Blue Screen

I am looking for tech help with an issue I am stuck with. I've got a Lenovo laptop and the hard drive went down with a SMART error. At first I was getting warnings about the error saying a failure was imminent. By the time I figured out what the hell a SMART error was I was getting the blue screen upon start up detailing a kernal stack error. OK, well I got another sata drive and loaded windows xp pro on it (same OS as on the orig drive). I got a freeware hd clone program to move over all my data with no success. If I connect the drive via a usb enclosure I can access all the data with no problem. I tried backing up from the old drive and restoring to the new drive and nothing. None of the drivers/network adapters are being recognized and I'm stuck. Can someone tell me what I am doing wrong? Thanks! Brian PS. if any of the blue screen verbiage or info is needed, please let me know, I'll add.

Hi, Maybe it would be best, having installed a brand new copy of Windows XP on your laptop just to copy your data across from your old drive using your external hard drive caddy. If this works Ok then there is no need to attempt to use the drive clone utility. I am assuming that you have installed the latest chipset drivers, video,audio, etc immediately after the fresh install of Windows ( Win Xp will attempt to install the correct drivers from its own data base), but the laptop manufacturer's latest drivers will usually be better. Post back with further information, if I have misunderstood your concerns. Regards paws

Thx for getting back paws… Well I tried that initially. or some reason the ntwk adapters are not being seen, only the 1394. Anyway, after installing windows on the new drive I put the old one in an enclosure and tried to do just that. The thing is, It's not just the data (pics, docs, media, etc) I'd like to move over but all my app & windows settings as well. So I first tried a back-up from the usb drive (70gig) to the new drive (120). I wasn't sure which back-up options to select and tried several methods unsuccessfully but eventually made a backup. I tried restoring from it to the new drive and restarted. Boot-up produced the same results. Still no adapters active, no sound. Task Manager shows minimal svcs running (17) and it's almost like safe mode. Tried booting via usb option with old drive there and got blue screen. So now I don't know what the heck to do.

Hi, It looks like your "image" that you took of the old drive is not working………possibly corrupt…( did you verify it when you made it"?)

The best plan is maybe to :

1 get your windows working correctly on the new drive ( do not connect to Internet)
2 Install chipset/vid/audio drivers (download if necessary on a chum's machine)
3 Install Applications from original disc or saved executables (install the oldest first…)
4 Ensure your 2 way software firewall and anti-virus/spyware products are included in 3 above
5 Connect to Internet but(do nothing other than to update Windows (critical updates only…. and your anti virus)
Report back and let us know how you go….
Regards
paws

Just so you'll know… I removed your other "identical" topic from General Hardware. That way all of your responses and the recommendations you receive will be consolidated in this thread. Best Regards, Doug

Sorry bout that Doug…

paws…. I will do that. Will the fact that the old drive is unbootable affect any attempt at a back-up? Will I be able to mirror all the settings I had before? I was under the impression that if I cloned the old drive that everything would be brought over as is. The old drive had a S.M.A.R.T. drive errors. No idea what that means. I tried the error-check app in properties and it didn't correct it. It's giving me a kernal stack error…what does that mean?

Hi the error you are getting is usually seen when either the hard drive is failing (the old hard drive) or sometimes when the RAM needs reseating or is damaged.
a.) It doesn't matter that your old drive is unbootable…if you can copy off your data do so as a matter of urgency…..if the drive is failing as is likely, then total and catastrophic failure could be imminent….just drag and drop or copy and paste the files across…

b.) Your understanding of the cloning process is correct ..it does bring everything across as an exact imitation or replica of the old drive, including drivers settings and data…….( mirror the old on to the new) but only when the clone (image) is correct…….your image or cloned disk is not working (its no good….) thats why you are having the problems with the new drive… and that's why you need to copy across your files and the settings you need.

c.) The "Smart"error and the Kernal Stack are also indicative of hard drive failure……..the evidence for this is building. See details on SMART here;
http://www.ariolic.com/activesmart/smart-technology.html

To sum up:
As your "image" or clone of the old hard drive is not reliable this would be collateral evidence that your old hard drive is/was failing.
If the clone of your old hard drive is no good ( and it does look as though its no good) then you will not be able to use it, so this is why your settings and applications have not "taken" on the new drive.
Its best for you to consider running steps 1 through 5 on my previous post……
When you access your old hard drive try to copy off everything you need in one operation…….it could fail completely without further warning.

Regards
paws