[Plutocracy]

Hi!  I'm using an HP Pavilion DV7 with the manufacturer BIOS, so I can't seem to get into safe mode to do these fixes i've read about.  When I boot up, the Login screen is solid blue and no longer has the picture that I had as the wallpaper and Windows loads into a black screen with a cursor.  I think the forced update may have been disguised malware, but I'm not sure because i was able to delay it as with any other Windows update.  Anyone know anything about this?

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    Plutocracy,

 

Have you tried a System Recovery by continually tapping the F11 key when restarting the computer, this may not work btw if the computer was upgraded from Windows 7.

 

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[phillpower2]

    Plutocracy,

 

Have you tried a System Recovery by continually tapping the F11 key when restarting the computer, this may not work btw if the computer was upgraded from Windows 7.

 

NB: So that I can confirm that you have received notification of my reply to your topic please click on the Follow this topic tab at the upper right corner of the page. 

[Plutocracy]

    Plutocracy,

 

Have you tried a System Recovery by continually tapping the F11 key when restarting the computer, this may not work btw if the computer was upgraded from Windows 7.

 

NB: So that I can confirm that you have received notification of my reply to your topic please click on the Follow this topic tab at the upper right corner of the page. 

Hey!  Thanks for the reply.  Yes, this machine was running Windows 7 from the factory, and then I updated to Windows 8.  It was fine until it forced me to update to Windows 8.1 yesterday.  I've been reading that it probably has something to do with my graphics cards drivers, however, I've tried everything and it doesn't seem to work.  Booting into Safe Mode and Safe Mode with Networking still yields a black screen, and I have no restore points.  I tried the system refresh but that gave me an error.  I'm sick of Windows 8, but my main concern right now is the files on this computer.  I'd prefer to downgrade back to Windows 7, do you know how I can go about doing that whilst still maintaining my files?

[phillpower2]

Do you have a Windows 8 disk or ISO on a thumb drive, if yes follow the steps here to refresh/repair Windows.

 

Unless the data on the HDD is on a separate partition to Windows 8.1 you will lose it when installing Windows 7, your best bet would be to try and back it up now using Puppy Linux and then wiping the drive clean before doing a fresh installation.

[Plutocracy]

Do you have a Windows 8 disk or ISO on a thumb drive, if yes follow the steps here to refresh/repair Windows.

 

Unless the data on the HDD is on a separate partition to Windows 8.1 you will lose it when installing Windows 7, your best bet would be to try and back it up now using Puppy Linux and then wiping the drive clean before doing a fresh installation.

 

Haha, I actually started to try and do that with Ubuntu before I saw your response.  But right now, Ubuntu doesn't seem to want to mount my drives because of the fast startup/hibernation or something on Windows 8.1, and I'm trying to turn that off through the command prompt which I got to by booting from the Windows 8 disk.  However, the powercfg command doesn't seem to be working.  Any ideas?

[phillpower2]

Is the DVD drive set as the first boot device in the BIOS, Puppy uses the system memory to boot and the HDD needs to be set below the device that Puppy is on (disk or thumb drive) in the boot order, btw, no need to quote my replies Plutocracy  

 

=================== 

***Required Hardware*** 

CD Burner (CDRW) Drive, 

Blank CD, 

Extra Storage Device (USB Flash Drive, External Hard Drive)  

=================== 

 

1. Save these files to your Desktop/Burn Your Live CD:

• Download Latest Puppy Linux ISO (i.e.: lupu-528.iso) 

  Download BurnCDCC ISO Burning Software 

   

  There are instructions on how to boot from flash drive with puppy here; http://www.pendrivel...e-from-windows/ 

   

   

• Open BurnCDCC with Windows Explorer 

• Extract All files to a location you can remember 

• Double Click BurnCDCC 

• Click Browse and navigate to the Puppy Linux ISO file you just downloaded 

• Open/Double Click that file 

  IMPORTANT: Adjust the speed bar to CD: 4x DVD: 1x 

• Click Start  

• Your CD Burner Tray will open automatically 

• Insert a blank CD and close the tray 

• Click OK 

Puppy Linux Live CD will now be created 

 

2. Set your boot priority in the BIOS to CD-ROM first, Hard Drive Second 

•  

• Start the computer/press the power button 

• Immediately start tapping the appropriate key to enter the BIOS, aka "Setup" 

  (Usually shown during the "Dell" screen, or "Gateway" Screen) 

• Once in the BIOS, under Advanced BIOS Options change boot priority to: 

  CD-ROM 1st, Hard Drive 2nd 

• Open your ROM drive and insert the disk 

• Press F10 to save and exit 

• Agree with "Y" to continue 

• Your computer will restart and boot from the Puppy Linux Live CD 

   

   

 

 

 

3.  Recover Your Data 

• Once Puppy Linux has loaded, it is actually running in your computer's Memory (RAM).  You will see a fully functioning Graphical User Interface similar to what you normally call "your computer".  Internet access may or may not be available depending on your machine, so it is recommended you print these instructions before beginning.  Also, double clicking is not needed in Puppy.  To expand, or open folders/icons, just click once.  Puppy is very light on resources, so you will quickly notice it is much speedier than you are used to.  This is normal.  Ready?  Let's get started. 

   

  3a. Mount Drives 

• Click the Mount Icon located at the top left of your desktop.  

• A Window will open.  By default, the "drive" tab will be forward/highlighted.  Click on Mount for your hard drive. 

• Assuming you only have one hard drive and/or partition, there may be only one selection to mount. 

• USB Flash Drives usually automatically mount upon boot, but click the "usbdrv" tab and make sure it is mounted. 

• If using an external hard drive for the data recovery, do this under the "drive" tab.  Mount it now. 

 

3b. Transfer Files.

•  

• At the bottom left of your desktop a list of all hard drives/partitions, USB Drives, and Optical Drives are listed with a familiar looking hard drive icon. 

• Open your old hard drive i.e. sda1 

• Next, open your USB Flash Drive or External Drive. i.e. sdc or sdb1 

• If you open the wrong drive, simply X out at the top right corner of the window that opens. (Just like in Windows) 

• From your old hard drive, drag and drop whatever files/folders you wish to transfer to your USB Drive's Window. 

 

For The Novice:  The common path to your pictures, music, video, and documents folders is: Documents and Settings >> All Users (or each idividual name of each user. CHECK All Names!) >> Documents >> You will now see My Music, My Pictures, and My Videos. 

 

Remember to only click once!  No double clicking!  Once you drag and drop your first folder, you will notice a small menu will appear giving you the option to move or copy.  Choose COPY each time you drag and drop. 

 

YOU ARE DONE!!!  Simply click Menu >> Mouse Over Shutdown >> Reboot/Turn Off Computer.  Be sure to plug your USB Drive into another working windows machine to verify all data is there and transferred without corruption. Congratulations! 

 

 

 

 

 

[Plutocracy]

Thanks! I managed to get my files off and reset Windows 8.1.  I'll downgrade later, but I'm glad I still have all my files.  Thanks for the help!

[phillpower2]

You are most welcome 

 

Glad we were able to help and thank you for the follow up