Stuck at Windows Startup Screen

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

  1. Posts : 15
    Windows 7 Professional 64
       #1

    Stuck at Windows Startup Screen


    My computer froze up a few days ago while I was browsing the web, I turned it off, and now the furthest I get is the Windows startup screen. When I turn it on it asks if I want to boot normally or launch startup repair. Starting normally brings me to the Windows startup screen, where it gets stuck. Launching startup repair says it's loading files, then goes to a black screen and stays there.

    I've tried to do a Windows repair using my system recovery disks (came with the laptop) and again it got stuck at the startup screen. Using the recovery disks I tried to boot into safe mode at it got stuck loading disk.sys. Also using the recovery disks, I tried to load into the last good configuration, and again it got stuck at the Windows startup screen.

    Based on the advice at this thread (Start up problems!!) I tried booting and doing a scan with Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper (now called Windows Defender). It said it was loading files, then got stuck at a black screen with nothing but a white mouse.

    Any ideas as to what's wrong?

    For reference, the problems are on a Sony VAIO VPCC227FX laptop running Win 7 Pro 64. I had some problems with this laptop a couple months ago and ended up formatting the drive and re-installing everything (https://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-d...ml#post1636620).

    Thanks for the help!
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 11,269
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
       #2

    Sounds like you have hard disk errors. Use Advanced Boot Options to select Repair Your Computer and get to the System Recovery Options. Then select the command prompt. Do the following:
    chkdsk /r c:
    chkdsk /r d:
    chkdsk /r e:
    chkdsk /r f:
    .etc until you get the message that the volume could not be found. For any drives that do not give the message:
    "Windows has checked the file system and found no problems"
    run chkdsk again as above.

    I realize you may only have one disk show up in Windows explorer, but you may have more than one disk through recovery options. This is because the system creates a hidden boot partition (which will be C: in recovery), you may have a recovery partition for your laptop that is hidden (which will be D: in recovery), and you will have your primary Windows partition (which may be E: in recovery).
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 15
    Windows 7 Professional 64
    Thread Starter
       #3

    I think you're right about the disk errors, but haven't been able to confirm yet. I got to the Advanced Boot Options screen, but when I select Repair Your Computer, it does this:

    - Windows is Loading Files (like this: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2678/...c9098450_o.png)
    - Microsoft Corporation progress bar for only a second or two (like this: http://www.petri.co.il/images/vista_boot_screen_1.gif)
    - Black screen. Gets stuck here.

    Any other ideas for what I could try? Thanks for the help!
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 11,269
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
       #4

    Try resetting your BIOS and the BIOS software/hardware connections.

    Note: If you are using a RAID controller, this will reset the RAID and you will lose your data. Backup all important files and make a system image before proceeding with this step if you have multiple hard drives in a RAID configuration. .
    1. Go into your BIOS and load default settings to clear the CMOS memory.
    2. Save Settings and exit the BIOS.
    3. Shut down and turn off the computer.
    4. Unplug the computer from the wall or surge protector (then remove the battery if it is a laptop).
    5. Hold down the power button for 30 seconds. This closes the circuit and ensures all power from components is drained to clear the software connections between the BIOS and hardware and clear any corruption in the temporary memory.
    6. (If it is a laptop, plug the battery back into the laptop and then) Plug the computer back into the wall.
    7. Turn it on to reinitialize the software connections between the BIOS and hardware, and post back your results.

    If you are unsure whether you are running a RAID configuration, if you do not have multiple drives in your machine, you do not have RAID.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 15
    Windows 7 Professional 64
    Thread Starter
       #5

    No luck. I reset the BIOS using the steps you described and it still gets stuck at the Windows boot screen.
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 11,269
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
       #6

    Odd. Have you tried any other bootable media? PartedMagic is a useful tool for drive recovery. Ultimate Boot CD - Overview also has good diagnostic utilities.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 15
    Windows 7 Professional 64
    Thread Starter
       #7

    It turns out that Ultimate Boot CD comes with Parted Magic, so I used that. I tried the Check utility in Parted Magic but it quit with an "input/output" error, which doesn't seem good.

    As for the other utilities in Ultimate Boot CD, do you have any favorite disk checkers? There are quite a few diagnostic utilities and I'm not sure which one will do what I want.

    Thanks again.
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 11,269
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
       #8

    tppk said:
    It turns out that Ultimate Boot CD comes with Parted Magic, so I used that. I tried the Check utility in Parted Magic but it quit with an "input/output" error, which doesn't seem good.

    As for the other utilities in Ultimate Boot CD, do you have any favorite disk checkers? There are quite a few diagnostic utilities and I'm not sure which one will do what I want.

    Thanks again.
    The best disk checking utility would be one that is provided by the hard disk manufacturer. Do you know who manufactured your drives (Western Digital, Seagate, Samsung, Hitachi, etc.)? You should be able to find out by going into the BIOS.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 15
    Windows 7 Professional 64
    Thread Starter
       #9

    It's a Seagate drive, and they have a disk checker that you can put on a bootable CD. After about six rounds of scanning, finding errors, and fixing errors, it got through an entire scan without finding any errors. After that I was able to boot into Windows without any problems. Thanks for all the help!

    Do you think this is normal for a hard drive, or is a sign of disk failure?
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 11,269
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
       #10

    tppk said:
    It's a Seagate drive, and they have a disk checker that you can put on a bootable CD. After about six rounds of scanning, finding errors, and fixing errors, it got through an entire scan without finding any errors. After that I was able to boot into Windows without any problems. Thanks for all the help!

    Do you think this is normal for a hard drive, or is a sign of disk failure?
    Every hard disk eventually ends up with some bad sectors due to a lot of use. Hard drives are designed for this eventuality by having extra sectors available so those spare sectors can be reallocated to the drive table and bad sectors cast aside. If the drive is fairly new, what you have described may be a bad sign. If it is a year or two old, what you described is uncommon, but not unheard of. Once the drive is past its warranty period, it is more common for sectors to be bad and be replaced.

    Regardless of the age of the drive (unless it is new, in which case you should back up data and call the manufacturer to see if it should be RMA'd), keep a watchful eye on it and see if similar problems come back within a month. You may also want to be more diligent about keeping a backup during that time. If problems return within 4-5 weeks, either RMA it, or if it is past the warranty, replace the drive.



    How is the system currently running now that hard disk errors were fixed?
    Last edited by writhziden; 20 Feb 2012 at 09:36. Reason: Update?
      My Computer


 
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

  Related Discussions
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 7 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 7" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

© Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:09.
Find Us