Where do I start?

[Pearl]

Hi,

I am having problems with my laptop and wonder if anyone might be able to help me. Within about 5 minutes of turning on it freezes totally and I have to press on the start button in order to turn off and restart.

I am currently able to boot up in Safe Mode, and with networking I am able to use the Internet and some other programs with no problems at all.

Previous to the freezing, my computer started to crash regularly (which I initially put down to too many tabs open in Firefox) later it started to display blue screens before crashing and then totally freezing.

I have the Reinstallation DVD which came with the machine however I tried to run this in order to fix any issues there might be with Windows and my CD/DVD player seems to have become selective about what it will play, it does not to respond to this disk, I can hear it clicking as it tries to read the disk but then nothing. If I run it on start-up, it tries to find the the disk and when it can't it starts up normally.

Do you think that there may be a problem with my hard-disk? If this is the case then why does it work fine in Safe Mode? Does this then indicate a software problem?

Where do I start?

Dell Vostro 1510
Windows Vista Home Basic

[EzyStvy]

The BSOD usually have a STOP Code that can be Googled.

[Pearl]

I did look into the blue screens at the time, the messages were very varied and did not pin point a cause.

I do not have any Blue screening anymore as my computer does not stay active long enough for it to do anything, so I do not have any codes.

[SpywareDr]

Originally Posted by Pearl I am currently able to boot up in Safe Mode, ...

While in Safe mode, use Windows' "System Restore" to roll Windows back to a previous state when your computer was functioning correctly:

Microsoft.com > System Restore > Vista

System Restore helps you restore your computer's system files to an earlier point in time. It's a way to undo system changes to your computer without affecting your personal files, such as e-mail, documents, or photos.

[Pearl]

Already thought of that, however these have been wiped:

No restore points have been created on your computer's system disk. To create a restore point open System Protection.

I previously tried this when the computer first started having problems, and it was unable to restore to an earlier time even then.

[SpywareDr]

Will it boot up in Diagnostic mode?

1. Boot up into Safe mode (with or without Networking)
   
   
2. Click Start
   
   
3. In the "Search programs and files" box, type in:

   msconfig

   and press [Enter]
   
   
4. Click the General tab (if not already selected)
   
   
5. Select "Diagnostic startup"
   
   
6. Click the Apply button
   
   
7. Click the OK button
   
   
8. Reboot (restart) and see if will start without having to press [F8] for Safe mode

Let us know what happens ...

[Pearl]

Yes, that worked, it now boots up without me having to enter Safe Mode.

[SpywareDr]

Good. Then still in Normal mode, go back into msconfig, under the General tab select Normal; under the Startup tab, click the Disable all button, then select the first three programs at the top of that list; click the Apply button, the OK button and let it reboot (restart).

After it restarts, if

• Windows starts in Normal mode and is running ok, go back into msconfig, select three more programs at the top of the list in the Startup tab, click the Apply button, the OK button and let it reboot. If it's still boots into Windows Normal mode ok, keep repeating this step until ...
  
• Windows won't boot into Normal mode, then reboot into Safe mode, go back into msconfig and click the the Startup tab. One of the programs you have selected is causing the problem. To find out which one, deselect one click Apply > OK and reboot. If it still doesn't boot in Normal mode, reboot into Safe mode, go back into msconfig and click the Startup tab. One of the programs you still have selected is causing the problem. Deselect one of them, click Apply > OK and reboot.

In other words, keep on with this process of elimination until you have narrowed it down the program(s) causing the problem.

Then let us know what you find out ...

[Pearl]

Ok, I have completed each step as you outlined, the machine started freezing again on the first three programs selected, I then eliminated each program in turn to find that any program running on it's own causes Windows to freeze.

[SpywareDr]

Any of the first three programs

or,

any program in the entire list?

[Pearl]

None, to make sure I went though each program on it's own, the computer froze each time within 3 minutes.

[Preston]

Even though things seemed to be working fine in Safe Mode, I would still run some hard drive diagnostics.

[Pearl]

I have just had to end (finger on start-up button) Windows Error checking which stopped running at 74%, after having left it running for a couple of hours. I kind of remember this happening before but I think that it ran for a much shorter period before freezing then.

Does anyone know of any free Hard-drive diagnostics programs that I could use, I have looked around but most that I've found seem to be brand specific, such as Seagate, Hitachi, etc, My machine is a Dell.

[SpywareDr]

Download and burn the Ultimate Boot CD to CD. It has all the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostic utilities, (plus much more). Simply boot your computer from this CD and select the utility you want to run.

If you aren't sure who made the hard drive in your computer, use Seagate's Seatools as it will work with most any make of drive.

The following instructions may prove helpful for burning the UBCD .iso file to disc:
How can I write (burn) ISO files to CD or DVD?

[jdeb]

That model is notorious for overheating. More than likely, you have a bad motherboard. However, it will not hurt to run the hard drive diagnostics to see if that is the issue.

[glc]

Press F12 on startup - you have a full hardware diagnostic suite preloaded by Dell.

[Pearl]

Thank you for all your suggestions, I found and ran the Dell diagnostics and got the following:

Error Code: 0F00:0244
Error Msg: Uncorrectable data error or media is write protected.

Is this telling me that the hard drive is on it's way out?

[jdeb]

Originally Posted by Pearl Thank you for all your suggestions, I found and ran the Dell diagnostics and got the following: Error Code: 0F00:0244 Error Msg: Uncorrectable data error or media is write protected. Is this telling me that the hard drive is on it's way out?

Yes it is. Replace the drive. Hopefully you made the recovery cd's, if not, you will need to order them from Dell. Probably around 20.00 or if your really nice to them, they may send them to you for free.

[SpywareDr]

Originally Posted by Pearl Error Code: 0F00:0244

Confirmation: 0F00 0244 - Dell - Search - Home & Home Office

[Pearl]

Big thank you to everyone who posted help. I go in search of a new hard drive.