CPU problems

[MrCleveland]

I had my computer for 10 months now, but it won't even reboot...what the hell is wrong with it?

[robyrob]

what does it do exactly?

can you boot into Safemode?

how's your warranty?


- if you can boot into Safemode, it is probably a software problem; depending on how far it gets, it could be a driver problem, malware or something in Windows is corrupted

this simplest thing to do would be to boot into Safemode, back-up all your stuff, then either use the disks that came with your computer or the instructions to run off the hard drive to run the system recovery - this will wipe everything on the hard drive and put the system back to the way it was when you first got it.

- if it won't even boot into Safemode, it is probably a hardware problem; your best bet would be to call the manufacturer and see what the next steps are to get them to fix it.

[MrCleveland]

I can't even start it with Safe Mode!

[robyrob]

Originally Posted by MrCleveland

I can't even start it with Safe Mode!

then you need to get on the phone with the computer manufacturer, because its probably a hardware problem - it should still be under warranty if its less than a year old

[MrCleveland]

^I already did it cost me $70, but I'm worried that I'll lose everything on my computer including my files.

Fortunately, I'm only Christmas Shopping for my brother this year. My sister doesn't have the time because of the baby and my parents don't have the money...not even to pay the bills.

Yes...my family could use a lot of prayers.

[robyrob]

well, you could download a Linux live cd like Knoppix, boot to that and then transfer your files onto a usb flash drive or external hard drive - it shouldn't be too difficult if you go slow and easy

[robyrob]

...out of curiousity, which pc manufacturer charged you $70 for in-warranty hardware support?

that should be free.

[MrCleveland]

Guess what...I got a call from Staples and they said that the hard drive can't be recovered. So I knew everything will be gone on there!

Then thry can have the ****ing computer if they can't salvage anything!

[robyrob]

that sucks man, unfortunately hard drives do occasionally fail (to be honest they ALL fail eventually)

probably doesn't help to hear it now, but it really pays to back your stuff up regularly - i lost a hard drive a few months back and it really pissed me off because I had an older version of a program on there that is no longer available which requires activation from the developer - which means i can install it but the program won't run unless the developer "approves" it with a registration; I even offered to buy the most current version of the program if they'd activate it, but no dice.

since then I have started using a large external hard drive and the FREE version of Easeus DiskCopy - i can backup the entire hard drive partition and restore the entire working operating system onto a new hard drive if one fails - I actually used it to install a new drive in my wife's computer and it worked flawlessly (of course we've now switched her over to Windows 7 64-bit so she doesn't use that one anymore - I have to wipe that drive so she can use it for free space when i get a chance).

- anyways, you can back-up as many partitions as you want onto the external drive, so you can protect all computers on there for just the price of an external drive and a little elbow grease

[MrCleveland]

I still dunno if it can be recovered...It seems to be a virus problem...and I'm considering to make a gift for my brother now.

[robyrob]

well, a bad virus problem can definitely be tricky - it would mean that the hardware is probably OK, but so badly messed up that it would be inaccessible

the above suggestion of booting to the Linux disk would probably work to get the files off, but you would have to be 100% certain that none of those files are infected before you put them back on your system after rebuilding the operating system.

[MrCleveland]

^I may do that, Staples right now is trying to recover what they can, but the hard drive crashes every 15 minutes and it might die-out on them...if that's the case and NOTHING can be salvageed...then they can have the computer! hno:hno:hno:

[robyrob]

man they are going to destroy it doing that. - and it can't be just a virus if that is what it is doing.

you can try it yourself (don't know how much they are charging you) - get your hands on one of those desiccant packages from when you buy stuff (can't think of anything that would have one right now, I just always try to keep one in my tool box) put it and the hard drive in a ziplock bag and suck all the air out with a straw and seal it tightly. put in the freezer for a day then get your hands on usb hard drive adapter kit like this one: http://www.amazon.com/eForCity-USB-S...ref=pd_cp_pc_3 - then you can plug the hard drive in to another computer and copy everything off of it - just make sure you have it set-up somewhere safe, stable and away from static.

if it starts to get hot it will start crashing again, so it might not be a bad idea to have a fan blowing near it, again be careful with it.

[MrCleveland]

First off...**** Staples! They aren't easy! Second...my Hard Drive is now dead and I don't have ANY money to get a new one. Third...I actually found an external SATA drive in my desk. I'll find another throwaway computer at my church and use that.