vista

[Guest]

I have an HP laptop with Vista, I purchased in April '07. My Vista keeps
going to startup repair option when booting up. It will stay on the 'Startup
repair is checking your system for problems...' screen
endlessly...'attempting repairs'. If I try to start normally it just gets to
enter user Windows password, then goes to blank screen. Nothing happens
after that. I have left both screens for hours to see if anything happens.
Vista was already installed on my laptop. The only cd I have with my laptop
paperwork is a Windows Upgrade Anytime cd. How can I correct this issue
without losing all my data? From what I've read, I may be able to repair with
the Vista installation cd. My Vista authenticity code label is on the back
of my computer. Should I have gotten an install cd? Is this what I need to
do? If so, where can I get the install cd to go with my laptop?

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Resolving Startup Problems in Windows Vista
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00899280&lc=en&cc=us&dlc=&product=3340210

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows Shell/User

---------------------------------------------------------------

I have an HP laptop with Vista, I purchased in April '07. My Vista keeps
going to startup repair option when booting up. It will stay on the 'Startup
repair is checking your system for problems...' screen
endlessly...'attempting repairs'. If I try to start normally it just gets to
enter user Windows password, then goes to blank screen. Nothing happens
after that. I have left both screens for hours to see if anything happens.
Vista was already installed on my laptop. The only cd I have with my laptop
paperwork is a Windows Upgrade Anytime cd. How can I correct this issue
without losing all my data? From what I've read, I may be able to repair with
the Vista installation cd. My Vista authenticity code label is on the back
of my computer. Should I have gotten an install cd? Is this what I need to
do? If so, where can I get the install cd to go with my laptop?

 

[Richard in AZ]

With HP, there was a program to run that would make you a set of "restore
disks", but if you can't access the computer now, that program is not
available. If you go to the HP support website and drill down to your
model, you may be able to purchase a set of restore disks. (A good
investment anyway). However all the HP restore disks I have worked with, do
not allow for the "Repair Install" that you want to do. They will put the
computer back to Factory Status and lose all of your data.

To save your data, you can remove your hard drive and mount it in an
external drive case, then read it from another computer.
With a laptop this is not really a novice task. (But any good - not a big
box store - repair shop should be able to do this.)
If you have a "geeky" friend, you may be able to get your data off using a
Linux CD Run software. These Linux programs run off the CD and most of
them can read your drive (even if Windows can not) and copy files to either
a CD-R or to a USB thumb drive. I have been able to recover most personal
files from a computer using these disks.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the site. It appears to cover all the possibilities and I tried
all listed. When I did the command prompt steps, it said it did not
recognize the bootrec command. I also tried taking the hard drive out and
reseating it. No change in the operation.
Should I have gotten a Vista install disk with my computer?
If I upgrade to Vista Ultimate and overwrite the Window files, do you think
this will work?

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Boot into "Safe Mode" and use System Restore
which is found by going to Start > All Programs >
Accessories > System Tools > System Restore

Chat support for HP products
http://welcome.hp.com/country/us/en/contact/chat_1.html

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows Shell/User

---------------------------------------------------------------

I have an HP laptop with Vista, I purchased in April '07. My Vista keeps
going to startup repair option when booting up. It will stay on the 'Startup
repair is checking your system for problems...' screen
endlessly...'attempting repairs'. If I try to start normally it just gets to
enter user Windows password, then goes to blank screen. Nothing happens
after that. I have left both screens for hours to see if anything happens.
Vista was already installed on my laptop. The only cd I have with my laptop
paperwork is a Windows Upgrade Anytime cd. How can I correct this issue
without losing all my data? From what I've read, I may be able to repair with
the Vista installation cd. My Vista authenticity code label is on the back
of my computer. Should I have gotten an install cd? Is this what I need to
do? If so, where can I get the install cd to go with my laptop?

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the info. Yes, my computer is beyond the restore option. I can't
get windows to open successfully to get there.

I will get someone to try and get my info off my hard drive. That would be
a life saver. I think my hard drive will be covered under warranty since it
is only 6 months old. My first priority is getting my data if possible. I
would still like to try and attempt this repair option using an install cd.
Do you know if you normally get a Windows install cd when the OS is already
installed on your computer when purchased?

Thank you again for the suggestions!

 

[Guest]

Will I lose any of my documents and such doing the restore?

 

[Andre Da Costa [ActiveWin]]

No

 

[Guest]

It will not come up in safe mode either.

No
--
Andre
Blog: http://adacosta.spaces.live.com
My Vista Quickstart Guide:
http://adacosta.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!E8E5CC039D51E3DB!9709.entry

 

[Guest]

My hard drive is bad. I should be covered under warranty with my laptop is
less than a year old.
Thanks for all the info.