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Windows10 - black screen of death


NANOJAMBO

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My daughter is at Uni and her laptop has effectively crashed as per title. It takes forever just to get to the logon screen - and then nothing. I've tried several alleged fixes but none have worked and time is of the essence now as she's getting stressed. I've had a good look on Google and the number of proposed fixes is massive and I don't have time to go thru them  on a hit & hope basis. 

 

There is an error message that crops up after logon on  and then all you see is a black screen with a few icons on the tool bar at bottom scree. Windows doesn't load - apparently the problem arose following/during Win10 upgrade. 

 

I don't really want to have to reload Win10 - I can't even get to Troubleshooting screen via restart & shift key. Nothing seems to work. Do I just have to suck it up and reinstall windows - big worry as she's not sure she has archived everything to her memory stick ? ?

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Before you reinstall windows buy a usb hard drive cable and open the laptop and remove the hard drive. You can then connect it to another PC and recover the data

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I'd recommend that she contacts her Programme Leader and explains the problem ASAP. If she can't get it sorted at least the Programme Leader knows in advance and may be able to offer her a extension on any assessment deadline.

 

Have you tried booting the device in 'safe mode'?

 

 

 

Edited by Ray Gin
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50 minutes ago, milky_26 said:

Before you reinstall windows buy a usb hard drive cable and open the laptop and remove the hard drive. You can then connect it to another PC and recover the data

 

A less severe alternative to mucking about with hardware is to download a Linux Live distribution and burn it to a CD, DVD, or USB to boot the PC from.

 

You should be able to copy files to flash drives or external hard drives.

 

I've used Knoppix in the past but the following should work for booting off the USB: https://www.linuxliveusb.com

 

To boot of CD/DVD/USB you may need to go change the BIOS setting to boot from the CD/DVD/USB before the hard drive or it won't try and use the Linux distribution.  Normally you need to hold down a key like DEL when the computer boots to enter BIOS settings.  Your computer should tell you what to press in the first few seconds when it starts.

 

Don't worry if Linux seems alien to you.  If you just need to manage files or surf the internet that is straightforward for a Windows user.

Edited by frankblack
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1 hour ago, Cheile said:

I gave up on Windows 10 some time ago and now use a Chromebook.

 

I used Windows 7 at work because Windows 8 was a complete disaster for desktops.  Windows 10 is perfectly good and does what I need at home.

 

Windows is still the best if you want to run most software.  To be clear I mean for laptops and desktops and high powered gaming machines.

Edited by frankblack
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John Gentleman
On 30/11/2018 at 00:20, Cheile said:

I gave up on Windows 10 some time ago and now use a Chromebook.

Thinking about buying one for my daughter for Xmas. Which model have you got? I've given up trying to fix her all-too-frequent problems on her Win 10 laptop.

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On 29/11/2018 at 00:29, NANOJAMBO said:

 

I don't really want to have to reload Win10 - I can't even get to Troubleshooting screen via restart & shift key. Nothing seems to work. Do I just have to suck it up and reinstall windows - big worry as she's not sure she has archived everything to her memory stick ? ?

 

I worry for students when i hear things like this.

 

nagged our apprentice recently to get all his serious stuff saved in a cloud.

 

sticks and external hard drives can get corrupted or lost.

 

Clouds are a lot safer. Shoot me down, if I am talking crap.

 

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17 minutes ago, Tommy Brown said:

 

I worry for students when i hear things like this.

 

nagged our apprentice recently to get all his serious stuff saved in a cloud.

 

sticks and external hard drives can get corrupted or lost.

 

Clouds are a lot safer. Shoot me down, if I am talking crap.

 

 

At the end of the day, Clouds are only better if they mirror the files for disaster scenarios.

 

Keeping duplicate backups on different media should be sufficient assuming at least one of them is kept offline to prevent virus/ransomware attacks hitting everything it can access.

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2 hours ago, John Gentleman said:

Thinking about buying one for my daughter for Xmas. Which model have you got? I've given up trying to fix her all-too-frequent problems on her Win 10 laptop.

 

Acer Chromebook 15 CB3-532, it is superb. I have a micro USB flash drive permanently attached for extra storage.  I use all the Google apps which synch seamslessly to my iPad and iPhone. Goodbye Windows.

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John Gentleman
9 hours ago, Cheile said:

 

Acer Chromebook 15 CB3-532, it is superb. I have a micro USB flash drive permanently attached for extra storage.  I use all the Google apps which synch seamslessly to my iPad and iPhone. Goodbye Windows.

Cheers. I've been looking at the Acers. Tossing up between the 32GB and 64GB models, the latter being about $100 dearer. Do you find 32GB OK? ..... I have to keep kicking Windows out of my thinking when considering RAM!  

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1 hour ago, John Gentleman said:

Cheers. I've been looking at the Acers. Tossing up between the 32GB and 64GB models, the latter being about $100 dearer. Do you find 32GB OK? ..... I have to keep kicking Windows out of my thinking when considering RAM!  

 

 

32gb is fine for me, as I said I keep one of these permanently attached. https://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-SDCZ430-032G-G46-Ultra-Flash-Drive/dp/B077VXV323/ref=pd_sim_147_6?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B077VXV323&pd_rd_r=6e0281f3-f61e-11e8-b8f2-97092196d631&pd_rd_w=ASdWH&pd_rd_wg=lvplh&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_p=1e3b4162-429b-4ea8-80b8-75d978d3d89e&pf_rd_r=D4YFN2ZJYW357X8WMTWG&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=D4YFN2ZJYW357X8WMTWG

 

Between that and Google Drive and Google Photos there is no need to waste money on a 64gb Chromebook. Also, updates are a breeze and no need for any security software. Only thing I have added is DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials to combat trackers and cookies.

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I guess it depends what you use your pc for but most thumb drives I use are 500gb +, I think that 32gb drives will be defunct pretty soon.

 

Music flacs and Hi-def pictures would eat up that space in no time nevermind software and video files.

 

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Sorry just to add check out this article comparing both Operating systems.

 

https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/chromebooks-vs-windows

 

I have build numerous Pc's over the years and have always been tempted to go down the Linux route - I possibly will once it becomes more stable.

You get what you pay for at the end of the day and if you are looking for a pc around 200 dollars you won't get something with all the bells and whistles.

 

Pay a little more and you will get something future proof that should be good for 4-5 years.

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 Cheers for the responses. I managed to get in somehow and disable services.msc. which then enabled me to get Win10  re-installed (which can be done without rewriting the HD, so no data loss).  One problem it did highlight is that even using a borrowed computer, she couldn't access the Uni system to submit and update stuff - which she has to do every day (long story) for 6 weeks.

I suggested she saves all daily work into email and sends text files to Gmail.  

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John Gentleman
19 hours ago, Cheile said:

 

 

32gb is fine for me, as I said I keep one of these permanently attached. https://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-SDCZ430-032G-G46-Ultra-Flash-Drive/dp/B077VXV323/ref=pd_sim_147_6?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B077VXV323&pd_rd_r=6e0281f3-f61e-11e8-b8f2-97092196d631&pd_rd_w=ASdWH&pd_rd_wg=lvplh&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_p=1e3b4162-429b-4ea8-80b8-75d978d3d89e&pf_rd_r=D4YFN2ZJYW357X8WMTWG&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=D4YFN2ZJYW357X8WMTWG

 

Between that and Google Drive and Google Photos there is no need to waste money on a 64gb Chromebook. Also, updates are a breeze and no need for any security software. Only thing I have added is DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials to combat trackers and cookies.

Thanks for that.

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