Windows 7 stuck at welcome screen. Cannot access Safe Mode.

[thomas435]

When I start my computer everything seems to be working fine but after login it says Please Wait then freezes at Welcome screen and the cursor can be moved around the screen and shows the loading icon and the screen also flashes black every few seconds. I've restarted and attempted to access Safe Mode however it also freezes at Welcome screen. I went into the repair system screen and tried a system restore but it says there are no restore points available and I know I haven't deleted my restore points. I've tried disconnecting any of the hardware I've had installed but that hasn't helped either. There also isn't any faulty hardware. When it was last working it said there was a Windows update so I installed the update but when I tried to turn on the computer the next time thats when the problem started and I don't remember what the update was for. I upgraded from Windows Vista Home Basic 32-bit to Windows 7 Home Premium 32-bit about 2 months ago and up until now I've had no problems with it. What can I do?

Here are the system specs:
Dell Inspiron 530s
Intel Celeron 2.00 Ghz
3.00 GB DDR2 RAM (I added 2.00 gigs myself came with 1.00 gig from factory)
Windows 7 32-bit upgrade from Windows Vista Home Basic 32-bit
250 Gb Hard Drive

 

[Jacee]

See if a repair install helps http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/3413-repair-install.html?ltr=R

edit ... you have listed that you're running 64 bit, but you say it's 32 bit ...Is this the same computer?

 

[thomas435]

that didn't work. if I decide to restore to factory default since it came with Vista it will revert. will i be able to reinstall windows 7 even though i used the key already?

 

[Jacee]

Which version do you have, 32 or 64bit?

 

[thomas435]

32-bit

 

[alphanumeric]

that didn't work. if I decide to restore to factory default since it came with Vista it will revert. will i be able to reinstall windows 7 even though i used the key already?

Yes, you can keep using the same product code on the same PC (hardware) over and over again. I've re-installed twice on this PC and activated on line with no problems.

 

[gregrocker]

Boot the WIn7 DVD Repair console or Repair CD, accept any offered Repair. If this doesn't fix things, boot back in, click through to REcovery Tools list to run Startup Repair up to 3 separate times. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/2083-system-repair-disc-create.html

You do not need to run Recovery to reinstall Win7 if that's your choice. You can clean install to get a superior install from your Win7 installer: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html

Running the Factory recovery from partition or your Recov Disks you should have made will restore to Vista. The only reason to do this is to do an inferior in-place upgrade install which might have caused these problems you're having now. However if you did an in-place Upgrade before there was probably more accumulated corruption in your install than there would be doing a fresh Recovery now.

If the Repair CD finds an installation to repair, then it should be able to start if Startup Repair is run repeatedly. If not, make sure Win7 is still marked Active then run the Repairs again x3: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/71432-partition-mark-active.html

If it still won't start, you can copy out your files using this Repair CD this way: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/93347-copy-paste-windows-recovery-console.html

 

[alphanumeric]

32-bit

Your system specs list 64 bit, is that the same PC? If your windows 7 DVD is a full version and not an upgrade version, you don't even have to do the restore. Just boot from the windows 7 DVD and do a clean install. Backup any files you want to keep to external media first though.

 

[thomas435]

@alphanumeric
Thank you! I'll do that now.

 

[thomas435]

I hadn't realized that the specs said 64-bit. Just updated it. Its actually 32-bit. and I have the upgrade disc.

 

[alphanumeric]

I think a lot of people here will agree with me when I say a clean install is always preferred over an upgrade. More often than not upgrades introduce problems and less than stellar performance.

 

[thomas435]

can i do a clean install with the upgrade disc?

 

[alphanumeric]

Yes

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html[/URL]

EDIT: I don't know why the link doesn't work in the quote, may be because i edited out some of it. Anyway here it is again.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/31402-clean-install-upgrade-windows-7-version.html

 

[thomas435]

Thanks a lot! I'm doing it now. I'll let you know what happens.

 

[thomas435]

great. everythings up and running again. thanks for your help!

 

[alphanumeric]

Good stuff, hopefully you won't have to do it again for a long time.

 

[A Guy]

Now that you've had your scare, and have it fixed, it's time to look into creating a Sytem Image for backup. Update regularly as you change your setup and everything is operating correctly.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/663-backup-complete-computer-create-image-backup.html

A Guy