Windows XP Startup Failure

[NathanGErickson]

My Windows XP desktop startup gets stuck on the black screen with the
scrolling progress bar. The progress bar keeps scrolling but I never
get to the Logon screen.

I tried various restore points and they don't help. I can start it up
in Safe Mode or Safe Mode with Networking. When I had it up in safe
mode, I started looking through my devices in control panel, but no
obvious problems jumped out at me.

Does this sound like some piece of hardware went bad? If so, any tips
for figuring out which one so that I can try disabling it?

Thanks for any help.
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Rich Barry]

Nathan, if you can get it to load in Safe Mode then try a System Restore.
Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Restore. Just following
the Instructions and go back a few days if possible.

 

[NathanGErickson]

Thanks for your reply Rich. I did make a couple attempts at Restores
this afternoon but there is no change. I tried one restore point from
yesterday, and one from 5 days ago. Would that lead you to believe
that this may be a hardware failure? But it couldn't be a critical
hardware component because I can operate fairly well in Safemode. Any
other thoughts?

 

[Rich Barry]

Nathan, did you add a new program, device driver or make any changes to
your system
recently? If not, it could be hardware related. Disconnect all
unnecessary devices and
if no help you may want to try a Repair Install. Check here for further
info.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[NathanGErickson]

Rich. Thanks so much for your assistance. After a long afternoon of
plugging away at this, it magically started working. The fix was
likely one of two things. I dumped a ton of temporary internet files
and cookies, but at the same time I also disconnected all my extra
devices. That worked, so I swapped out some cables and reconnected my
devices and I'm still OK. So I can't say for sure which thing fixed
it, but I'm damn happy to be back in business.

Whatever they pay you for your work in this site, you've sure earned
it! (-8

--Nate

 

[Rich Barry]

Nathan, glad to be of help. Your reply was more than enough payment.
Happy Thanksgiving.