Windows 7: Broken Windows DVD?

64 bit Windows 7 Home Premium.
I don't know if this is Windows 7 specific but it certainly isn't anything I ever saw before.

I have the original MS Windows 7 DVD. Shortly after first installing, I made a back-up copy of the DVD. During my experiment and work-out-problems-with-the-new-computer period in January of this year, I installed, and did start-up repair, from both disks a number of times (i.e. both the original and the copy worked fine). Now neither work.

If I boot from the DVD, it makes the normal moves and "Windows is loading files," along with the gradually filling progress bar, plays on screen.
Next we see "Starting Windows" and shortly the colored flags appear.
Then we see the blue and white windblown sky appearance splash screen, upon which should appear the language option and something else (region?), but no text ever shows up. There is a white mouse cursor, which will move freely, but nothing whatsoever to select or click on. Clicking randomly here and there, and anywhere, does nothing. There is no response from any keyboard entry. Sometimes booting from the DVD produces a completely black screen with a white mouse cursor instead of the blue splash screen.



This lack of anything useful is the same whether the hard drives are in place or have their cables disconnected.

When Windows is booted from the hard drive, the DVD drive works normally. I can look at and copy from both Windows install DVDs, and nothings seems to be wrong with either.

Any ideas?

1) Clean the DVD disks.
2) clean the CD/DVD drive.


Check your ram.
Memory Diagnostics Tool
Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool

Check the hard drive with the manufacturer's diagnostic tools.
Hard Drive Diagnostics Tools and Utilities (Storage) - TACKtech Corp.
HD Diagnostic

If you live in the United States or Canada there is a possibility that Microsoft will replace your Windows DVD if it is defective.

Replacement CD - Microsoft Answers

Obviously, if you had an OEM version you would have to contact your computer vendor for support.

Many motherboards have 2 controllers.
If using AHCI on the controller with the hard drives,
set the optical drives to IDE on the second controller.
Some optical drives don't perform well, when set to AHCI.

That may not be your problem, but it has worked fro me, in the past.

Try writing the ISO to flash stick and boot it to see behavior: Install Ultra ISO trial version, on File tab OPen DVD, on Disk tab Write Disk Image, Format, Write. Boot under HD or USB.

If the same prob occurs you have a corrupt ISO. Borrow and extract another from DVD, or download one from a safe source on the web (like Digital Life).

I don't know how to explain.
I downloaded various utilities and ran tests with no negative results. The DVD boot continued to non-function.
I borrowed a Windows 7 ultimate DVD and a WinXP CD. This Windows 7 DVD behaved the same as my own, but the XP CD went all the way to ready-to-install.
Then the Windows 7 ultimate DVD worked too. Then mine did too. Everything seems to be back to normal now.
There are other problems I was pursuing when I ran into this snag, but that should go into a different thread, if I can organize it well enough to ask some reasonable questions.

Give your DVD drive a good clean.