Member Avatar for krnielse

Hi, I am have had this laptop for 3 years now and suddenly yesterday it decided to die on me.

When starting up and getting to the VAIO screen it goes black screen and says "Operating system not found". Using either F10 and/or F8 to get to recovery mode doesnt work. Went to BIOS and reset to default but still get the same error.

Any suggestions??

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by Rik_

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Brief, practical addendum for building on and without repeating earlier suggestions.

Start by determining whether the hard disk is a firmware-visible device or a physical failure. Recommended checks: power off and remove AC/battery, listen for the drive spinning or clicking, and confirm the BIOS lists the drive model and capacity (not just "IDE" or "Unknown"). If the BIOS does not list a drive, a hardware fault is likely; testing the drive in a USB-to-SATA adapter or another PC quickly confirms that.

If the disk is visible, follow a data-first workflow to avoid making recovery harder. Boot a Linux live USB (Try Ubuntu) or a diagnostic environment and inspect SMART. Example commands (from a live session):

sudo smartctl -H /dev/sda
sudo smartctl -A /dev/sda

If SMART shows problems or read errors appear, create a sector-by-sector clone before attempting repairs. A common tool is ddrescue; an example clone command:

sudo ddrescue -f -n /dev/sda /media/usb/backup.img /media/usb/ddrescue.log

Work from the clone or image with tools such as TestDisk (partition/table recovery) and PhotoRec (file carving). Avoid running write-heavy repairs like chkdsk or any automated Windows fixes on a failing drive until an image exists.

If the drive is dead or unrecoverable, replacement is the practical route. Sony OEM recovery discs are an option but often costly; if a Windows COA sticker with a product key is present, a matching generic install ISO can be used to restore the system after installing a new drive. Prioritize cloning or copying important data before attempting any reinstall or repair that writes to the original disk.

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Member Avatar for Chaky

Is HD being detected in BIOS?
If not, that would most likely be dead hard drive.

If you see it in BIOS, then it could be that the MBR or boot sector got corrupt. You should try to using XP Setup CD and use rcovery console there. From there may be able to remedy the situation by using FIXBOOT or FIXMBR commands, but that is a long shot..

Other choice would be burning ERD bootable image to CD and trying to fix the drive from there.

Member Avatar for Rik_

It's a Sony Vaio so it wouldn't have been supplied with a proper windows cd.

Member Avatar for Chaky

Nevertheless, it could help.

Member Avatar for Rik_

Undoubtedly! :) I was just pointing out that Sony are too cheap to actually supply a windows cd.

Member Avatar for Chaky

.. and they charge for replacement recovery disks.

"Customer supprot" means "supported by customers" there.

Member Avatar for Rik_

Absolutely! They are expensive to buy and even more expensive when they go wrong!

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