***Help! Computer problems.. is this a virus??
 

Hey guys! Recently my laptop started to run very slowly and then when I tried to reboot... it would load Windows and then freeze. :( I tried to do a hard shut down and then it runs chkdsk, then freezes when it starts up again. Then I tried to start up on safe mode and same thing happens. I have McAfee running in the background all the time and still virus scan my computer every 2 days. The laptop is running Vista. Please help!!

Jen

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Can you somehow run System restore ?

everytime i'm in safemode i try to roll back and it just freezes :( sometimes it won't even get to the vista login screen and just goes black and stays like that! ehh this is a nightmare!

ohhh I had this happen to my sony viao :( the hard drive went on it and I lost everything :(

oh nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!! do you have any idea how the hard drive went bad? ahh!

It does sound a bit like a hard drive failure or a bad cluster that isn't being read.

First things first...Get into safe mode and try to back up all the files you can on a thumb drive or usb hard drive.

Next...Some brands of laptops have built-in system diagnostics which can be selected from the boot menu (pressing f12 or some other designated function key). This feature will allow you to check the hardware in the laptop before windows is even booted. Run that diagnostic to get a conclusive result.

If it is the hard drive, bear in mind that all hard drives will inevitably go bad. Anything from power fluctuations to physical jolting can speed up this impending failure, but in the tech world it can often be the luck of the draw with particular brands - especially with manufacturers who are intent on maximizing their profits while minimizing inventory costs.

My philosophy: Backup, backup, backup.

ty.. i will try that right now and see if i can pull anything off of the hd :*( stupid dell..

If it's under warranty, Dell tech support will need the error code from the diagnostic tool. Make sure to write it down for them.

Here's to hoping that the diagnostic runs clean, and it's something minor with the OS. Such is the nature of troubleshooting. :thumbsup

Hope you get it fixed mate, sucks when your PC goes to shit... If all else fails, you might try a format and re-install... probably last case scenario but speak to dell first...

yeah i had hell with my laptop, i try not to webmaster on a laptop, the hdd is just way too undependable for any serious webmastering. I built my own pc a few years back and had not had a hdd failure. I remember i was reloading windows on my laptop every few months when i had it.

good luck!

i think, it is adware

Do you have a friend or acquaintance who is able to remove/swap the HD into another computer and copy its contents? You may have better luck there since it's not trying to boot the operating system from the drive (which could cause problems both with a developing mechanical fault and virus infected applications)

If it's a reasonably modern drive then it's probably SATA so it can plug straight into the SATA port of a desktop computer. If it's a bit older then it's probably IDE, which uses a different connector for laptop sized drives. You can buy a simple adapter for this.

And while we're at it, listen to eroticsexxx

It's not a question of IF but a question of WHEN a hard drive will fail

BACKUP BACKUP BACKUP! Is the only way to be sure!

I have a similar problem on my desktop.... the HD starts making a noise like a whirring and a clicking and then everything freezes. Sometimes the PC crashes or it unfreezes and im able to shut down.

You'd better call a technician!!