[TheTexasAirman]

DELL DIMENSION C521 RUNNING AMD ATHLON PROCESSOR - WINDOWS VISTA HOME BASIC 32 BIT
System became unstable after each "update" and had to keep going to restore point. Finally, wouldn't reboot windows and I got the recovery screen options. Tried the recovery point, no go, tried each option, nothing worked. Finally took it to a shop to get it diagnosed - $60 down the drain - they said no hardware problems, no virus, probably need to reload Vista OS - but their shop doesn't hold a Vista license!!! So, took it home, tried several downloads off the internet (using wife's computer) and cutting cd's to run. None of them worked as promised. IT guy at work said he could fix it for $60. Now its home. Windows starts - but goes into a screen first that asked which system I want to use: Microsoft Windows Vista or Windows Vista. I use Microsoft Windows Vista and get a new screen, but it tells me that I don't have enough memory. Checking the system, I see this:
Recovery c: 48.9 mb free of 9.99 gb
OS d: 26.3 gb free of 64.4 gb
What is wrong and how do I fix it??????????
Thanks!

[Advertisements]

It would appear that whoever 'fixed' your computer simply partitioned your hardrive and installed vista again. What happens when you click the other option 'WINDOWS VISTA'. Did you get a recovery disk with your pc? Have you contacted Dell?

[hendaz]

It would appear that whoever 'fixed' your computer simply partitioned your hardrive and installed vista again. What happens when you click the other option 'WINDOWS VISTA'. Did you get a recovery disk with your pc? Have you contacted Dell?

[TheTexasAirman]

Yes, apparently he partitioned the hard drive. I opened the other one and got all the error messages I was getting before. Guess that's why there's not enough harddrive to load anything else. I did try the recovery cd that Dell included with it plus one I downloaded off the net (for free, at least) which guaranteed it would do the job - it didn't. Dell won't do anything unless I pay them first - and I've only had the computer 14 months. But I didn't purchase the extended warranty. Isn't that like the extra luggage charge on the airlines? Anyway, I have three Dells, but they don't seem to hold up. Had to replace my daughter's, so I bought an HP - no more Dells for me. Well, guess I'm going to have to find another repair shop and hope they know what they're doing.

[Troy]

Hi there,

I'm finding it extremely weird the first shop didn't fix it for you anyway. Your response "they said no hardware problems, no virus, probably need to reload Vista OS - but their shop doesn't hold a Vista license!!!" tells me that shop isn't worth going to ever again... They don't need a Vista license, as your computer will already have its own. You'll find a COA sticker somewhere on the outside of the case.

Each and every computer with Windows installed should have a COA sticker, as every computer must have its own separate license. My point is this - the shop doesn't need one! They just repair it using the one already allocated to that computer.

I have done this many times before. It's as simple as repairing or reinstalling the operating system (Vista), and making sure to reinsert the code I find on each computer during the installation.

Cheers

Troy

[TheTexasAirman]

Yeah, the tag is right there on the top rear of the case - so, like you, I'm wondering what's going on. That's why I'll never use that shop again. Guess I'll have to find another shop that I can trust. I'm really getting frustrated. Also, will never use my company's IT guy again - thought he ought to know what he's doing, but, fooled again.

[Troy]

I should think a quick chat with the company IT guy will tell you if he really does know what he's doing...

My guess is that he made a separate partition and reinstalled it, as that would be the easiest option without destroying any of your original data. I would ask him how hard it would be ("what do we need to do to..."), to copy over all your personal data to another source and then format and reinstall Vista? This would be just like getting rid of the lot and starting again, and then copying your important files back on once it's all done.

It's just a matter of finding another source, depending on how many GB of personal data you have. You could use an external USB hard drive - probably the easiest option - or just burn to DVDs if you don't have much data to copy.

Cheers

Troy