Computer won't work - Page 2

clowns789 · 2003-07-11, 03:59

That was good, but how do I fix it?

dsouza123 · 2003-07-11, 19:13

From previous posts are questions to determine the state of the harddisk.

What drives are available ?
Was the hard drive partioned into multiple logical drives ?
Example C: D: E:

Are you able to do dir c:\windows and get a listing of files ?

I am guessing you don't have any backups.

If the drive is physically damaged in certain spots (area needed to boot) the best case is rescuing some files from the drive and formating it to be a non bootable drive ( using it as a second hard drive ) and getting a new hard drive, formating it, and installing Win95 or some other OS (operating system).

If the damage is less severe or the areas are just erased or corrupted,
the drive can be reformatted and Win95 reinstalled.

If just erased by a malicious program or virus (there are certain viruses that wipe out the MBR (master boot record) by overwriting it with garbage) there are techniques to recover from it (creates new MBR).
Then the issue is to wipe out the virus ( dos based anti virus program)
or starting in safe-mode and disabling/removing programs that start when windows boots up, found in certain registry entries and .ini files and certain directories and even in certain files config.sys autoexec.bat.

If you were able to get a directory of C:\WINDOWS
and you rescued any files you could, did you try
the steps in a previous post that included

SET
C:
CD \WINDOWS
WIN /D:M

? What was the result ?

I haven't mentioned scandisk yet, because once you use it there is a very strong possibility most of the files will be lost/scrambled and turned into new files containing the lost file fragments joined together.

Scandisk can fix some problems if a spot is minimally damaged it can
move the data from that spot to another but that is usually just the case
when trying to access some file while using windows and it can't be accessed ( error reading drive c: ).

If you are able to start in safe-mode and it was a virus causing the problems then eradicating it and replacing (if needed) some programs that make up Windows will solve your problem.

If it is extensive physical damage to certain critical spots on the hard disk then rescuing the files that you can and formating it as a second hard disk is the best case.

There are just cases where getting a new hard disk is the only solution.

clowns789 · 2003-07-11, 20:23

How do I do Scandisk on C? I'm not sure if I can do it on that one but I did it successfully on the A drive on the broken computer. So that's a little hope, and what about safe mode?

dsouza123 · 2003-07-11, 22:23

scandisk c: /checkonly
will do a test scan (various things) to find out what errors are on the drive

scandisk c: /autofix
will do a scan of parts of disk testing for FAT, directory structure and the file system integrity to try to fix the errors on the drive.

scandisk c: /surface
will do a surface scan which tests all the spots on the drive for physical errors, can take a long time.
---------------------

Description of switches.

Switch: /checkonly
Function: Checks a drive, but does not repair any damage.

Switch: /autofix
Function: Fixes damage without prompting.

Switch: /nosave
Function: With /autofix, deletes lost clusters rather than saving as files.

Switch: /surface
Function: Performs a surface scan after other checks.

Have you been able to do a DIR C:\WINDOWS to see if the drive is still accessable ?

SCANDISK.EXE has to be copied onto the floppy because it isn't put on during the format for a bootable floppy disk.

Windows safe-mode is when windows has problems and it disables many things so windows can be fixed without loading problem software or being recognized or special drivers being used in the case of hardware.

It is a testing and diagnostic mode of running Windows.

WIN /D:M

clowns789 · 2003-07-12, 02:02

It could not access C or D for scanning and it said that D:M was an invalid switch.

dsouza123 · 2003-07-12, 15:27

The switch ( parameter ) is /D:M for WIN.COM , the program that starts windows.

Were you able to get into the windows directory on C: or any directory on drive C:

dsouza123 · 2003-07-12, 16:11

May be a physical connection issue.

Check the power and data cable to the hard drive.

Before going any further, have you checked to see if the hard disk is still physically connected ( drive power cable plugged in, drive data cable plugged in ) sometimes they get loose or fail, the data cable could be loose at either end, the power cable where it plugs into the drive).
Sometimes a power cable goes bad ( one or more of the 4 wires is dislodged and stops making contact ) so try a different power cable.

Does the hard drive light go on or flash ? There is usually a light that goes on when the hard drive is being accessed.

On some older computers the bios couldn't automatically get the drive type if the CMOS battery died, ( the way to tell is if doing DATE brings up an old date ( 5 or more years ago ) ) it would default to a very small incompatible drive type.

May be a hard drive failure.

Also possible is the hard drive had a failure of a component and no longer works. A circuit or discrete electronic component could have failed.
Unless you can repair electronic devices it is trash.

clowns789 · 2003-07-12, 16:25

I was doing GIMPS one day and when I turned on the screen for the first time in a few hours there was a blue screen and it asked to restart or wait and I chose to wait but then it was stuck black and when I turned it off and then on, this started.

outlnder · 2003-07-12, 17:51

Hard drive crash?

dsouza123 · 2003-07-12, 18:47

It is critical to first find out if the data and power cable are working and properly connected and if they are, that the hard drive is still working.

Unless the physical connection issues and basic functionality are determined, ( Cables OK, Hard drive OK ) the other software tests aren't an issue.

If the hard drive ( for whatever reason ) isn't functioning, the software tests are not going to matter.

Check the physical issues.

Until you do I can't determine how to help.

It is like a car with cables disconnected or no fuel and trying to start the car, the basics have to be checked first.

clowns789 · 2003-07-13, 21:49

Are physical issues even possible? I mean, it was when the computer was running well.

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2003-07-11, 03:59	#12
clowns789 Jun 2003 The Computer 401 Posts	That was good, but how do I fix it?

2003-07-11, 19:13	#13
dsouza123 Sep 2002 2·331 Posts	From previous posts are questions to determine the state of the harddisk. What drives are available ? Was the hard drive partioned into multiple logical drives ? Example C: D: E: Are you able to do dir c:\windows and get a listing of files ? I am guessing you don't have any backups. If the drive is physically damaged in certain spots (area needed to boot) the best case is rescuing some files from the drive and formating it to be a non bootable drive ( using it as a second hard drive ) and getting a new hard drive, formating it, and installing Win95 or some other OS (operating system). If the damage is less severe or the areas are just erased or corrupted, the drive can be reformatted and Win95 reinstalled. If just erased by a malicious program or virus (there are certain viruses that wipe out the MBR (master boot record) by overwriting it with garbage) there are techniques to recover from it (creates new MBR). Then the issue is to wipe out the virus ( dos based anti virus program) or starting in safe-mode and disabling/removing programs that start when windows boots up, found in certain registry entries and .ini files and certain directories and even in certain files config.sys autoexec.bat. If you were able to get a directory of C:\WINDOWS and you rescued any files you could, did you try the steps in a previous post that included SET C: CD \WINDOWS WIN /D:M ? What was the result ? I haven't mentioned scandisk yet, because once you use it there is a very strong possibility most of the files will be lost/scrambled and turned into new files containing the lost file fragments joined together. Scandisk can fix some problems if a spot is minimally damaged it can move the data from that spot to another but that is usually just the case when trying to access some file while using windows and it can't be accessed ( error reading drive c: ). If you are able to start in safe-mode and it was a virus causing the problems then eradicating it and replacing (if needed) some programs that make up Windows will solve your problem. If it is extensive physical damage to certain critical spots on the hard disk then rescuing the files that you can and formating it as a second hard disk is the best case. There are just cases where getting a new hard disk is the only solution.

2003-07-11, 20:23	#14
clowns789 Jun 2003 The Computer 401 Posts	How do I do Scandisk on C? I'm not sure if I can do it on that one but I did it successfully on the A drive on the broken computer. So that's a little hope, and what about safe mode?

2003-07-11, 22:23	#15
dsouza123 Sep 2002 2×331 Posts	scandisk c: /checkonly will do a test scan (various things) to find out what errors are on the drive scandisk c: /autofix will do a scan of parts of disk testing for FAT, directory structure and the file system integrity to try to fix the errors on the drive. scandisk c: /surface will do a surface scan which tests all the spots on the drive for physical errors, can take a long time. --------------------- Description of switches. Switch: /checkonly Function: Checks a drive, but does not repair any damage. Switch: /autofix Function: Fixes damage without prompting. Switch: /nosave Function: With /autofix, deletes lost clusters rather than saving as files. Switch: /surface Function: Performs a surface scan after other checks. Have you been able to do a DIR C:\WINDOWS to see if the drive is still accessable ? SCANDISK.EXE has to be copied onto the floppy because it isn't put on during the format for a bootable floppy disk. Windows safe-mode is when windows has problems and it disables many things so windows can be fixed without loading problem software or being recognized or special drivers being used in the case of hardware. It is a testing and diagnostic mode of running Windows. WIN /D:M

2003-07-12, 02:02	#16
clowns789 Jun 2003 The Computer 401₁₀ Posts	It could not access C or D for scanning and it said that D:M was an invalid switch.

2003-07-12, 15:27	#17
dsouza123 Sep 2002 2×331 Posts	The switch ( parameter ) is /D:M for WIN.COM , the program that starts windows. Were you able to get into the windows directory on C: or any directory on drive C:

2003-07-12, 16:11	#18
dsouza123 Sep 2002 2×331 Posts	May be a physical connection issue. Check the power and data cable to the hard drive. Before going any further, have you checked to see if the hard disk is still physically connected ( drive power cable plugged in, drive data cable plugged in ) sometimes they get loose or fail, the data cable could be loose at either end, the power cable where it plugs into the drive). Sometimes a power cable goes bad ( one or more of the 4 wires is dislodged and stops making contact ) so try a different power cable. Does the hard drive light go on or flash ? There is usually a light that goes on when the hard drive is being accessed. On some older computers the bios couldn't automatically get the drive type if the CMOS battery died, ( the way to tell is if doing DATE brings up an old date ( 5 or more years ago ) ) it would default to a very small incompatible drive type. May be a hard drive failure. Also possible is the hard drive had a failure of a component and no longer works. A circuit or discrete electronic component could have failed. Unless you can repair electronic devices it is trash.

2003-07-12, 16:25	#19
clowns789 Jun 2003 The Computer 401 Posts	I was doing GIMPS one day and when I turned on the screen for the first time in a few hours there was a blue screen and it asked to restart or wait and I chose to wait but then it was stuck black and when I turned it off and then on, this started.

2003-07-12, 17:51	#20
outlnder Aug 2002 2·3·53 Posts	Hard drive crash?

2003-07-12, 18:47	#21
dsouza123 Sep 2002 296₁₆ Posts	It is critical to first find out if the data and power cable are working and properly connected and if they are, that the hard drive is still working. Unless the physical connection issues and basic functionality are determined, ( Cables OK, Hard drive OK ) the other software tests aren't an issue. If the hard drive ( for whatever reason ) isn't functioning, the software tests are not going to matter. Check the physical issues. Until you do I can't determine how to help. It is like a car with cables disconnected or no fuel and trying to start the car, the basics have to be checked first.

2003-07-13, 21:49	#22
clowns789 Jun 2003 The Computer 621₈ Posts	Are physical issues even possible? I mean, it was when the computer was running well.