Laptop refuses to boot, showed an error 0211 once.

Ty Tonus Burman · 28 Jan 2012

Hey 7 forums,

My friend just dropped off her computer saying that its not turning on.

I plugged it in, and powered it up, and a black screen came on saying a few things, including the name of the HDD, the name of the computer, etc, but three of the lines it showed caught my eye, so i felt like i should share them with you:

System BIOS shadowed
Video BIOS shadowed

Error: 0211 Keyboard Error

it said press any key to continue, so i did, and it booted to the login screen, but after that, it just went to a black screen with a mouse that was incapable of movement.

I force rebooted, and now, just like she had described, it refuses to turn on. The HDD light is blinking, and the fans are going, but the screen doesn't show anything.

Apart from that, I haven't had much time to look at it, so i apologize for not being able to give you all more to go off of.

Any help would be appreciated, thank you.

DustSailor · 29 Jan 2012

Hello Ty,

What kind of computer is this, and if it is custom, could you post the specs?

Does the computer have any kind of "CMOS" button to reset the BIOS? If not, completely unplug the computer (and if a laptop, remove the battery). Find the motherboard and remove the battery (even laptops should have this located somewhere and easy to get to). If you need help, you might try searching a how-to, or watching a how-to youtube video for removing motherboard batteries.

See this thread, and carefully go through each step (unlike the original poster in the thread). Afterwards, post back here. Say whether you've gone through every step without success, or that it is fixed. Let me know!

Ty Tonus Burman · 31 Jan 2012

Dust. Unfortunately, this laptop doesn't give access to it's CMOS battery (and i know what to look for, because ive had to remove one from my computer in the past.

As well, since this is a friends laptop, and not my own, I don't have answers to the questions you asked Sway however, i can make an educated guess:

Activated? Yes. Windows Vista genuine from Dell

Drivers and updates? Dont know..

Antivirus? Presumably none

Battery loose or over-heating? No

Hope this helps.

DustSailor · 31 Jan 2012

Hello Ty,

They do have a Vista forums more specific to that OS here: Vista Forums, as this is the Seven Forums.

But just in case not too many people are on it, I will attempt to help you out.

Apparently, Shadow BIOS is meant to make your computer boot up faster, but it has potential to be harmful if it happens to write to the memory. Can you get into the BIOS (the button might be ESC, DEL, or a Function Key; press the key repeatedly until you get in)? If so, there should be an option to reset it. Reset the BIOS, and double check to make sure "Shadow BIOS" and anything "Shadow" is set to "Disabled". Tip: It is located in the "Advanced" Tab of the BIOS

Attempt a System Restore to a point before the problems started: System Recovery Options

Run these tools if you can't do the previous and/or you continue to experience problems:
Startup Repair
SFC /SCANNOW : Run in Command Prompt at Boot

Let me know how it goes

Ty Tonus Burman · 01 Feb 2012

Dust,

Whoa, can't believe I let that one slip. I didn't even realize that I had a vista computer on my hands. I've been on the 7 Forums for a few days in a row now, it became habit. Sorry about that.

Unfortunately, i can't do anything you suggested, because the screen itself doesnt turn on.

The first time i tried it, like i said in the initial post, it got to the log in screen. But since then, like my friend has described, it won't turn on at ALL. The screen doesn't even illuminate or anything.. I'm thinking it's a hardware issue.. although if it was, it's weird how i managed to get the screen to work at least once..

DustSailor · 02 Feb 2012

Are there any monitors you have nearby that you can hook up to the laptop (provided it has such hookups)? Otherwise, look into getting it RMA'ed if possible or ask any repair shops if they can fix your laptop for you