Please HELP! When I turn on or restart my PC, the computer goes acts like it will start up. After it shows the XP startup screen it goes black. The pointer centers itself on screen and I can still control it but I cant do anything. I have attempted starting in safe mode but I cannot. I also attempted putting the recovery disk in then restarting but it does nothing. Any suggestions would be awesome!
ChuckleDee24 0 Newbie Poster
Recommended Answers
Jump to Posttry unplugging it from the electial outlet for a few minutes
Jump to Postmost XP pcs come configured to boot from the HD first. YOU need to set system bios too boot from the Disk Drive first. Then try to reboot with disk. Its a malware problem i think were a file makes your back ground an active desktop and links a black …
Jump to Postright click.. prop's then look under Web tab. there will be one for back ground as active desktop.
Jump to PostIt can even start,
hi, i will assume you meant It can't even start ,the most likely cause is the power supply is dead ,next if its not the power supply then its a dead motherboard maybe ,to test motherboard after you rule out the power supply ,remove all add …
All 16 Replies
cdt1983 3 Junior Poster
Please HELP! When I turn on or restart my PC, the computer goes acts like it will start up. After it shows the XP startup screen it goes black. The pointer centers itself on screen and I can still control it but I cant do anything. I have attempted starting in safe mode but I cannot. I also attempted putting the recovery disk in then restarting but it does nothing. Any suggestions would be awesome!
Do you have a preinstalled version of Windows XP?
ChuckleDee24 0 Newbie Poster
yes. I have a recovery disk and I even attempted to reboot using it...no luck.
Do you have a preinstalled version of Windows XP?
caperjack 875 I hate 20 Questions Team Colleague
try unplugging it from the electial outlet for a few minutes
Sphyenx 0 Posting Whiz
most XP pcs come configured to boot from the HD first. YOU need to set system bios too boot from the Disk Drive first. Then try to reboot with disk. Its a malware problem i think were a file makes your back ground an active desktop and links a black image to your back ground and you cant do anything. Did you regularly run spyware checks etc?
ChuckleDee24 0 Newbie Poster
I know I may seem like an idiot...but can you tell me how to go in the bios and change from HD to disk drive first?
most XP pcs come configured to boot from the HD first. YOU need to set system bios too boot from the Disk Drive first. Then try to reboot with disk. Its a malware problem i think were a file makes your back ground an active desktop and links a black image to your back ground and you cant do anything. Did you regularly run spyware checks etc?
Hoang_banh 0 Newbie Poster
To adjust hardware bio, press F1 or "Del" key when you first turn on the coomputer and heard a beep sound. From there, go to Boot, adjust the setting to have CD-ROM ordered before HardDrive. Then select "Save before Quit" and restart the computer.
Hoang_banh 0 Newbie Poster
Interesting, I'm having the same start-up problem. I'm thinking it's either the "Background as active Destop" as referred above or logging in as a corrupted user setting. I'm having the computer logged in automatically as a default user because there is only one User on that computer, so I'm not quite sure whether it's stuck before or after user logging in. Anyone know how to fix the startup setting from the command prompt. Please help!!! Much appreciated.
pcpalct 3 Junior Poster in Training
My in-shop staff has been getting a splurge of similar problems lately from the active desktop (and a few web content desktops). I Wonder....
I'll get back to everyone if something comes up :D
Sphyenx 0 Posting Whiz
right click.. prop's then look under Web tab. there will be one for back ground as active desktop.
mommywitcht 0 Newbie Poster
I got a problem I was hoping you could help me with.
A friend of mine built me a computer, he knows all about the hardware and it is all working properly...but it seems to me that my Windows xp is not.
I too try to start my Windows XP and it "hangs" too. This does not happen all the time though! Sometimes the computer works like a charm...then it won't. I can't get it to start up!
I thought it might have been my Sims 2 game - but I uninstalled/re installed it and it is still hanging..
What happens is this -
I start my computer up and It will (not always) give me the black screen that says
"we are sorry...but windows was not able to start...Then it gives me the choices "start in safe mode...start in safe with networking...etc...
Start windows normally..."
I click on "start windows normally"..(I can't get to the safe mode...won't start up...)
It will go to the windows xp logo...
And that is where it hangs......
I could sit there forever looking at the black windows xp screen...LOL.
Or sometimes it will go to start and my monitor will just go black...Like it wants to start - but can't.
I notice that my hard drive does not kick in either, when this happens...(you know how the red button comes on..and you can hear it working...)
So..I have uninstalled my Mcafee, re installed my Norton...
And all that fun hooplah that goes along with figuring out Windows.....went into the msconfig etc...shut off some programs..
Today - It was hanging at the screen that has the user accounts on it...I would click on it and nothing would happen...(in addition to giving me the forever black screen)
I did happen to run my Norton win dr and all and it did come up with a missing file - msvcr80.dll
Which I am wondering if this might be one of the problems?
I have read that Norton picks up this file and says it is needed...when it is actually not?
I am going to look around the web today, but I thought I would ask here first because it seems many have this problem. I am not totally *computer literate* though...But I do no the basics to get by...I don't have a windows disk, my friend put in the Windows using the O.E.M
thanks to all that can help!
gerbil 216 Industrious Poster
well, you are all getting a bit off the HD, but not enough. Just cos it's easy to do, i'd whip the sides off the case and with power off replug everything i could see, including RAM sticks. The more adventurous could even unlock the big one, the processor, lever it up then back and relock it. Don't fully unplug it, cos ul then be tempted to run fingers over the pins and sneeze on em.
Next job is to get your XP install CD and run recovery console, do a chkdsk /p
If it returns any errors at all, do a chkdsk /r
And then a chkdsk /p to check.
It is devilishly difficult to check for viruses if windows will not run...
And do come back with your solutions, please?
mommywitcht 0 Newbie Poster
well, you are all getting a bit off the HD, but not enough. Just cos it's easy to do, i'd whip the sides off the case and with power off replug everything i could see, including RAM sticks. The more adventurous could even unlock the big one, the processor, lever it up then back and relock it. Don't fully unplug it, cos ul then be tempted to run fingers over the pins and sneeze on em.
Next job is to get your XP install CD and run recovery console, do a chkdsk /p
If it returns any errors at all, do a chkdsk /r
And then a chkdsk /p to check.
It is devilishly difficult to check for viruses if windows will not run...
And do come back with your solutions, please?
Well, I ended up using my old (Dell) Windows XP disk and did a sfc/scannow. Turns out that I had a ton of missing DLL files. Actually, I counted 30 - then stopped counting!
I hope that this has done the trick and my Windows XP starts to behave!
gerbil 216 Industrious Poster
good-oh. actually, that's great. sfc would've been next after hardware checks. I wonder why they break, those dlls? virus or trojans at work, maybe... anyway, do say if it was the problem.
[sfc /scannow checks protected files being used by the sys for overwriting; if it detects that it copies in new files from the dllcache; if the dllcache has corrupted files it asks for the CD.... but it beats me why the cache gets corrupted - i always have to load the CD...]
mommywitcht 0 Newbie Poster
good-oh. actually, that's great. sfc would've been next after hardware checks. I wonder why they break, those dlls? virus or trojans at work, maybe... anyway, do say if it was the problem.
[sfc /scannow checks protected files being used by the sys for overwriting; if it detects that it copies in new files from the dllcache; if the dllcache has corrupted files it asks for the CD.... but it beats me why the cache gets corrupted - i always have to load the CD...]
Nope. No viruses. I can't remember the last time I got a virus! And yup...there were many missing/corrupted files. I guess certain software can screw up the DLL's. As can dirty CD's too. The CD does not install correctly, then the rest is all down hill from there.
Simondiki 0 Newbie Poster
Hi everyone
My computer XP does not show any connection's LED in the back/front, It can even start, what may be the problem?
caperjack 875 I hate 20 Questions Team Colleague
It can even start,
hi, i will assume you meant It can't even start ,the most likely cause is the power supply is dead ,next if its not the power supply then its a dead motherboard maybe ,to test motherboard after you rule out the power supply ,remove all add in cards and ram from board ,have only power going to board and try turning it on .
Be a part of the DaniWeb community
We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.