self checks and releases the machine. Bill is going to bring to over to me tonight and my plan is to look at just the kind of things you are talking about.
Remember, it's all about the music........

• Nola Boxers
• Sunfire True SW Super Jr (2)
• McIntosh MC 275
• ARC SP-9
• VPI HW-19 Mk IV/SDS/SME IV/Soundsmith Carmen Mk II ES
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Offline Nick B

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #9 on: August 11, 2014, 01:14:28 PM »
The BIOS is working. It is able to load UNDI (whatever that is) and the network card, then fails to find a bootable drive, because the hard drive does not respond to BIOS.  Then it recognizes the failure and tries again.  If there were a bootable USB drive installed it would boot to that. Might have to set BIOS to boot to USB, but it should try everything on the list before giving up. I may have stopped trying after it sensed error on HD. In that case, you have to change the boot device order in BIOS, so that it will try the USB drive before it tries the broken HD and gets stuck.

You might want to reseat the hard drive connections by removing and      inserting it a couple times to clean the contact pins. Very unlikely to help, but the controller did suggest check cable, so worth a shot.

Newegg has drives for $50, and Windows 7 for $100.

Hey Rich    
It's great to have you back. How did you ever escape from the Morlocks??  :clap:
Nick
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Offline richidoo

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #10 on: August 11, 2014, 01:32:22 PM »
Candy...  ;)


Have fun tonight, guys.

Offline Emil

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #11 on: August 11, 2014, 01:56:29 PM »
Bill
Bring this with you

"Today I didn't even have to use my A.K.
I got to say it was a good day"
    --Ice Cube

Offline StereoNut

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #12 on: August 11, 2014, 02:21:24 PM »
You're killing me, Emil!  :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
"Friends, Romans & Countrymen; lend me your ears"

• Primaluna Dialogue Tube Pre-Amp
• N.Y.A.L. Moscode 600 Amp
• Bolder/EE Minimax DAC
• Cambridge D-500SE CDP
• Von Schweikert 2012 Mod.VR-4 Gen.III speakers
• VPI Prime/Soundsmith MMP3/DV20x2H
• T.W.L

Offline tmazz

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Re: PC Laptop Mayday!!!
« Reply #13 on: August 11, 2014, 05:56:43 PM »
Bill
Bring this with you



Not big enough.......
Remember, it's all about the music........

• Nola Boxers
• Sunfire True SW Super Jr (2)
• McIntosh MC 275
• ARC SP-9
• VPI HW-19 Mk IV/SDS/SME IV/Soundsmith Carmen Mk II ES
• Pro-Ject Pre Box S2 DAC/Rasp Pi Roon Endpoint
• DigiBuss/TWL PC&USB/MIT Cables