50 replies to this topic

[HMH22]

I just wanted to make sure but if my computer ends up crashing you cant do anything about it right? It happened so fast I saw the blue screen come up then i quickly turned off my computer but then the next day when i went to turn it on it would come to the start normally black screen or safemode and i clicked start normally but, then it would be just blank so i think my computer has crashed.

[Nahumi]

Hey HMH22,

If it looked something like this :



Then yes, your computer crashed. Normally Windows will create a minidump file which lets you find out what went wrong. You may have stopped that by shutting the computer down, though.

It's a bit odd that you just get a blank screen. Can you get into Windows at all, or does it just stay blank?

[HMH22]

Hi sorry it took me a while to post I thought someone had deleted it and was not sure where to look. To answer your question yes I saw that blue screen and when I saw it I shut down the computer. Then the next morning I turned it back onI got as far as the black screen with the options to start windows normally or in safe mode I did normally and It went to the Microsoft window screen where its bringing it up but then it went to a blank screen. I turned it off again and the next time I tried to bring it back up it did the same thing. I did it once more the next day after and all I hear is a loud beeping sound and it will show the acer screen on the moniter and then it stays blank with the beeping sound..

[Nahumi]

Okay, that doesn't sound too promising. Could you give me the model and make of your PC and any specifications that you know, including which version of Windows you are using? In the mean time, try starting the PC again and see if it goes back to the startup options screen. If it does, select Safe Mode instead and see if that works. Once I know what your computer is I'll be able to help you a bit better. Nahumi

[HMH22]

Ok I will try. The computer model is Acer Aspire T690 and its Windows Vista. What other info do you need?

[HMH22]

Ok i turned it back on and it says Windows did not shut down successfully. If this was due to the system not responding, or if the system was shut down to protect data, you might be able to to recover by choosing one of the safe mode configurations from the menu below: Safe Mode Safe Mode with Networking Safe Mode with Command Prompt Start Windows Normally

[HMH22]

Ok i turned it back on and it says Windows did not shut down successfully. If this was due to the system not responding, or if the system was shut down to protect data, you might be able to to recover by choosing one of the safe mode configurations from the menu below: Safe Mode Safe Mode with Networking Safe Mode with Command Prompt Start Windows Normally Which one do I choose?

[Nahumi]

Choose "Safe Mode with Networking". If it boots, go to file explorer and head to C:\Windows\Minidump In that folder there should be a file called Minidump.dmp . If you've had crashed before, it will have the date of the crash in the file name. Copy the file with the latest date and attach it to your next post. From that I'll be able to find out what went wrong. If you get that far, just restart your computer and see if it boots up normally. Now that I have a rough idea of what computer you have, I can talk you through some simple steps to try and bring your PC back to life if it still doesn't boot properly. If the worst comes to the worst, please have the original Acer recovery disk at hand. Also make a note of the 25 digit alphanumeric code on the Microsoft Windows sticker which should be somewhere on your computer case. Hopefully we won't have to do a full recovery.

[HMH22]

Ok it booted up which account do i go on my account or administrative account?

[Nahumi]

Great! I suggest going into the administrative account, just so that you don't run into any problems with access privileges. Also as another little note. If you find you can't connect to the internet to post the minidump file, you could just copy the file to a USB stick and post it from your second computer.

[Nahumi]

I just got reminded by Doug that the continuous beeping could be a sign of overheating, which would explain why Windows is refusing the load under normal circumstances. So, to check that nothing is about to catch fire, please have a look at at the back of the computer while it is running. There should be a fan in the Power Unit that is pushing air out. Just place your hand in front of the grill and see if you can feel a breeze. Do the same for any other fans on the back of the case. If you can feel air being pushed out, please restart the computer. When the Acer screen comes up press either Del or F12 to enter the BIOS menu. From there you should be able to see some temperatures under Environmental Variables, or something similar. You may have to navigate around the BIOS a bit to find these by using your arrow keys. Please let me know what the temperatures are before we go any further.

Edited by Nahumi, 04 April 2010 - 01:00 PM.

[HMH22]

Hi ok im not on the administrative account it is not showing right now do u want me to bring it up or do it on the main account we use. Im already logged on to the main one and I brought up the minidump file to copy it will i need to open the file or you just want me to right click nd copy the file name?

[Nahumi]

Before we go any further, has the continuous beeping stopped? Or is it still going when in Safe Mode?

[HMH22]

No it has stopped. : )

[Nahumi]

Okay, that's good. Just right click the minidump file and click copy. Then paste it to your desktop so that you can get to it easily. Click "Add Reply" at the bottom of this screen, instead of "Fast Reply", and next to 'Select a file' click on the "Choose File" button. Choose the minidump file and click upload. Then just submit your message as usual. Whilst I have a quick look at the file, please go to your Start Menu. In the search box type "cmd", without the quotation marks, and hit enter. You should see Command Prompt pop up. Simply type "chkdsk", without the quotation marks, and hit enter. This test may take a few minutes to complete but it will let us know if your hard drive is working properly. If it doesn't come up with any errors, then we can start trying to find and rectify any other problems your computer may have.

Edited by Nahumi, 04 April 2010 - 01:43 PM.