Cannot format partition

Gerge · 02 Feb 2015

Startup repair didn't do a thing, I'm not sure it detected my installation of Windows 7?
Should I start a new thread for this issue?

AddRAM · 02 Feb 2015

Is the windows partition marked active ?

It has to be for the startup repair to work.

gregrocker · 02 Feb 2015

Can you determine where the loud noise is coming from? It might be a fan bearing that's gone bad and can be replaced. But a loud mechanical sound other than a tone would never be the OS so Startup Repair is uncalled for.

But let's reset it to be sure it isn't something simple. Unplug power cable and battery, hold Power button down for 30 seconds, now plug back in both and try starting it. What happens?

Someone should have mentioned to back up any files you want from D before deleting it.

DavidE · 03 Feb 2015

Gerge said:

The laptop now does nothing but emit a high pitched screaming noise when I boot it.

A high pitched screaming noise could be a mechanical or electrical noise / problem.

I'm not sure how to describe the difference so you know which it is, it's something i've learned over the years, having heard both types...

EDIT: I guess if it has a "grinding" sound, it's mechanical ... not sure that helps

Gerge · 03 Feb 2015

It's hard to describe. It's a constant, high pitched tone. "Screaming" was probably the wrong choice for a word. The hard drive itself makes the occasional clicking sound but it did that before, too.

Also, when I boot to the HDD, all I get (visually) is a blank command prompt, for lack of a better term. The little underscore-ish thing cycles through every space for a character. I haven't let it get to the bottom, yet.

Resetting had no effect (affect?). D: was a botched attempt at re-imaging, I didn't want to save anything.

Dell's built in diagnostics told me nothing is wrong.

I think I'm going to attempt to re-image the hard drive w/ a liveCD.

dsperber · 03 Feb 2015

howtohelp said:

Besides, you can also use "Merge Partition" feature of partition wizard to extend your c partition.

It should be pointed out that "merge partition" is a feature only of the non-free editions of Partition Wizard. It is not available with the free version.

About "Merge Partition"

Merge Partition function helps users merge two adjacent partitions. It is noteworthy that this function only works for NTFS partitions. If the target partition is formatted with FAT12/FAT16/FAT32, please use "Convert FAT to NTFS" function of the software to convert partition to NTFS at first.

Note: The free edition of MiniTool Partition software does not support “merge partition”. So please select professional edition or advanced editions for this support.You could also view the comparison of MiniTool partition software

Gerge · 03 Feb 2015

LiveCD for Macrium Reflect couldn't do a thing. Plan B is to try and figure out what's going on with an Ubuntu LiveCD. Will report what happens.

Gerge · 03 Feb 2015

Ubuntu keeps giving me errors, telling me that the disk is in use. Or is faulty. I got a good look at partitions, it seems there's a 256 MB partition (X?) and a 250 GB partition (C?) and no others. Ubuntu won't install, but LiveCD works fine. Is there anything I can/should do from here?

whs · 03 Feb 2015

How about running a chkdsk /F

Btw - the occasional clicking sound is probably from the optical reader and not from the HDD. You hear it when you boot.

gregrocker · 03 Feb 2015

Test the hard drive with the maker's HD Diagnostic extended CD scan, followed by a full Disk Check done from the Win7 disk's System Recovery Options Command Line.

If necessary compare flash stick alternatives to see if your DVD drive may be failing. During these tests unplug the OD.