BSOD on boot- PFN_LIST_CORRUPT can't boot from disk. Any options?

[gburnash]

Started getting a BSOD on our laptop yesterday when we tried to start it up and I'm hoping for some help, but not sure how optimistic I am. I can't get it to finish the start up process. If I try to start it on it's own, I get the BSOD with an error message saying, "PFN_LIST_CORRUPT" and code "*** STOP: 0x0000004E (0x0000000000000099, 0x000000000013F5AF, 0x0000000000000000, 0x0000000000000000) This happens if I try to start it either normally or if I try to launch the startup repair. I can not get it to boot into safe mode or any other mode for that matter. I've tried with a Win7 startup disk, and I've also tried with a Win8 upgrade disk. Neither of those will work either. BSOD on trying to start, and never really getting past the initial "loading files" I never do actually get windows to load in any form whatsoever. I looked at the BIOS and it appears fine. No changes there, but also no options to upgrade it or roll it back in the BIOS itself. But as far as I know there shouldn't have been any changes to the BIOS anyways. I don't believe it was doing any upgrades or patching at the time either, but can't be positive as I wasn't the one using it when it started. It's an ASUS laptop, about 7 months old we bought refurbished, so it's past warranty (of course) Model K54C, Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit, 4 gigs RAM So any suggestions, ideas, or hope, or am I looking at having to replace the HDD?

 

[Northernsoul55]

Hi,

You could try following this tutorial and see if you can troubleshoot your issue:

:ar: Windows Failure to Boot Tutorial

Stop 0x0000004E: PFN_LIST_CORRUPT
Usual causes: Device driver, memory

Also take memtest. Run for 8 passes and test each stick in a know good slot for an additional 6 passes.

:ar: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/105647-ram-test-memtest86.html

   Tip

Run these tests overnight

cheers

Dave

 

[Dsprague]

try running memtest86+ its a bootable memory test that will let you know if there is something wrong with your ram (as I suspect)

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/105647-ram-test-memtest86.html

you may want to do this over night as it takes quite a while to complete the 7-8 passes that the test calls for (this assumes that you don't get memory errors right away)

Next if you don't get any errors there you can run some Hard drive diagnostics:

Hard Drive Diagnostic Procedure

again these are bootable tests no need to try and get into windows.

 

[gburnash]

With Memtest, am I going to see it doing anything? I can't tell if it's running and working or if it's frozen up. The only thing I see is a red cross up at the top blinking, but otherwise nothing is moving or changing. Once I can figure out if it's working or not I may move onto the other step. Most of the other steps in the Windows Failure to Boot tutorial I've tried, and many of them I haven't been able to get it to boot in any form with any recovery disks, safe mode, etc.

 

[gburnash]

After trying a couple of times now, Memtest is definitely freezing on load. Gave it a few hours on a couple of tests and it never progressed in any form.

So- any idea if that means we are looking at RAM? MB? Or something else?

 

[Dsprague]

now there in lies the problem, the fact that you cant even boot into memtest tells me you have either bad ram or a bad mother board, and beyond that I can give no answers because there is no way to test either of them because you cant even boot into the program we use to test RAM.

 

[gburnash]

Pretty much what I was afraid of hearing. I'll look around and see if I have some other RAM chips around that I might be able to use, but that's doubtful. Afraid I may have lost the whole thing. Irritating since we've only had it for 6 months, but as a refurb unit it only had a 3 month warranty.

 

[Dsprague]

I'm sorry to hear that, you can try to recover some data off the hard drive using this tutorial if you like, though I am not sure it will work:

Copy out your data using your Windows 7 DVD or System Repair Disk using this method: Copy & Paste - in Windows Recovery Console, or Paragon rescue disk to recover data.

But again I'm not sure it will work with the state that your laptop is in.

 

[gburnash]

I'll probably just pull the hdd out and hook it up to another computer through a link and pull the info that way. Not to difficult to do. thanks for the help

 

[Dsprague]

Your welcome, sorry things turned out so badly.