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ok so I have a password to login to windows. I come home from work tonight and try to login. Keyboard won't work. Hmm. I get my dads (his is a ps2, mine is a USB) still no go. The numlick light is on and it's like the keyboard is frozen. I tried restaeting it, no change. How can I bypass the login screen or otherwise get into windows? I'm on my iPhone now. Thank god I have it :)
Start in safe mode by hitting F8 when the windows boot up begins. This will not load the drivers for the USB keyboard. You can then try uninstalling them and reinstalling them to see if driver corruption is your problem.
If this doesn't fix it then it is either some other software glitch or worse case a hardware fault you will need to track down.
CrazyB
safe mode did nothing to help. Neitherjeyboard worked. I did use the admin account to disable the pw on my normal account and I got into windows normally. I unibstalled and reinstalled the drivers and hardware, even the software for my USB keyboard. Nothing worked. Under device mgr it says "windows could not load the driver. It is missingor corrupt. Code 39". It says that for the ps2 and the usb boards. The "f" keys on my usbboard work, but nothing else does
Ok, I tried booting with the cd and repairing it, the keyboard and mouse worked through the beginning part, but after the reboot the mouse freezes (even a ps2 mouse) and the keyboard still won't completely function. Only the function keys work, no #s or letters, so now I can't type in the product key. I also tried using recovery console, but I don't know how to use it. So now I'm stuck @ setup how can I fix this? Or at least get into windows and xfer my stuff to my 2nd hdd then just do a clean reinstall?
I've still got my old hdd w/windows installed, maybe I can boot from that drive then transfer my crap then just reinstall on my main drive
Here's what I would try...
First don't use the USB keyboard, unplug it completely...some computers won't reconize USB boards until widoze starts. Make sure the computer is OFF when you plug in ps2 keyboard. Also try a different keyboard.
Turn on the computer.
Enter Bios setup (usually F1) and make sure that the ps2 port is enabled, disable USB and that halt on all errors is disabled.
Try the non-destructive install again and see if you can enter cd key.
Not sure this will work but would be my first steps.
Let me know if you are still stuck and we can go from there.
The other question that has not been asked is if in the immediate period before this happened you had installed any new h/ware or s/ware at all?
Matthew
thanks for the suggestions. Nothing new was installed prior to this. I started the co puter and it was at the login screen when we lost power and it shut off. When I turned it back on I had the issue. I'll try it again tomorrow when I get home. Thanks!!
Then your windows install is almost certainly corrupted - would have happened as the power was cut at this stage of boot. There is a minor possibility that something blew on your mobo.Quote:
Originally Posted by SXRguyinMA
If the non-destructive re-install doesn't work I think your best bet would be to retrieve the data and do a full clean install.If the full clean install leaves you with the same issue I'd start looking at the mobo.
Matthew
Everything worked perfectly, except I opened iTunes and it said it couldn't find the cd drive and to reinstall iTunes. Mouse worked fine, just part of the keyboard didn't. I don't think the mobo is bad, as they keyboard workedfine until windows would boot up. I'm going to install my old drive tomorrow and xfer everything and wipe it clean. I've been wanting to anyways to repartition my drive. Guess I have an excuse now :D
ok I plugged in my old HDD and booted it up, all works perfectly, so mobo is good thankfully :bowdown:
so tonight its on to swapping everything from my current drive to teh secondary, and reformatting/partitioning and reinstalling windows
ok so I'm running off my old HDD now (on lunch break) but when I go into my other one and try to get into my documents to copy my stuff, it says access is denied. how can I go in and get everything out? :?
That's because those directories were user specific and password protected. It's better to back up any "personal" folders to a folder on the root of the drive before installing the new OS.Quote:
Originally Posted by SXRguyinMA
If your windows is intact on the old drive and working even in safe mode you can boot off of it as admin save the stuff to c:/yourfolder and then you should be able to get it when booting off the new drive.
You may get round it by using Linux or some password cracking programs. Others can tell you about that, not me.
CrazyBusdriver
I got into the old HDD using admin/safe mode and disabled the PW, then used it like that for a day or two (minus keyboard lol), then tried to do a non-destructive reinstall. now I'm stuck in the middle of the reinstall because my keyboard wont work and I cant enter the CD key. Could that be it? :?
I have Norton 360 and had it set to backup the files in "my documents" and the backup is stored on my 2nd drive, so I should be ok then right?
thanks for all your help and info so far! +rep
1. Thanks for the rep - the help comes free :)Quote:
Originally Posted by SXRguyinMA
2. USB keyboard by chance? Use a PS2 one for the windows install as the USB drivers aren't loaded.
3. Norton (/me vomits uncontrollably for an hour) Ahem. You want a computer that runs or one that wades through "Norton Everlasting Computer Glue". Get a decent security suite p-leeez.
4. Probably (re the Norton backups) who knows. It's a crapola piece of software.
Cheers :D
CrazyBulldozer
lol thanks on the Norton, always worked well for me :up:
I tried using the PS2 KB and it worked through the boot-up, but once the setup screen opened it would freeze. the PS2 mouse would do the same, although if I kept moving it around it would be ok, until I stopped moving it that is :?
Have you reset the CMOS? There will be a jumper or a switch near the BIOS chip and battery. Try that. Hold it down or switch the jumper (or remove the battery) for ten seconds with no power plug in. If you still have problems with using PS2 and mouse after that you have a H/ware issue. Strip down to one HDD, one DVD/CDROM no Graphics adapter or add ins and then try. If you still have problems then its either your Mobo or PSU. Always suspect the PSU when you have weird problems. They're buggers.
CrazyBored
but both USB and PS2 keyboard and mouse work with my old 40GB drive, just not with my 500GB drive that the power failure occured on, so it's making me think of the OS rather than HW. I'll try the CMOS clear tonight, see if that helps :up:
Have you done format/mbr ?
If the boot record got screwed there's your problem, maybe.
CrazyBishop
thats what I was planning on doing on the 500GB, but I wanted to transfer my files from it to my 400GB first, but I cant access it :?
norton ran backup the morning before it happened, so it should be all set. I just have to figure out how to get norton to restore the backup now
load into a live cd of linux (Any distro will do) and copy your backup data, it may even beable to open it for you.
then disconnect your 400gb to be safe and start a full install and do a full format (Not quick)
all the backup data is already on my 2nd (400Gb) drive, I need to get stuff off the main (500GB) drive
ok I cleared the CMOS. Now it went through the first part of the setup just fine (with the ps2 kb and mouse. After the reboot, the screen comes up saying setup is restarting and I see the mouse pointer, then it's like I hit the reset button and reboots. I'm trying the NDI again now, maybe somethin wasn't quite right
:EDIT: failed the second time, looks like it's start from scratch :(
It must have crashed. My grandmother's emachines was crashing just after installing windows a lot, then windows wouldn't even install, similar to how it behaves if there is an overclock (won't get some files from the CD), then, at that point, I just gave up. I tried about a year later, windows installed, and it worked just fine.
I think you need to zero wipe the drive using the ultimate boot CD or do a format/mbr because this is typical of mbr corruption.
i would that also cb, i ave seen meny a machine that wouldn't install because the existing install was damaged,een if you format it, some time it would go mad, mainly becuase theres the mbr error,
UBCD is good, i personally have a machine that has low level format in the bios 8) really cool, but takes years, can fix drives that are condemed.
yep, went in and erased my partitions, then repartitioned, then formatted, then isntalled, all is well. now I need to figure out how to setup my old accounts (norton, diskeeper, etc) and get them all going again :?
also need to find my CD for my d-link wireless card :?