Laptop freezes during start-up

prisonermonkeys

prisonermonkeys

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Hammerhead Garage
Hey guys, I'm having a little trouble at the moment and I was hoping you could help me out. It started about a week ago when my computer would spontaneously restart when I moved to enter my password; I figured it was because it had found an error and was rebooting itself to avoid damage. But now it's started freezing up in the middle of the sequence, mainly during the screen that shows the progress of the computer booting up, and occasionally once the desktop has loaded, but before the process is complete. Once the computer is up and running - like it is now - it's not a problem unless it overheats and shut down to protect itself, in which case I have to go through the process of willing it back to life (but I have a cooling pad to prevent that). Today was the worst example, with it freezing twice during start-up. I really hope it's not getting worse and that this is not a terminal problem because right now I can't afford a new laptop. Aside from freezing during startup, there have bee no problems at all. Everything I save is safe and ever application and piece of hardware works just fine. It's getting the computer to start up that's the problem. I tried doing a system restore as a part of the startup diagnostic (Vista lets me ren a repair application if it sense the computer did not start properl), but no dice.

Any thoughts?
 
I had the same problem with my desktop computer. I stripped it down, cleaned the power supply and fan and it works great now.

If that does not work and if it is not a hardware problem, then reinstall windows as an easy fix.

PS

I am not an expert so maybe before taking my advice wait for asome others to chime in with any other advice,
 
Does the computer blue-screen or just freeze?

I had a problem with the RAM on my computer that sounds similar, but I often got an blue screen error message.

It sounds either like the RAM or the Power Supply as ROAD_DOGG33J suggests, but again I am not a computer expert.
There are some programs available to test for faulty RAM sticks, but I am not sure how they work.

Hope that helps in any way :D

Super_Spig
 
Does your desktop turn white or any signs like this?

My old desktop has this happen to it. Everytime I entered my password, it would load, the screen turned white and I wasn't able to do anything. Turns out the computer had crashed, leaving me formatting my computer.
 
It seems like the dust might of caught up with it's age. You need to get some compressed air and clean it out through the vents and remove the keyboard to clean the dust and whatever that went underneath the keyboard(you can google for information on how to do this). The RAM should not be a problem as I believe that the CPU is overheating and usually the CPU will throttle down it's speed if it's overheating under normal conditions(without dust). You only get new RAM if the memory fried or your computer is slow.
 
It's barely a year old.

Anyway, I suspect it's a problem with the battery. I've taken to starting the computer without it, and it works just fine. It's a little more prone to overheating and shutting itself down - it doesn't help that my desk is make of plywood that acts as an insulator - but it doesn't freeze up.
 
Well try getting a replacement battery then but it is recommended to clean your computer once a year.
 
Nope, not the battery. It's now taking two or three attempts to boot up, but about an hour ago my computer shut down without warning and without over-heating. Oddly enough, when I re-started it, there wasn't a single problem. It's probably a fool's hope, but I'm crossing my fingers that the problem has resolved itself. If it happens again, I might get to the point where I leave my computer on all day and all night just to get me through the exam period. The problem is that if that happens, it will be on until the 26th. But I can't help thinking that if I shut it down, I run the risk of not starting it again. And it's really difficult to do a three-thousand word essay like that.
 
What is your laptop's brand and model number? You can find it on a sticker under the laptop. Other people might have the same problem.
 
nick09
It seems like the dust might of caught up with it's age. You need to get some compressed air and clean it out through the vents and remove the keyboard to clean the dust and whatever that went underneath the keyboard(you can google for information on how to do this). The RAM should not be a problem as I believe that the CPU is overheating and usually the CPU will throttle down it's speed if it's overheating under normal conditions(without dust). You only get new RAM if the memory fried or your computer is slow.
Click to expand...

Although you didn't mention in your post, the problem is with a laptop?
The reply include in this message is bang on as to what should be your first move.
Blast the exhaust ports, and any air vents (remember, with compressed air, don't use too much, just enough to loosen dust / dirt.)

Also, does your computer "beep" at all during boot attempts?
If it does, using the manufacturer's website will tell you what the beeps mean.

If it still has problems, it may get a little technical from here. And there are free applications online to help diagnose the problem.

Fell free to pm me with more specifics.
 
Okay, we have a diagnosis ... sort of. It's still under warranty, and someone who took a look at it seems to think that this is a mechanical, electrical or electronic fault. We're sending it away soon to get it repaired. I'm still a little concerned that they're going to start going through my actual computer or give me a replacemnt. I have three thousand songs on my hard drive; my collection pretty much my pride and joy. I don't want to risk losing it, but there's nearly 13Gb of music in there. Normally, I'd transfer it to a flash drive (or three), but given the sporadc nature of my computer's seizures, I'm worried this may corrupt the data. And I don't want to simply leave it on there and hope for the best in case they accidentally wipe it. Is there some way I can save it all quickly? My brother mentioned compressing it down to the point where a CD holding 20 songs could hold 200, but I'm worried about the quality afterwards (normally I'd ask him, but he's currently in Scotland).
 
Does it have a DVD-RW drive? You could burn your music collection - as files - to a few DVD-Rs. Failing that, plug your HDD (notebook drives work in desktops, right?) into another computer (desktop or laptop) so you can back up your collection without fear of a seizure corrupting your data :)
 
Okay, so we finally found out what happened. I sent my computer away on the 10th July to the company that warranty repairs are contracted out to. After hearing nothing from them, I called on the 24th to find out what happened. The guy on the other end was far too quick with his answers, and claimed that a technician was busy with it right now and that I should call him back the next day.

So I called. They said it was a problem with the video card and that they had one on order from Toshiba, which should be about three days. This was allegedly a good thing, as Toshiba are supposedly quick; I was told HP are hopelessly unreliable. In the interim, I left for university; the plan was that I would pick my computer up when I go back down for my brother's twenty-first this weekend.

After three days, my mother was the one to call them and find out what was going on. She took an instant disliking to the guy at the service desk with his too-quick answers, claiming that the video card was dead on arrival. So we ended up contacting the warranty people, who said that the repair company like to claim a lot of parts are dead on arrival. So it's obvious they haven't done anything.

Fortunately, the person we called from the warranty group knows some of the employees in the repair company and decided to light a fire under them. She seriously implied to them that they had had dozens of complaints and that the contract to do all repairs under warranty would be revoked if they didn't get their act together. Almost overnight, we found out that the problem was not the video card, but the motherboard (which sounds far more likely) and that the computer will be repaired and delivered by the end of the week. I know my mother is now going to be on their case day and night to get it done.

Someone please tell me why the hell I have to jump through hoops at the end of the earth just to get people to do what they're paid to do?
 
Do you race?
I was told HP are hopelessly unreliable.
Click to expand...

That may be true to a degree. My laptop had to be sent in for service two times in about two months. It would have been one month if it didn't take them so long to repair it.
 
ROAD_DOGG33J
That may be true to a degree. My laptop had to be sent in for service two times in about two months. It would have been one month if it didn't take them so long to repair it.
Click to expand...

I've only had good experiences with HP, been buying them for years and only have had one problem with one of my purchases which was my PC i still use to this day, Kept getting blue screen error after only owning the PC for days so i returned to the shop and they wouldnt give me a replacement it had to be sent to HP apparently. Got it back within 7 days, the fault was in the hard drive and they replaced it but not just with an equivelant it was 250gb rather than 200 ! So i was more than happy that it broke :D
 

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