Unable to boot into any mode...storage devices not recognized

[captjoe777]

Woke up this morning to find my HP stuck in a boot up mode with a message about it being unable to find any storage devices...tried safe mode (F8) but no luck...would not boot into safe mode...can not get into BIOS...F2, F10, F11 all not working...only thing that had a glimmer of hope was inserting the HP recovery disc (1 of 3) I made then restarting...seemed to work a bit as the screen changed and it said "loading windows files" but then nothing...subsequent reboots with same disc went unrecognized...even tried booting using Hiren's Boot CD but it seems like the machine is not recognizing ANY bootable drive...HDD or CD/DVD.

Joe

 

[Faladu]

Most likely a power supply failure, that's a non-servicable part except by the manufacturer, so it's one you replace. [can hold a charge and possibly KILL you if opened up]

Any PC repair shop near you can verify that the PSU is croaked in a minute, with a PSU tester which you can buy for $20ish.

Rosewill RTK-PST Digital LCD Power Supply Tester - Newegg.com

PC is acting like it doesn't have the juice to run the parts, just so much more likely PSU dead, eliminate that before moving on, hopefully it didn't damage anything else.

 

[captjoe777]

The computer PSU seems to be working fine...are you talking about a PSU just for the HDD and/or CD?

 

[Faladu]

The main power supply unit in the case that powers EVERYTHING.

It's suspect since you said the system basically croaks shortly after looking like it MIGHT work and not recognizing things.

Otherwise, 2nd suspect is your motherboard and which one would you rather verify is bad, first?

Try another power supply to your wall outlet cable and make sure your surge protector or power strip is not dead. [less likely]

Even multimeter test outlets for proper voltage range, there is so much possibly going on besides just not having it see a drive.

 

[captjoe777]

Sorry but I'm a bit confused...the system powers up, the monitor works, etc...just the drives seem to be unrecognized...can the PSU partiallyfail and cause just the drive to not be recognized? I thought that if the PSU failed then the computer would act as if it were unplugged...basically no response when i turn it on?

 

[Faladu]

You said you couldn't even get into the BIOS, but it sorta of started on another reboot and started to take a rescue disc but then stopped.

You care to start your description over?

Where are you seeing not recognizing drives?

Power supplies can work and overheat and then stop working... turn it off a bit do that again, same result if that is the case.

The performance of PSUs degrades over time, they can't handle as much as they might be listed for, not all components are on full draw on the PSU at boot either, like video cards.

3am here and if I misread something, I'm sorry, I'm fatigued, but that's what I gathered from your posts.

The usual failure points on PCs: PSU, RAM, motherboard, Hard drives, and video card, only the PSU and motherboard fits your description of symptoms

My last failure was my motherboard, symptoms: couldn't do/see ANYTHING.

 

[captjoe777]

No prob I do appreciate your efforts!!

OK I've had the system off for about 45 min...

Turned it on with nothing in the CD drive...this is the screen shot of what I get...https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/57200524/IMG_0924.JPG

Then about 15 sec later I get this...https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/57200524/IMG_0925.JPG

Then about 15 sec later I get this..you can see it detects the CD/DVD drive but not the HDD...https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/57200524/IMG_0926.JPG

Then finally about 10 sec later I get this...https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/57200524/IMG_0927.JPG..... is what I woke up to and was the screen that usually came up immediately after power on.

 

[Faladu]

Replace your CMOS battery (CR-2032) on your motherboard is something I would do first, without that, BIOS is in a default state, let's see if you can get into the bios then after that.

Looks like HP is taking you to their own recovery console, likely on a hidden hard drive partition.

I'm hoping it's the $3 CMOS battery now for your sake.

 

[captjoe777]

OK I'll try that...you get some sleep!

 

[captjoe777]

I replaced the battery but I still have the same problems. I will be getting a new power supply in a few days.

 

[TVeblen]

It looks to me like you have lost your SATA controller on the motherboard. "Reboot and select proper boot device" means the system can't find any drives connected to the system. Since they are physically plugged in and powered up (can you hear them spinning?) this means that the problem is at the motherboard.

Based upon the other information you supplied there are a couple of possibilities. But first off, have you made any recent changes to the PC (added/removed components)?

But in all cases like this it is important to start with the basics. First we need to determine why you can't enter the BIOS, which is an independent function that does not rely on the drives.

So first I would disconnect all hard drives and CD drive SATA cables, then boot. See if you can get into BIOS.

If you can get in, then add just one drive back and test again. If that works then test the other drive (alone). Then add them all again. Report here the results of these tests.

After these tests are complete you should try a ClearCMOS procedure. This will reset the BIOS and force it to rediscover the components in the system. Note: CLRTC and ClearCMOS are the same thing. Refer to your motherboard manual to find the ClearCMOS jumper.

• Shut down the computer > remove the power cord.
• Remove the 3v battery.
• Move the CLRTC jumper from pins 1-2 to 2-3.
• Touch a metal part of the case and Press and Hold the reset button for approx. 30 seconds to discharge all power from the board.
• Put the CLRTC jumper back on pins 1-2.
• Replace the 3v battery > replace the power cord > boot.
• Immediately go back into BIOS and reset all your preferred settings. If the CLRTC worked you will need to reset the date and time.

 

[captjoe777]

Hi...

I have not changed any components in years.

I did the SATA cable tests...first off I was able to get into the BIOS with my CD drive and HDD disconnected. However, I was unable to enter setup (BIOS) when either or both drives were connected.

Do I do the clearCMOS procedure now or did you have something else for me to try based on the SATA tests?

 

[TVeblen]

No, you can try the ClearCMOS. We will see if that will clear up the problem.

The SATA tests lend more evidence that there is a problem with the SATA controller.

To test to see if it could be power related, try connecting both drives with SATA and then disconnecting the power from each drive one at a time to see if you can get into the BIOS either time. I'd also try both drives with power disconnected, although I don't think that will show anything.

 

[captjoe777]

I did the CMOS clear procedure...I was able to get into the BIOS upon restart but the system still won't boot up...will try the drive disconnect when I get back from a two day business trip.

Thanks....I guess if the SATA controller is bad then I need a new motherboard?

 

[TVeblen]

Yes, if the Sata controller is bad. But you want to try and determine the actual cause before you start buying parts. The Sata controller is the obvious suspect, but without some definitive evidence then it is just a guess, really.

There are a few points of failure here:

• The SATA controller (will not connect with any drive)
• A conflict between a new device or system setting and the Sata controller (did you change any BIOS settings recently?)
• A power problem (power supply is just one of the types of power problems)
• A cable problem (a poorly connected cable or bad cable)
• A defective drive (either drive could be bad and is shorting out the sata controller)

So what I'm having you do here is a series of "If-this-then-that" tests to try and isolate the problem.


Now IF you install either of the two drives in another computer and they work (can be recognized by the system without a problem), THEN we know there is not a problem with the drives.


IF you switch the sata cables (use the other computers cables or just switch the cable/drive combination, THEN we know if the cables are the fail point. Same goes for power connectors.



That's the idea. If you can't pinpoint a cause then we have to start guessing. The first guess will be to decide which component makes most sense to replace first.

 

[captjoe777]

I took it in to a repair shop and explained what I did so far...will let you know what he says.

Joe