Computer Stuck In a Loop at Startup

macman

Yes, take the side panel off and look at it. IDE/PATA uses a wide flat ribbon connector and SATA is a much smaller squarer cable-you can't possibly confuse them.
Use Google Image if you want to see a picture of what you're looking for.
No special tools whatsoever, a screwdriver and a pair of pliers should be all you need.

gonzo127

personally before you go buying a hard drive caddy i would suggest either following Donnie's advice about the boot CD or checking it out with a Ubuntu LiveCD,

my personaly preference is the Ubuntu disk in LiveCD mode as if this works you have the functionality of the operating system which makes it easy to back up your files by either transfering it to a external hard drive or even getting samba installed which will allow you to copy the files over your network on to your other system

xxdeebeexx

I had exactly this problem on my computer and with the help of the fantastic people on here was able to recover all my data on the hard drive and reinstall windows.

Link to thread

link to puppy Linux
link to ISO burner

I had use of a friends laptop.
I downloaded puppy Linux
I downloaded the ISO burner and made a copy of puppy linux on cd.
I changed the BIOS on my computer so that the cd drive would boot first.
Put the Puppy cd in the cd drive and loaded puppy Linux. DO NOT INSTALL.(Puppy uses the RAM to run from and not the HD.)
The hard drives can be seen on the bottom left of the computer screen and can be accessed by single clicks.
You will need something to save the data on.
I went out and bought an external hard drive and saved the lot!

My advice is to take your time! It took me 10 days to rescue my data as I lacked the courage and knowledge to go any quicker. I have since rescued a friends data in 45mins!

Good luck

Dx

huntstop

a system loader file is damaged... use the XP CD; close pop up windows if any;
run command prompt (cmd) and type sfc /scannow
then allow a scan of system files and replace them following prompts

DazedByTheLight

Hi, thanks to everyone who has been helping with this and offering suggestions.

I tried Puppy Linux and everything was going well and I managed to copy some files onto my portable HDD.

However, the problem I am now facing is that whenever it does anything difficult such as copying a large chunk of files or larger files then the computer is shutting itself off. This is while running Puppy Linux.

Any ideas on what I should do? Should I try the BootCD or Ubuntu LiveCD to fix this problem?

PS as suggested by Donnie I have cleaned the RAM etc.

candtalan

DazedByTheLight wrote: »

I tried Puppy Linux and everything was going well and I managed to copy some files onto my portable HDD.

However, the problem I am now facing is that whenever it does anything difficult such as copying a large chunk of files or larger files then the computer is shutting itself off. This is while running Puppy Linux.

Well done for getting as far as using a live CD!

If it is running ok for a while and then stopping as you say it makes me think it is getting overheated. One reason for this (not the only reason) could be that the cooling fan is clogged with dust or is not working properly. The most important item to cool is usualy the main CPU (computer chip) and it usually is literally covered by fins and a fan. If you see this is dusty, then carefully clean it

If not that, then as I think said in other messages, try using the hard drive in other ways, such as in an external caddy, or even fitted into another computer with its jumper connections (if it is pata) set as a slave drive.
hth

millwalll

Do you see a blue screen before it shuts it self off? The best thing to do would to be run hard drive test. You can do that using Hirens disk as recomended in nother post, but this can be confussing if u not sure what you are doing. The best option would be to downlaod seagate tools disk this will scan the ahrd drive for bad sectors.http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/support/downloads/seatools

DazedByTheLight

Hi everyone, I have now managed to get my files copied.

I tried Hiren's CD but I had no idea which tools I should be using and those linked to the registry weren't working.

Then I went back to Puppy Linux, opened the computer case, stuck a deskfan on blowing into the computer, and started copying the files. I have now been able to get everything off without any issues!

I am now wondering whether I should try to cleanse and sell my 160Gb HD to somewhere like Cex, any advice? I noted that Hiren's CD has a hard-drive blasting software which I could try.

gonzo127

ok this problem in my mind has to be a heat problem since blowing a desk fan in the unit allowed you to get all your files off your hard drive shows me that the hardware is generally fine, yes you might have to run a structual check over the hard drive to see if that has added to the issues, but if just blowing a fan inside the case has allowed you to access everything it does sound more of a heat issue than any others

have you checked all the fans inside the case and are the clogged with dust? if so clean them (plenty of guides online) you might need to buy some more thermal paste for your CPU (usually under £10 and once again plenty of guides online on how to replace the paste) but from the information given i beleive you could save the system with a bit of work and minimum spend.

even the 024 error code (file system error) could quite easily have been caused by repeated crashes when your system had over heated

of course buying a new system would be easier espeically now you have all your files off and backed up but thats up to you,

as for selling the hard drive i personally wouldnt, of all the bits in a computer the hard drive is the one that i would never sell on since that has stored all you personal information on it at some point, due to me being a little paranoid about these things once a hard drive is of no use to me i always kill it totally

euanwozere

You are not that bothered about the computer so unplug it and go at the insides with a vacuum. If it makes it work load linux onto it and you have a second computer. You should be able to sell this as fully formatting and loading a new system should destroy enough info to make the hard drive safe to sell.