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Safe mode will not start


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#1
shortman1937

shortman1937

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Have win. xp pro with sp 3 installed. When I try to start in safe mode it starts,loads 1 page page and freezes. Will not go any further. All help appreciated.
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#2
rshaffer61

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Hello welcome to GeeksToGo, We will be happy to help you.

We will need some more information

If this is a name brand system:
Make
Model
Operating System
Age of the computer
Memory Total
Hard Drive Size, How much free space



If this is custom then We will need the following:

The CPU brand and model
The Motherboard brand and model
Ram amount and speed
Cd\Dvd rom interface IDE/ SATA
Hard Drive size and free space
Any cards in PCI slots
Any software installed\updated and driver updates done just before problem started

I'm believing that it won't boot into normal mode then by your description? What happens when you try to go into normal mode?

All this will help in determining a course of action to best correct the problem you are experiencing.
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#3
shortman1937

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My PC is a dell Demension 3000. It has 512 MB ram, 80 gig hard drive with 65 gb free space. Intel pentium 4 processor. It does start in regular mode but thought I might be able to run backup in safe mode. It has been refusing to start in safe mode for about two months. The system is Windows XP pro. Bought in mid 05. Thanks again, Clint
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#4
rshaffer61

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First item is your memory. You are running bare minimum for XP. I would suggest going to 1 gig and that should help load programs better. Now lets try to find out whats going on.
First thing is to identify what manufacturer is your HD. If you don't know I will need you to open your case and look at the hd, this is the one that should have a gray ribbon running to it. The cdrom will probably have one also but that will sit higher in your case. You need to see if you can find who makes the drive, for example Western Digital, Seagate, Fujitsu, Maxtor.
Once you can find that info then Click HD diagnostic in my signature below. Choose the manufacturer of your hd. Download the tool. Running this will tell us if there is a problem with HD itself. If not then we will pursue other hardware or software possibilities. This will show if the drive itslef is healthy or not

While that is running

Let's check your memory and make sure there is no issue with it.Donwload memtest86 from the link in my signature below.


Get the file that is named Download - The one you want is "Download - Pre-compiled Bootable ISO (.zip). When it downloads, it will be labeled "memtest86+2.11.iso.zip"
Unzip the file once you download it. You should have a .iso file in the unzipped directory.

if you don't have a burning program that will burn .ISO files get burncdcc in my signature below.

NOTE...do not put a blank cd in until burncdcc opens the tray for you
1. Start BurnCDCC
2. Browse to the ISO file you want to burn on cd/dvd ....in this case its memtest86.iso
3. Select the ISO file
4. click on Start

Make sure the bios is set for the cd drive as the first boot device
Put the cd in the cd drive and then boot your computer.

Running the Diagnostic Program:

The basic diagnostic screen has five main sections of relevant information. Three at the top which are labeled, PASS %, TEST %, and TEST #. This will basically show you the total progress of the current test, the overall progress of the diagnostic test, and the test number is currently performing.

On the middle left hand side of the of the program interface there is a “Wall Time” section that will keep track of how long the diagnostic test has been running for. This just gives you an idea if you are not attending the testing process.

The main section to look for is the lower half of the screen which is usually blank. As long as the memory testing is going ok with no errors this section of the screen should remain blank. If the diagnostic program finds any serious faults in the memory you will see it display a memory dump of address’s in this section. This is similar to what is displayed on your screen when you encounter a blue screen of death.

You now have most everything you need to know about setting up and testing your memory with diagnostic programs. This guide should help you get to the source of any intermittent problems related to your memory.


Run memtest for at least 2 hours
If it starts showing any errors during that time then you will have to replace the memory
If there are no errors after 2 hours press Esc and that will end the tests
We will then try other options
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#5
happyrock

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BEFORE we do anything else go to the malware forum and tell them I sent you there to make sure you don't have the Sony Rootkit

do you know how to backup your registry...
what SP do you have installed...
its important because the script I'm going to give you to run is specific to which service pack you have installed...

Edited by happyrock, 19 April 2009 - 10:34 AM.

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