Blue Screen Blues

[ryyannon]

While online this morning, I received a message about an automatic upgrade for my Comodo Firewall. I followed the instructions, upgraded, and ran the suggested malware scan after it was installed. Two Trojans were found deep in the OS (which surprised me, since I'm running no less than two compatible malware protections plus a stand-alone scanner) , and I elected to quarantine them (the only opti!on offered by the Comodo scan).

There then came a new message to restart the whole system.

It booted into XP, and then the dreaded Blue Screen came on. It continued turning itself off, rebooti!ng, turning itself off and rebooting, until I manually turned it off. I tried several times to reboot after giving it a rest, but there's always the same blue screen with no cursor.

No warning messages - or messages of any kind. Just lots of blue.

So, does anyone remember the sequence of keys needed to open a command box and/or to initiate a return to a previous configuration?

I can Google this of course (I'm now using an old iMac which seems like a dinosaur) but I thought I'd float this out in the event that someone suggests some nifty solution or possibility to try.

Thanks for your input

[cornerstone]

Step one is 'Safe Mode', which means as you reboot you press the F8 key, and in theory it gives you some options to start in safe mode and so on.

In that list may be: Last Known Good Configuration

If you can boot it in safe mode you may be able to access system restore, not sure.

Failing that if you boot from the original CD there should be a repair option.

That's not a solution in of itself necessarily, but it's a decent place to start.

Your problem may be too much anti-malware/virus protection - some of them are too aggressive, as if the whole system exists just to stop viruses. Norton was taken out to the back of barn and shot years ago - caused ten times the grief that any virus ever did.

[ryyannon]

Thank you - I'll try that and report back.

I'm using what are considered 'non-agressive' virus and malware applications (can't remember which just at this moment - oh yes, Avast and Prevx.2) but something tells me that quarantining those two Trojans (which were embedded deep in the OS) might have neutralized the whole thing.

I'm going to try your suggestion right now....

[ryyannon]

Hum...

I can actually do this in real-time whle posting here....

ok, I pressed F8 and selected a number of different options, leading up to Restore To An Earlier...whatever, unfortunately my OS is in French, but I'm sure you'll know what I mean.

I first tried Resore the Active Directory, which I guess it did, and gave me a message back that everything was just fine in the system.

I then tried the 'Debugging' option, but still got the blue screen on startup.

Finally, I hit the Last Good Configuration option, but still the blue screen on startup.

The last possible option was to try to open a command-line window. I chose it, and a blinking _ appeared at the top left of the screen, and while I was relating this event in this post, a new cmd.exe screen in Safe Mode appeared.

It's now patiently waiting for me to type in some sort of command, but naturally, I've no real idea of what to write - except maybe 'Give me my desktop back!'

Something tells me that it's not going to take a command like that very seriously. Do you happen to know the little magic formula (restore.exe.iwantmydesktopback) (?)

Waiting with bated breath....

[ryyannon]

Addendum:

This actually happened to me some months ago, and I somehow found a way to type in a previous date for the system to revert back to, and it worked. At present, I have no idea how I did that.

The reason why I think personally selecting an earlier date might work is that I had no choice in the dialogue window that appeared after hitting F8. There was just a generic 'Return to the last known good configuration' message, and as I said, it didn't work. I'm thinking that maybe the system thinks that the configuration that crashed it is still a good configuration. Or something like that.

Anyway, I'm still wondering what command is needed to open up the option of selecting one's own date... Or any other intelligent little commands that will convince the system that I'm working hard to communicate with it...

[ryyannon]

Well, for the thousands of people who are following this thread and literally pissing themselves senseless wondering what's going to happen next, here's what happened next:

I dug out the instructions I had used the last time this happened (never throw anything away) and typed c:/windows/system32/restore/restui.exe and entered the command. I got a new window wherein I was able to select my own restore point. I selected two days ago, entered it, and in a new window, the system proceeded to restore itself.

A new Safe Mode window opened, but nothing else is happening. Just a black screen with litte 'Safe Mode' phrases at each of the four corners. Nothing to chose, nothing to click on, no other options.

I'm going to try a restart and see if the issue has been resolved....

[ryyannon]

Well, by golly, it's come back to life!

Thank you, C-Stone for reminding me of that precious F8 key....and for everyone else, I hope that the above command prompt will serve others who might find themselves up the same shitty creek someday...

Goodbye old dinosaur iMac - just as I was getting used to you again...

Life is Good

[cornerstone]

No worries!

(Upon discovering you had fixed it, I had to hurriedly amend my post telling you to give up, pour lighter fluid over the laptop and burn it )

I was also going to say, Avast is a good choice so keep with that one.

[ryyannon]

Man, what joy to be back in Dell/Windoze-land...

As relentless as I was in my praise of all things Apple for nearly ten years, my experience with The Dark Side (no, not the forum) has really been positive: I just somehow feel lighter using this stuff.

Of course, even compared to this Dell (Latitude) which is already several years old, I'm confident that a new Apple 'Air' laptop would be heavenly. And only two or three times more expensive than the Dell.

For my purposes (which admittedly are very limited) XP does everything I want; having spent years on OS9.1 - and having bonded with it - I never really got used to Apple OS 10+

Psychologically and even physiologically, being offline because of a crashed computer is the closest thing for me to A Really Bad Trip - back in the days when I was taking things that could produce RBTs.

On to the next problem: as per my thread in the Supporters Trade sub-forum, has anyone got a replacement crystal for a PAM Asian Auto 203 Brevettato?

Broke mine, and the people here in France can't find a replacement.

The specs of the crystal and the bezel are as follows: 39.96mm to 40mm for the crystal and 40.2mm for the bezel's inner diameter.

The crystal is in slightly convex mineral glass. Which is not to say that I'm not interested in a plexi or sapphire version if dimensions are right.

Will pay for your time and postage; special offer for non-members: I'll pay for a year's upgrade to Supporting Member!

[Victoria]

Life is Good

YAY! I'm so glad to hear it, Klink!

Okay, guys another techie problem. See if you can help me out, Cornerstone.

VICTORIA'S COMPUTER WOES TALE

I just got my 2 y.o. Dell XPS 200 computer back from techies who installed a fresh 320GB HD.

Previous to this, I had a half-year's worth of my computer shutting down at unexpected moments. The front of the tower, had blinked amber lights instead of a steady green, when doing so. I always disconnected it, and it rebooted until one day, it just wouldn't any more. (Please don't scold; I know I should've taken care of it earlier). Techies assured me my HD had gone bad, and I needed to change it.

I picked the new one up two weeks ago, and last night, SECONDS after posting my last reply to the religion thread (5 AMish), it does the same thing -- HD shuts down forcibly, and I get amber lights in front of tower.

Having paid $500 something dollars (!) for a complete diagnosis, itself $199, install of a new Western Digital HD, paid for a new external Seagate 250GB, and backup of my old HD, I expected it never to cause me these problems again.

I can only assume the problem was not a bad HD, or it was a combination of factors, which these techies didn't ferret out.

What do you think is going on?

BTW, I left instructions to check the CD/DVD writer because though it burns 8x, it was slogging at 2x at the most. The techie said because the HD was bad, it was doing that. With the minty HD, it should be working at speed again. At first yes, but I'm at 2x again. Now this.

HELP!

Thanks!

[ryyannon]

The guys who repaired it should offer some sort of guarantee, no?

As for technical advice, I'm as lost as you are.

Have you thought of logging in to a Dell users' forum - or some sort of Dell online help...or any one of the many computer geek forums?

Back to my first suggestion: work like that should be guaranteed - to produce the desired results. If you're getting the same symptoms, you could have just left the old drive in there...

I'd take it back and politely ask that they fix it this time.

But given the ridiculous price of a new low-end but perfectly satisfactory Dell laptop, maybe you should consider investing in one fresh off the assembly-line? Just think, you be able to log in to RWG in the bathtub, the sauna, where ever!

But be sure it's running XP and not Vista...

[flamemax]

Hi Victoria,

The problem couls be a multitude of things

Bios version

Bad motherboard

Bad power supply

Unlikely but possible (I've seen this b4) bad brand new HD

It could also be that your CPU heat sink is clogged with dust, causing the CPU to overheat and shut down.

Bad memory can also cause this type of behavior.

Does your system let out any kind of audible "beeps" when this happens?

Estimates costs;

Bios version = Free

Bad motherboard = +/- $150

Bad PSU = +/- $100

HD = you know the cost of that already

CPU heat sink = the cost of an "air in a can" canister and the know-how on finding and dismanteling the CPU and heat sink.

[UB7]

Easy solution...GET A MAC!

[ryyannon]

Is Hyper-Threading like The Shortest Thread Ever? Since he can turn in on, can he tell T. how to turn it off?

[Victoria]

Unlikely but possible (I've seen this b4) bad brand new HD

Thanks!!

This is my first suspicion, because as I say, the CD/DVD writer was working at speed (8x) the week after I got it back home. Suddenly, it downgraded itself.

Does your system let out any kind of audible "beeps" when this happens?

None at all. Just flashing amber lights in rapid succession, in front of the Dell tower. I let it rest last night, when it started doing that. So far, it hasn't suddenly switched itself off today...

Flamemax, and Ryya , I am going to take it back to the techies tomorrow, because I PRESUME I have a warranty. It hasn't been 3 weeks yet. I do have a very great laptop, which I used in the Dell's absence.

Modesty compels me not to use it in the bathtub, Ryyannon. RWG deserves a break during my ablutions.

[phaedo]

What would random beeps mean? My laptop is only about 3 months old and started beeping randomly, am a bit concerned.

Oh, and Ryyannon, still wishing us a merry christmas and happy new year? It's March already where I am!

[ryyannon]

What would random beeps mean? My laptop is only about 3 months old and started beeping randomly, am a bit concerned.

Oh, and Ryyannon, still wishing us a merry christmas and happy new year? It's March already where I am!

I kept it up for our Chinese members.

[flamemax]

@phaedo

Beeps usually point towards a hardware failure fo some sort.

My question to you would be - When does it beep? When you boot it, when you hit a key on the kybrd, when you perform a certain operation?

Hardware beeps usually happen during the POST (booting of the system before the OS kick in).

If this is the case, listen for the morse code hidden behind the beeps

You should hear dits and dots, this will = a code which can be found in the users manual of the mobo (motherboard).

What would random beeps mean? My laptop is only about 3 months old and started beeping randomly, am a bit concerned.

Oh, and Ryyannon, still wishing us a merry christmas and happy new year? It's March already where I am!

[phaedo]

@phaedo

Beeps usually point towards a hardware failure fo some sort.

My question to you would be - When does it beep? When you boot it, when you hit a key on the kybrd, when you perform a certain operation?

Hardware beeps usually happen during the POST (booting of the system before the OS kick in).

If this is the case, listen for the morse code hidden behind the beeps

You should hear dits and dots, this will = a code which can be found in the users manual of the mobo (motherboard).

It beeps randomly - if it has been running for a few hours usually, while it is just sitting with me not even touching it. If I switch it off then back on it will likely beep when shutting down and on bootup, but if left a while before rebooting it will not beep. Think it could be to do with overheating, should have it looked at.

[cornerstone]

It beeps randomly - if it has been running for a few hours usually, while it is just sitting with me not even touching it. If I switch it off then back on it will likely beep when shutting down and on bootup, but if left a while before rebooting it will not beep. Think it could be to do with overheating, should have it looked at.

Could it be something to do with being set to beep if it goes in and out of standby / hibernation / or upon some kind of battery power event? If there's nothing wrong other than the beep, it could be that it's just set up to beep at that time and that you can change the setting. Looking in the BIOS settings might be a start.

[Victoria]

Flamemax, and Ryya , I am going to take it back to the techies tomorrow, because I PRESUME I have a warranty. It hasn't been 3 weeks yet. I do have a very great laptop, which I used in the Dell's absence.

It's Christmas all over again.

They refunded my U$500+ and are going to fix the computer without charge. THAT MEANS MORE REP WATCHES! YAY!