Windows 7: Not responding - now can't open Outlook, check disk

I did the windows repair install last night, and I am still getting "not responding" messages in Firefox and other things like the control panel. I was able to schedule a chkdsk.exe, and I came up with the same error as before -- something about" cannot open volume" and a 766f . . . 3f1 error. After that, the screen was black for about 15 minutes. It took about 20 to start up.

The computer is very slow. I've never dropped or hit the computer, but I did take it on the bike with me a couple of months ago. It was well padded, however.



Would bad sectors cause this "not responding" problem? Is it just a coincidence that this issue came up when Windows automatically installed 20+ updates on the 10th? With the repair install, those updates are back on my computer. Do you think the problem is related to any of the updates?

I don't think overheating is an issue -- I have my laptop set up on two pieces of wood, and I can hear the fan running.

Your system is 2 years old, and the last person may not have treated it as well as you have, there is something wrong with your hard-drive due to the constant error message from Disk Check, and the notification of a Disk Failure in your first post.

You could attempt uninstalling the updates which you installed, and then see what happens then, but I would consider buying a new hard-drive or backing up your data as soon as possible.

The Repair Install usually repairs any issues with the operating system, but since nothing has changed, it seems to be pointing to a hardware problem.

I backed up all of my data prior to doing the repair install. The person I bought the computer from said he only used it about 10 times -- he still had all of the original packaging and hadn't even registered the computer yet.

My Outlook pst file is now backed up on an external drive. Would it be possible to run Outlook on that drive until I get this problem solved? This is my work computer, and I need to check my schedule for this week. Of course, most of my contacts are in there as well.

Yes, but you will need to tell Windows that your .pst file in on a external hard-drive.

Will my event logs or other monitors (e.g., processing compared to memory usage) help solve this issue? I was just going through the critical events, and I remembered that I was surprised a couple of times that my computer had shut off after I had hibernated it. I hadn't realized until I checked that my computer was running on battery power overnight, because I had it plugged into an outlet strip that I turned off each night. I switched outlets for the computer on the 10th.

I note there are no hardware events in the log.

Post a screenshot of your Task Manager and could you please update your System Specifications fully by downloading Speccy (link in my signature), and then going to UserCP and clicking on Edit System Spec within the left pane.

Screenshots and Files - Upload and Post in Seven Forums

Please download MSE (link in my signature) and uninstall or disable any other anti-virus programs you may have, and then perform a full scan of your system.

These two steps will help to see wherever you have a virus infection, and could you also post a screenshot of your msconfig by going to:

Start > Search Programs and Files (Type: msconfig) > Startup tab

Thanks,

Harry

Thank you, Harry. Here are my task processes and services.

How do I get to Speccy and MSE? I clicked on "BlueRobot" and saw your profile, but I don't see "Speccy" or "MSE" any where.

I don't think I have a virus -- I haven't ever had one. (I had my other computer for nine years.) I ran SmartFan last night, and the laptop temperature was normal. I also did the short test, and that came out 95% and 95%. I was in the process of running the extended test, but it aborted some time during the night.

Could you also screenshot the Performance tab of Task Manager too please, and the links are at the bottom of my post.

Start > Search Programs and Files (Type: msconfig) > Startup tab

Screenshot the msconfig Startup tab too.

Here are the performance and startup shots. I'm working on the spec profile.

Thanks, and is the high memory usage when lots of applications are open or when the computer is idle? (no programs are running)

Clean Up Factory Bloatware

This will clear up any programs which can corrupt your installation and hinder your performance.

Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7

The above tutorial will give you many troubleshooting methods of Windows, you can ignore the steps we may have already done together.