# [SOLVED] Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze



## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

Hello,

I posted this issue earlier on the Windows XP forum but received no responses, so I have closed that thread (commented that I am moving it to the hardware forum). Please see my original post below. 

Thanks.

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Hello,

I have a Dell Inspiron E1705 Laptop with Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005. 

When I start the laptop, sometimes it get stuck or freezes even before asking me to log in and I see the message "Windows is starting up" but nothing happens. 

Sometimes, I get to the screen to log on and after entering the password, I get to my desktop window and the mouse remains active (it moves but I cannot select/start any programs) for sometime then a screen appears from Windows Security Center warning that No Anti-Virus was found on the computer and I should download one. Then it beeps and the mouse (touch-pad) stops working and it seems that the keyboard also stops working (I tried pressing ctrl+alt+del for sometime hoping that would restart the computer but it didn't). 

If I press F8 in the beginning and choose to boot with the last known good configuration - it again freezes after showing the sign "Windows is starting up". 

If I choose to start in the safe mode, I get the same screen back asking me to chose if to start windows normally, or last known good config etc. so I can’t start even in Safe Mode.

The laptop was also having some problems with virus attacks and these were mainly the kind that redirects the webpages to some other sites. The last thing I did was running spybot successfully. I also downloaded malawarebytes but it wouldn't run. And then suddenly, now I cannot seem to run anything or start my laptop normally. 

Someone commented that this may be a hardware related problem. How can I check that if it is or it is not? I am really hoping that I can fix this laptop and I won’t need another one - any help is appreciated.

Thanks. 

Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and welcome!

I’m sorry that you didn’t get a response in the other forum area. 

I’m sure we can walk you thru the hardware testing if you so wish to proceed in that direction. 

I’m not going to say it isn’t a hardware problem, but since you were having a known or possible malware issue it is most likely exactly that. The prime indicators are the fact that MALWAREBYTES would not execute after running SPYBOT along with not booting into SAFE MODE.

The first thing I really need to know is do you have any important information on this system that you MUST have and that you cannot live without?

We will definitely need to know what type of hard disk drive is installed into your computer. Since DELL bios vary a lot, you maybe able to enter the BIOS setup program and it “might” show you the make and (or) model number of the hard disk drive.

If the BIOS does not reveal this, you will have to provide us with your Service Tag or Express Service Tag information; this should allow us to access your system information on the Dell Support site and hopefully they will specify the drive model number.

OR…

You will need to remove the hard disk drive from the laptop and get the drive manufacturer and model number off of the drive for us.

This information will allow us to get you in the right direction for downloading the manufacturer’s test software which can boot off a CD and run the hard disk drive diagnostics to see if the drive is failing.

Please let me know how you wish to proceed and if you have information on the drive that you still need or must recover!

Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Thanks for your response. I have backed up the data from the harddrive - by removing it and attaching to a different computer through a harddrive enclosure. 

The harddrive is Fujitsu SATA (capacity 100 GB, RPM 5.4K, Firmware# 00850028). The model number is MHV2100BH.

Let me know if this is enough information.

I should have also added that I have run all the extended diagnostics that comes upon pressing f12and it didn't find any problem. 

I am actually clueless in this problem as I can't even start the laptop. So whether this is a virus related or a hardware problem - I am not sure. I read somewhere that the beep usually means something wrong with the hardware and that is why I reposted it here (also I wasn't getting any response at other forums either which made me think that perhaps this problem was not virus related). 

I appreciate your help.

Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update!

On that second computer that you used, did you run a reliable AV Scan on that drive while it was attached?

Unfortuantely, Toshiba has taken over the Fujitsu drives. I checked out hardware sticky and for Toshiba it recommends using the diagnostics for the Hitachi drives. So, let's give that a try and please let me know if you have any problems with the utility so we can update our documents on the site.

Here is the link to the Drive Fitness Test
http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm

Please scroll down towards the bottom of the page and download the CD Image and the documentation. You will be able to boot from the CD once it is created!

Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

I finished running the quick test (Drive Fitness Test) and it didn't find anything wrong. Right now I am running the advanced test which may take another 30 min or so. 

I didnot scan the harddrive with an anti-virus when I copied the files - and now I realize that I should have done that. I copied only the folders with non-internet related data (pictures and MS office documents) so I am hoping that I didn't copy any virus to the new external harddrive where I copied everything. 

Once the advanced testing is over and if it finds nothing wrong - I will take out the harddrive and run the anti-virus on it. I have McAfee AV on my other laptop and I think I can run a on-demand scan on the external drive (not sure). 

What do you recommend? Are there any free AV that I can run on the harddrive. 

Thanks.
Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update!

That’s great! Please let me know what the results are when you finish the advanced test.

As far as copying your files, you will be perfectly fine as long as the system you used to copy the files with has an updated, active antivirus installed.

Yes, you can run a scan against the external drive from the PC you have for copying files. It is possible and I have seen this actually fix issues to where the system would at least boot up and allow the system to be cleaned.

Due to TSF rules, I am not allowed to provide direct malware & virus removal assistance to forum members. This is not a bad thing at all and I respect it greatly. This helps protect our users from bad information & terrible mistakes since malware is very complicated now days.

What I can do is finish up the hardware testing with you and then I can assist you in having the thread moved over to the Security Center. 

At the same time, if you have a good backup of your information and your data from this system is secured it may be better to wipeout the system and reload it “clean” once we make sure the system hardware is not faulty. Of course, you have to have your recovery software to be able to do this or the original version of the operating system if you installed retail and all of the software that you have since purchased and loaded onto your system.

I will gladly help you in anyway you decide to go.

Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

The advanced testing also ran fine and it didn't find anything wrong. 

Then I removed the harddrive and scanned it through a different computer. I found some malwares which I removed and then replaced it back in the laptop. When I start, I reach a blue screen which says that a problem has been detected and windows has shut down to prevent damage to the computer. It asks me to check for viruses, remove any newly installed harddrives and to check if the harddrive is properly configured and terminated, run chkdsk /f to to check for hard disk corruption before restarting. 

Then it has some technical information with stop followed by some numbers. 

If you think the problem is not harddrive related then I would not like to wipe the harddrive and just fix the virus problem. In that case you can help me move this post to the anti-virus forum. But with this blue screen, I am not sure if the harddrive is good. 

Many thanks.
Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update!

Yes, your hard disk drive is 99.99% good since it pasted the ADVANCED TESTING!



> Then it has some technical information with stop followed by some numbers.


Could you please provide all the screen information that you received during the BSOD (BLUE SCREEN) error. This will help us a little more on figuring out what the problem is and we might be able to save this installation after all. If not, you can always resort to the full reloading of the system.

Please provide the BSOD information if you can.

If you want to do something in the mean time, a large number of BSOD's can be fixed by running SCAN DISK on the drive using the /r option. Also, even IF this is not the solution this is a step that will NOT hurt the drive or data either.

Here are the steps to achieving this:


Place your operating system CD in the CD Drive
Boot your system to the OS CD
When you get to the WELCOME MENU menu select R for Recovery (console)
Select the operating system if prompted
Enter the Administrator Password if prompted & password is set
When the command line is available enter the following command, pressing the ENTER key after you type it.
chkdsk /r
Let check disk run completely true then you reboot your system to see if it will start up properly or even in safe mode.
Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Here is more detailed info on the BSOD (after the line):
---------------------------------------------------------

A problem has been detected.......(don't think anything of importance here)

If this is the first time ...(don't think anything of importance here)

Check for viruses on your computer. Remove any newly installed hard drives or hard drive controllers. Check your hard drive to make sure it is properly configured and terminated. Run CHKDSK /F to check for hard drive corruptopn, and then restart your computer.

Technical information:

*** STOP: 0x0000007B (0xF78E0524, 0xC0000034, 0x00000000, 0x00000000)

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That is all that is displayed on the BSOD. Does this help any?

The laptop didn't come with any disks so I don't have the Windows XP OS cd to run scan disk. 

Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi Aashi,

Thank you for the update!

This error message



> STOP: 0x0000007B (0xF78E0524, 0xC0000034, 0x00000000, 0x00000000)


Can either be a boot sector virus, driver issue, or even a hardware issue. In your case I’m leaning towards a virus issue due to the previous issues you mentioned and the detection of a virus(es) during a scan from another computer.



> The laptop didn't come with any disks so I don't have the Windows XP OS cd to run scan disk.


This isn’t good at all. If your system did not ship with CD’s or some type of recovery media, you have to produce them using the Recovery CD Creator Utility provided by the manufacturer.

You should be able to contact Dell to get a set of recovery CDs, but you will have to purchase them.

Also, if you have someone in your family or a friend that has the same version of Windows, you can borrow their CD to run the Recovery Console.

If you want to restore your system, it should have a recovery partition on it. When you first turn the computer on, you may see the option press F11 or F-something to run the system recovery. That is what this option would be.

Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Yes, I am also thinking about just doing a system restore. I was under the impression that there is a recovery partition on the harddrive - as no CD came with the laptop. I am not sure anymore - I press F11 and F12 but keep getting to the same screen where it asks me to choose from Safe Mode, etc. 

Is there someway I can find out if there was a recovery partition on this laptop?

Thanks.


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update...

Try using CTRL and F11 to see if that will get you into the restore cycle. I'm searching for information on your specific system, but this is one that I already know about.

Please let me know if that works and I will continue to search!

Thanks!


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

And a Dell support document outlining this:

http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/dsn/document?docid=181316

Thanks!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Yes, Pressing CTRL and F11 worked - and I am restoring the system right now. I may a few more questions and I will post another reply once the process is complete (most likely tomorrow).

I really appreciate your help with this.

Thanks.


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update!

Once you have completed the system restoration and everything is working, please create yourself a set of recovery CDs.

Thank you!


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## Aashi (Sep 14, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

The system restore is complete and I have downloaded all the softwares and data back to the laptop. Your help was really important in getting this done - and I thank you. 

I will definitley create a recovery CD.

You can close this thread now. 

Regards,
Aashi


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## IT-Tech (Oct 12, 2009)

*Re: Dell Laptop - beeps and freeze*

Hi and thanks for the update!

I'm happy to hear we have this resolved! You are most welcome!

I can't mark your thread as solved, I don't have that type of power! LOL

However, you can mark it as SOLVED by using the THREAD TOOLS. If you would do that it would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!


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