Member Avatar for wwbuhljr

During the boot process (W2k, 500gb maxtor hd, 1gb ram, 1.8 ghz AMD), computer launched Checkdisk to repair a problem, which it had done once before a month, or so ago, successfully. Not the case this time. Checkdisk was unable to fix the problem! I tried to reboot, but Windows hung in "Loading personal settings" phase. Figured the drive was bad so tried to format with W2K Install disk (since I could not get the Maxtor disk to work at all). Since this was unsuccessful, as I could not load any of the new partitions (why it created 4 partitions I am not sure), I swapped out the drive with another I knew was good. Could not find boot sector that was operable on that drive either and the BIOS and CMOS process was extremely slow. At this point I have a large axe in the garage I am about redesign the case, mother board, et al, if you get my drift. Any help would be greatly appreciated. ()

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Symptoms described by (Windows repair failing, Checkdisk unable to fix, another known-good drive also not producing a usable boot and the BIOS/POST running very slowly) point away from a single failed HDD and toward a power-delivery or motherboard/controller problem. Replies from and suggest sensible first checks; since those did not restore normal behavior, focus next on the board/PSU and on non-destructive data-preservation measures.

Do a careful hardware triage before any more writes to the drives. Visually inspect the motherboard and PSU for bulging or leaking electrolytic capacitors and scorching. Build a minimal test system (one stick of RAM, CPU, video, keyboard, a single drive) and power it from a known-good PSU (swap with a working unit if available). If swapping the PSU clears the slow BIOS/boot issues, replace the faulty PSU. If the board still hangs or is slow with a good PSU, suspect the on-board IDE/controller or the motherboard itself.

Try bypasses that avoid reformatting or risky repairs. Replace the IDE ribbon and move the drive to the alternate IDE channel or use a different connector on the same board. If the on-board controller is suspect, try an add-on IDE/SATA controller card and boot from that device to see whether the drives become responsive — this often proves the motherboard controller is bad without replacing the whole board immediately.

For data safety and diagnostics: attach the problem drive as a secondary (non-boot) drive to a good system and create a sector image before attempting repairs. Use SMART and vendor tools to run non-destructive tests and read health attributes. If recovery is the goal, work from an image and use partition/boot-sector recovery tools rather than repeated chkdsk runs that write to the disk. If all hardware bypasses fail and BIOS remains sluggish with multiple drives removed, replace the motherboard (or use an add-in controller) rather than reformatting repeatedly. Take ESD precautions and document jumper/Bios settings before changing anything.

Member Avatar for Anthony23

have you tried booting in to dos and doing a Format c: from there? or if its a bios problem perhaps clear the cmos/take out and then replace the battery

Member Avatar for wwbuhljr

I have no way of booting to dos, but I will change battery. I will also try drive in another computer (old one I do ot use) to see if it will recognize the drive. It may have something to do with the ide control on the mother board. Thanks for respoonse.

Member Avatar for Glasgow

Hi,
Have you tried to repair from the cd you have?

Boot up PC hit F2 or delete to get into the bios, look for boot tab at top and change boot priority 1st boot device to CD rom..
Insert your disc and restart pc..
when prompted to repair or install hit repair..

This should fix the problem

Glas

Member Avatar for wwbuhljr

Hi,
Have you tried to repair from the cd you have?

Boot up PC hit F2 or delete to get into the bios, look for boot tab at top and change boot priority 1st boot device to CD rom..
Insert your disc and restart pc..
when prompted to repair or install hit repair..

This should fix the problem

Glas

Tried "repair" first and received response that installation could not be repaired. Then tried maxtor disk to see if it had any utilities that would help...none. Tried to format thru Windows install disk, set up four partitions,, could not istall in any of them. Tried another drive (HD) and the system would not boot from that either. May be board of power supply?

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