posted
So my computer decided that it didn't want to start in any mode, be it normal, safe, or last known configuration. It also gives me the blue screen of death saying it can't load [x] file (it goes away so fast I don't know what it is). Is there any possibility it's not the harddrive?
Posts: 2867 | Registered: May 2005
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Any possibility that it is a Dell? Dell makes this setting so you can hit CTRL-ALT-'D' as it is booting, and it will do a hard drive check and tell you if your drive is dead. (at least it's that way for ours here at work)
posted
Yeah. Sounds like a corrupted file. Farmgirl's idea will work if it's a Dell. Otherwise, you can take the HD out of the system, put it into another system and run Scandisk on it as a step to fixing it. You can also try a repair installation of XP.
Posts: 3003 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
yea i don't want to do anything to it until i know for sure it's the harddrive because this is the second time it's died in 3 years and i don't feel like reformatting if it's not actually the problem.
is there anything specific i have to look for when doing the ctrl-alt-d? the last time it died it gave me a number or something.
Posts: 2867 | Registered: May 2005
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posted
Well, mainly you use that to have it tell you if it is actually the hard drive that is dead (as opposed to your operating system just not loading right).
When it gives you an error code number -- that is usually the number Dell support asks you for when you send the hard drive in for warranty replacement! Posts: 9538 | Registered: Aug 2003
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posted
BTW - I'm betting it's a Maxtor drive. (almost all failures we have on hard drives in Dell's here end up being their Maxtor drives. Sure wish they would use something else.....)
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