Can only start in Safe Mode

[dman1965]

hi when i switched on my laptop today i could only start in safe mode i since read a few threads on here leading me to create a recovery disc but it wouldnt let me do that either
i kept getting error message : unspecified error (0x80004005)
i did the CMD prompt - then - net user administrator /active:yes
logged back in on administrator account but still got same error message
now im really lost, any suggestions would be greatly received
my laptop is Dell XPS L50 2X
i7-2630QM
64bit

origional reason for this is system freeze with this message

Runtime Error!
Program: C:\Windows\system32\nvvsvc.exe
This application has requested the runtime to terminate in an unusual way.

ok so i finally managed to update some drivers, i am now able to boot narmally but it will now not let me access some things such as nvidia control panel or chrome browser insisting that i do not have the necessary permissions all this is really strange something aint right

please help, thank you

 

[Maurice Naggar]

Hello dman1965,

If possible, restart the system, immediately tap / retap F8 function key to get Advanced Boot options.
Select Safe Mode with Networking (or if need be, Safe Mode).

a) Be sure you are logged in with Admistrator rights account.
b) Press Windows-key +R to get Run option. and in the run-text-box type in

msconfig

and press OK or Enter.
c) You should see the General tab. It should have Normal startup selected (in the radio-box=selection)
IF it does not, then you click on Normal startup.

d) Click the Boot TAB.
Make sure that under Boot options, that Safe boot checkbox is NOT checked.
If it is, then click once on the checkbox to clear and press Apply & OK buttons and Restart system.

Reply back with your results.

As much as possible, obviously, you want to be in Normal mode of Windows.
Failing that, next best (temporarily) is Safe Mode with Networking.


Have there been any recent hardware or software or program changes recently?

nvvsvc.exe is an Nvidia driver
Has there been a recent driver update ? from which source ?

 

[dman1965]

ok mate thanks for replying and thank for the info...very interesting.... YES, i recently downloaded a new driver for the nvidia card that i have and it was downloaded from the nvidia website so or course i thought this was surely not the problem, is why i was stumped coz i am very careful where i download from, so shud i continue with ur 1st reply or would u suggest doing something else now?? thanks again

 

[dman1965]

Hi mate , ok this is where we are now.... basically before i checked back with the forums i managed to get on by i think lol, going with the onboard graphics , but i cant access google chrome as i would usualy, but only by going from a different path even then its only provides me with a very basic chrome browser, also mcafee keeps popping up telling me my system isnt secure so i click on mcafee status then everything changes from red to green signalling thats its all fine only for it to pop up again 5mins later telling me im not secure again so i repeat the process.
a few other things i cant click on to that i should be able to ... the intel turbo boost doesnt work now either. it wont do a system restore and informs me that the restore point was damaged whilst trying to restore, it wont update instead it gives me an error code 800f0203, although i managed to get it on out of safe mode, i did what u said and when it restarted i had a box come up with : THERE WAS A PROBLEM STARTING C:\windows\system32\nvHOTKEY.dll Access Denied ,,, right now im not thinking it would be so terrible to wipe it and start again as its just not acting right at all. but im just interested as to why its gone so haywire ya kno, anyway looking forward to hearing from u ,, thanks D

 

[Maurice Naggar]

A "scrunged" video driver is what you had, and does lead to the situation where Windows will not finish loading properly.
If it is agreeable to you and if you had your personal files/documents previously saved to offline media, a wipe/pave and clean install would be the thing to do.

If not agreeable, one might try to restart the system and select to start (temporarily) Enable low-resolution video (a.k.a. Enable VGA mode)
To do that,
restart pc and tap & retap F8 to get Advanced Startup Options
and
select Enable low-resolution video (a.k.a. Enable VGA mode).

Then get the proper Nvidia driver in place.

 

[gregrocker]

If you can't get the system to stabilize then work through these steps for Troubleshooting Windows 7 Failure to Boot.

Most importantly once you can get into Win7 uninstall the MucAfee crapware which is the worst AV and causes many problems seen here. Replace with Microsoft Security Essentials and the Win7 firewall kept automatically Updated.

Establish a Clean boot and turn off the Nvidia services at the same time since they're not needed unless you're overclocking.

Once it's stable finish working through these Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7

 

[dman1965]

ok i dont have disks, so what would be the best way to here??

 

[gregrocker]

The disks are all provided in links in the tutorial.

 

[dman1965]

Sorry Greg u just scrolled down and saw ur input, lmao yes i kno the mcGash is goin soon as it runs out in a few months it came with ,, ya kno so i just bought the full protection off them. But i will try ur steps 1st also, thanks again u guys for all ur help it much appreciated..

 

[gregrocker]

Let us know how it goes. There may be other steps based on what you report.

 

[dman1965]

...

 

[dman1965]

ok so malwarebytes came up with 3.....
1) affiliate download, from c: codec.exe
2) affiliate download, from c: codec.exe(1)
3) PUP.Bundleoffer.downloader.s
im guessing 1 and 2 are the same.
so ill carry on with the next steps

 

[dman1965]

ok right just 1 thing ...i still got 5months left on my mcgashy total crap,, i mean total protection,, but u say i should get rid of this anyway and go with the microsoft security essentials and the windows firewall yes?

Also, before i checked back with the forums i did manage to get windows to start if not ''normally'', i updated some drivers and while doing this updated the vga onboard graphics driver,, this lead me to be able to start windows using the onboard graphics,, although things were obviously still not right including not letting me access alot of things, for instance browser would not open normally and i could only download the malwarebytes by going back to safe mode, so im gonna carry on with those steps and report back.
i will keep checking back anyway. ty

 

[gregrocker]

Yes I'd dump the MucAfee Zero protection. It's nothing but problems, an infection in itself.

Install MSE and run a full scan now. Turn on the Windows Firewall and get all updates installed. Look for drivers in optional Updates.

You'll note the steps check System File integrity, then if necessary a Repair Install as a last resort before Clean Reinstall or running Dell Recovery. Most tech enthusiasts will not run the factory preinstall with all of it's crapware and useless utilities with better versions already in Win7, so I'd strongly consider a Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7

 

[dman1965]

hi, im really sorry to maybe mess u about , but im not sure exactly what to do next, ive tried many of the steps listed but keep getting blocked at various points , i did scannow , there is damaged or currupt files but windows cant fix them,, it wont let me look at the logs not even as net user administrator active:yes - it still says error, access denied, it wont let me make a disk for windows defender offline,, i have managed to download the malwarebytes and done a full scan the results a minimal but i posted them earlier,, i havent ventured further as im just not sure whether i have to have achieved the previous steps first or not,,
really sorry, D

 

[gregrocker]

Take the steps one at a time from the top. If you complete one, post back exactly what is the problem so we can help you work through it.

Try another bootable AV scan from the tutorial. You need to confirm the HD is clean, or post up the exact infection in our Security forum for tailored scans, then repair the System files. If these will not Repair and you cannot boot into Win7 to run a Repair install, then I would try the steps to force Win7 to boot, or wipe the HD to run Factory Recovery disks or Clean Reinstall.

 

[dman1965]

tried downloading avg bootable to disk using image burn it kept failing due to 'layouts do not match'
ill try again with a diff 1
same result with the kaspersky ' layouts do not match' i dont know why this is.
am i not able to do this in safe mode or something coz ive tried using cd-r and dvd but it just will not burn to disc??

 

[dman1965]

ok i just kept stubbornly repeating the process and it finally said operation complete i just hope its right, lol.
so thats the disk made , ill try the boot now

 

[gregrocker]

You can google the text of errors like that to find how others have resolved them.

 

[dman1965]

ok long story short, lol, i managed to run the disc, it came up with 1 threat, from 1 item, still present in your system:
Gen.Trojan.Heur.P.@14@fyt8khbi
so i disinfected that and it was deleted. think that gives it the all clear..
i put the boot order back to how it was ( that was fun trying to figure that out, in order to get the disc to run in the first place lol)
and booted up.... its early hours so ill hit the sack and try another scannow 2morro, thanks man, speak soon.