Hard drive dead?

I have been working with Ken545 for a long time on my PC, but today he told me to post here. I will post exactly what I told him – please advise. My PC is doing some strange things, and I am unable to execute any of your latest instructions. I am communicating with you via an alternative computer. FIRST: When I turned on my computer today to deal with the Java & latest instructions you provided, I got the following error message (the screen was blue and the text was white): "A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. KERNEL_STACK_INPAGE_ERROR If this is the first time you've seen this stop error screen restart your computer. If this screen appears again, follow these steps: Check to make sure any new hardware or software is properly installed. If this is a new installation, ask your hardware or software manufacturer for any Windows updates you might need. If problems continue, disable or remove any newly installed hardware or software. Disable BIOS memory options such as caching or shadowing. If you need to use Safe Mode to remove or disable components, restart your computer, press F8 to select Advanced Startup options, and then select Safe Mode. Technical information: *** Stop: OxOOOOOO77 (OxOOOOOOO1, OxOO1OOOO3, OxOOOOOOOO, OxF14C2C4C) Beginning dump of physical memory PHysical memory dump complete. Contact your system administrator or technical support group for further assistance." THAT WAS THE FIRST THING THAT HAPPENED – THEN I HELD THE CPUS's POWER BUTTON & SHUT IT DOWN – THEN RESTARTED IT. Second: When it started up again, it went to a black screen with white text writing and gave me this message: "Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt: \WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM You can attempt to repair this file by starting Windows Setup using the original Setup CD-ROM. Select 'r' at the first screen to start repair." Then, while attempting to get online with this laptop that I hate to try to use (because it seems to have all plust more of the same problems that the PC seems to have), the screen on the PC went to complete black – nothing flashing – no screen saver – no prompt or mouse movement – nothing – just black – and the light on the CPU power button is still it up (on) so I know it didn't close down – the message just disappeared and it's nothing but a black screen, and that's where I've left it – I'm afraid to shut it down – I'm just plain afraid to touch it – please advise. (what an ongoing, growing nightmare this is.) Thanks. NOTE TO WINDOWS FORUM ADVISORS: Since my last post in the malware forum, I have shut the computer down; before I did, lots more weird things happened: it began flashing vertical pin-stripe-looking things (white on a black screen) with strange characters I can't identify – it went back and forth between this screen, and the familiar "hp invent" / "Intel Inside" logos screen – then it showed a screen that loked like a DOS screen that said "Reboot and Select proper Boot device or Insert Boot Media in selected . . . . " – then that screen disappeared before I was able to complete copying it. That's when I got nervous and shut it down.

Hi,sorry to hear of the problems you are experiencing…….. I will be frank……this does not look good… but I guess you know that already… 1 First thing is to check that your back up/copy/archive of everything that is important to you on this machine is 100% up to date, accurate, reproducible and kept safe on removable media, if there is anything at all that is important to you on the machine, that is not included in your latest back up then the first efforts should be to copy it off before you do anything else. If you need help with the procedures for this then post back. Once you are happy that you have protected your position then move on to the next steps: However it is possible that your machine has suffered hardware failure in which case the outlook is not good…. 2 The next step is to run chkdsk /r from the Recovery Console to see if this helps (assuming there is some life left in your computer!) try a Windows XP Installation disc for this, post back if you cannot see any signs of life in your machine…. 3 if there are "signs of life" but you can't get chkdsk /r to run please post back and tell us if you can get into the BIOS….. if so alter the boot priority to first CD/DVD, and second to Harddrive 0 ( it doesn't really matter about the rest!) Save the changes and exit….your machine should reboot…… it might reboot with errors, post back with your findings and we will take it from there. Regards paws

Hi Paws, and PurpleMelee.

I would just like to point out one more thing here, and I think it would be best to do BEFORE the chkdsk /r from recovery console.

PurpleMelee - you suggested that your screen was giving strange characters, weird stripes, etc. This suggests a memory problem - probably a bad connection. This could be the root of all your issues, which could lead to more corruption if you try other things before repairing this problem.

Please read here: http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?showtopic=103823

Use a good computer to make the memory diagnostic boot disc, then perform the procedures in the article to test your memory and reseat it if necessary, or replace if bad.

After you get no more memory errors, run the chkdsk /r command as suggested by Paws which will probably repair the problem in the registry, or identify if you are having a hard drive failure problem also.

In case you need more information about getting to recovery console and running chkdsk /r, read here: http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?showtopic=95574

NOTE: While you have the computer's case open, you should look for dirty heatsinks and clogged or non-spinning fans, and for leaking or bulging capacitors.

Hi guys – thanks to both of you for posting such great advice – I think at this point it is waaaayyy beyond me – do you think I could be better off taking it to someone? Do you guys have someone (preferably a private techie) you can refer me to in the Phoenix metropolitan area? (Data Doctors, Best Buy, Staples, Geeks on Call, etc. – all the commercial computer repairs are a ripoff and a racquet and I won't have anything to do with them.) NOTES: 1) If you read anything in mine and Ken's postings, you would know that all the trouble began when I switched from broadband to wifi, and further, more noticeable damage occurred when I got a huge bunch of hp printer updates. 2) When I unhooked from broadband on May 10, 2010, and rehooked up to wifi (with a computer stick I bought for $49 from Wal-Mart because my PC was not wifi compatible), I was never again able to make my backup book-thing hook up – or communicate wiht the PC. So all the backup I have, safe and sound, is from May 10 (which is great news, but also bad b/c I don't have all the valuable stuff I need from between then and now). 3) Since I'm worried about all the bugs and viruses, etc. that were invading my dead PC, I'm also worried that anything I do to attempt to follow your directions to backup (given we could find a way to make the backup book-thing to hook up to the PC), might compromise what's already on the backup book-thing that might not be compromised; hence, part of the reason I'm thinking I should go find a techie service person to deal with this for me. 4) Do you really think I can do the things you instruct, or do you think it's time to seek personal, live, in-person help? THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR DEDICATION TO HELPING!

In reality, the procedures that have been instructed to you are pretty much basic maintenance, and should be done periodically anyways. Those items include cleaning the case, testing memory for bad connections, and checking your file system and hard drive for trouble as well as inspecting various components in the computer for noticeable problems such as dead fans or leaking capacitors. So, no, I don't think they require such a high level of expertise that the average person cannot perform them. I agree that you should not touch your backup drive. Leave the data there, do not hook it up. If there is other very important data not backed up, then I would suggest that you consider professional help because we cannot be assured that any of the procedures we have recommended will not compound a problem. We are unable to look over your shoulder, nor physically examine your computer so any number of problems could be present that we don't know about. In addition, a professional service company will have tools better equipped to quickly extract necessary data from your hard drive in case that it is failing. We are merely suggesting some basic procedures to test the components in your computer and hopefully pin point some common problems that can be experienced. If you are uncomfortable with the procedures, then again, you should probably seek some professional assistance. I agree that the "big box" companies are a rip-off. I have personally called, and recorded several conversations with these companies exposing their incompetence and extravagant pricing structures. Your best bet is to find a small, locally based company in your area that has some decent reviews, or ask around to family and friends for references. Don't be afraid to ask some tough questions and find out if they stand behind their work with some guarantees or warranties, how long they have been in business, how long they will take to repair your computer, etc. Repair services should not be shopped by price alone.