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HELP HELP HELP!! Completely reinstalling everything from scratch..

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Or sort of, I;m using my Mam's laptop to post this. My PC is fucked. It is so slow to load and freezes when I use IE and I had to install Mozilla as it wouldn't work any other way when I wanted on t'internet.

I switched off the PC today and switched it back on 4 times and it just stays on the black screen with a white mouse cursor - no blue Windows XP log in. So I put the recorvery CD I got with the PC to repair it,and it says I need an administrator password - so thinking this is my own XP password I put it in.

It's not, ARGH.

I NEED TO REINSTALL EVERYTHING ONTO MY PC, DELETE IT ALL. I DON'T CARE ANYMOREM I NEED MY PC BACK.

Can someone instruct me how to delete everything and reinstall everything from scratch please? I'll happily lose all 3000+ of my songs on my PC to get it working again.

Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease, help.

xxx,

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Have you tried just hitting enter?
  • smitherzsmitherz Posts: 968 Part of The Mix Family
    should be just enter
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Yes, and CTRL ALT + DELETE/ ALT + F4 when it goes blank, I've waited an HOUR to see if the bastard blank screen'll change - it doesn't!

    When I tried to reinstall/boot from the CD it said it couldn't find some items on the CD as well. ARGH. It's a complete and utter mess.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Do you have a windows XP CD? Cant you do it that way? :confused:

    If worst comes to worst you'll need a CD to start from scratch. But then you'll also need to download all the hardware drivers. As well.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm trying to repair Windows XP from booting from the CD and in the blue screen it's saying " SETUP CANNOT COPY THE FILE:PARVDN.SYS" and such, when I try and hit retry it says it can't find it on the CD. I feel like crying, honestly. It always fucking pours when PCs are involved with me, btw. :crying:
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Do you have a windows XP CD? Cant you do it that way? :confused:

    If worst comes to worst you'll need a CD to start from scratch. But then you'll also need to download all the hardware drivers. As well.

    How do I do this? Starting from scratch? Completely having an empty PC again as if it were shiney shiney new?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It would be a shame to have to wipe all your music from your PC, especially if you paid a lot for them.

    If the Recovery disk is asking for a administrator password, and you haven't set one, chances are it's probably just nothing. So try typing administrator as the user name and leaving the password blank to see if that gets it going.

    Windows recovery disks differ slightly from each manufacturer. Its best to contact them if your not sure how to use it.

    If you're still having problems, post some more details about your system and the steps you are taking to troubleshoot the problem, and it will be easier to others to help.

    I would advise against formating the hard drive untill you know exactly what your doing, beacuse a lot of PC/laptop maufatures these days install a lot of the recovery files on the hard drive itself.

    Hope this helps.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    sonicaab wrote:
    It would be a shame to have to wipe all your music from your PC, especially if you paid a lot for them.

    I didn't! Shhh.
    sonicaab wrote:
    If the Recovery disk is asking for a administrator password, and you haven't set one, chances are it's probably just nothing. So try typing administrator as the user name and leaving the password blank to see if that gets it going.

    It didn't ask for a username.
    sonicaab wrote:
    Windows recovery disks differ slightly from each manufacturer. Its best to contact them if your not sure how to use it.

    I know, but I'm in a panic. It's a Medion PC. I'll look at their site see what they have.
    sonicaab wrote:
    I would advise against formating the hard drive untill you know exactly what your doing, beacuse a lot of PC/laptop maufatures these days install a lot of the recovery files on the hard drive itself.

    Sigh, I just want my PC to work. It was working fine before I left for the Reading festival, I didn't download/delete anything I thought'd bugger up the settings on it or owt. GRR.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Argh And They Helpline Would Be Closed At 8pm Wouldn't It. God Forbid Anyone's Pc Not Working After Then. Raaaaaaaah.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    This reminds me of a problem my cousin had with his Dell PC. I had to work on it for a week to fix it trying all sorts.

    Unfortunately, the steps I took are rather risky if your not sure what your doing, so I advise you just wait until you can speak to the manufacturer tomorrow.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Can you not try and get into Windows from the Windows CD?

    My mothersboard fucked up a few weeks ago because I kept yanking the lead out of the back instead of shutting it down properly, 2000+ songs lost and it cost me 70 notes :thumb:
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Lad from work is gonna bring me in a Windows XP Home Edition CD to have a bash, and I'll try rebooting from that. YAY.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    To be honest if you don't know that much about PC's then reinstalling windows from scratch is one of the hardest thigns to do cos you then need all the drievrs for the screen, sound card, etc

    Some PC's have a recovery CD and some have a copy of your windows original stored on the harddrive and you just press a sequence of keys on boot to reinstall it... maybe try pressing F8 on boot up

    Are there not geeky guys where you live you can get to help you in exchange for a kiss?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I have the CD with the drivers et al that guff. And a lad at work says it's cause the CD I used wasn't the actual Windows XP nonsense that it didn't work, as it said it couldn't find some files, like.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    1983 wrote:
    I have the CD with the drivers et al that guff. And a lad at work says it's cause the CD I used wasn't the actual Windows XP nonsense that it didn't work, as it said it couldn't find some files, like.


    I didn't quite understand all of that but is this lad from work sorting you out?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I've never bothered with recovery CDs... seemed too confusing.

    Can you start in safe mode? Keep hitting F8 when you turn the power on and then select 'start in safe mode'. Then if poss. run system restore! :D
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    List what CDs you have so we can see which one might work.
  • Saeed MSaeed M Posts: 270 The Mix Regular
    I've never bothered with recovery CDs... seemed too confusing.

    Can you start in safe mode? Keep hitting F8 when you turn the power on and then select 'start in safe mode'. Then if poss. run system restore! :D

    This would normally be my first choice too. There's also another option when you hit F8 that is 'Use last known working configuration' (or something like that, I can't remember the exact words).
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Saeed M wrote:
    This would normally be my first choice too. There's also another option when you hit F8 that is 'Use last known working configuration' (or something like that, I can't remember the exact words).

    I tried using the last known config and it still went to the black screen etc.

    I'm gonna have a bash with a proper Windows XP CD rather than the Medion Recovery CD, a lad from work is bringing in.

    He's gonna talk me through on the dog and bone how to delete everything on my PC and start it all so fresh and so clean, clean.

    See what I did there?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Im superised no one has said "Why not try and set that drive to Slave and use a working HHD with windows on"

    Seams more of a logical answer?

    Explore all the options before a format:)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    CoolMe wrote:
    Im superised no one has said "Why not try and set that drive to Slave and use a working HHD with windows on"

    Seams more of a logical answer?

    Explore all the options before a format:)

    An interesting answer, but it assumes that the person doing it is familiar with the innards of a computer, and that you can somehow get ahold of a working copy of windows that would be ok for that computer.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Mist wrote:
    An interesting answer, but it assumes that the person doing it is familiar with the innards of a computer, and that you can somehow get ahold of a working copy of windows that would be ok for that computer.

    She could ask her Computer friend thats helping her?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Or use a windows xp cd to boot up and do a repair using the recovery console

    That's what I'm gonna try first of all and if there's no joy, completely overhaul everything thatw as ever on my PC, innit.
  • Indrid ColdIndrid Cold Posts: 16,688 Skive's The Limit
    1983 wrote:
    That's what I'm gonna try first of all and if there's no joy, completely overhaul everything thatw as ever on my PC, innit.
    The idea about using a second hard drive is good. Or even better, if your friend know how, he could connect your hard drive to his machine and rescue all the files you want, then put them back into yours after you've fixed it.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    To be honest doing a complete reinstall of windows (i just did it on my pc) shouldn't delete everything from the hard drive. It'll lose all the drivers and programs may need to be reinstalled but it'll only rewrite the windows section of the c: directory - things like music files on the hard drive should still be where you left them.

    IMPORTANT BIT
    If you put in the correct disc (sounds like that's what you're getting from work) then windows should give you the option to just replace windows rather than reformat the whole the hard drive.

    If you do that then after the reinstall the green fields background should come up with the basic desktop options.

    From there reinstall all the drivers and then have a play around for what's still left on your harddrive.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It depends on where you keep stuff as to whether a repair / replace is any better than a full reinstall. As far as I remember any replace option kills the my docs folder and anything in there, my pics, my music etc.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Jim V wrote:
    windows should give you the option to just replace windows rather than reformat the whole the hard drive.

    I Have never got that option....:sour:
  • smitherzsmitherz Posts: 968 Part of The Mix Family
    CoolMe wrote:
    I Have never got that option....:sour:

    The option is there. What it does is replace all the system files and keeps the rest of your data, however this option should only be used as a last resort. If there is an alternative and there is it should be used.

    Unfortunately i cannot post the instructions yet but if the problem has not been resolved tomorrow i shall post up :thumb:

    Any noob should not re-format if they can help it as most will struggle to get basic drivers, and for more complex machines drivers can be a bitch for a more experienced user.
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