Computer taking 30 minutes or more to start up

zonic505 · 08-16-2009, 10:06 PM

This is a serious problem. For some strange reason, a few days ago, my laptop has acting weird & is VERY slow while starting up. If I turn it off manually while waiting for it to start & turn it on again, it asks about if you want to repair it, which didn't help at all.....If I start it in Safe Mode, then it starts up fine. I waited about 30 minutes for it to start now, but it's still not correct. The windows/bars are like in Safe Mode as they look like they're from 98 & it says the audio service is not running.

Tomorrow, I'll have AVG Anti-Virus do a full scan tomorrow, but I would like to know if there's anything else I can do. I'm getting so tired of having our computers keep acting up even w/ protection.......

**dieKatze88** · 08-16-2009, 10:39 PM

be more careful on the internet. Computer malware protection is just like a car's seatbelt, You have to use it properly in order for it to work, If you drive 95 miles an hour and don't wear the top half of the seatbelt, you're going to die. This is the exact same thing. Don't bother trying anything else. Fire it up in safe mode, grab your data, and reformat it. If its taking 30 minutes to start you've already lost that fight.

This time, when you get it working, make an image of it using some image software and the next time it fucks up you've got a 10 minute recovery time.

zonic505 · 08-16-2009, 11:02 PM

What data do I need to grab & will there be something to tell me how to reformat it? & what exactly do I need to get an image of? I have Snipping Tool, so I can make a image by using that.

Wait, you're saying I'm going to lose stuff in my Documents, stuff I've downloaded, installed, & such unless I back it up?

& we have Malware protection. & we haven't gone to new sites in the last few weeks. Besides, like I said, aside from the audio & '98-ish look, it's working fine. Isn't it just something w/ the start up?

Let me explain what happens: I turn computer on. HP logo appears. Blank screen. Loading bar & appears. Blank screen for awhile. Mouse appears, but still nothing. Vista logo/sound FINALLY happen. Welcome appears, but takes way longer than usual (like 3-5 minutes). Desktop is now shown & I can use the laptop.

**dieKatze88** · 08-16-2009, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zonic505

What data do I need to grab & will there be something to tell me how to reformat it? & what exactly do I need to get an image of? I have Snipping Tool, so I can make a image by using that.

Wait, you're saying I'm going to lose stuff in my Documents, stuff I've downloaded, installed, & such unless I back it up?

& we have Malware protection. & we haven't gone to new sites in the last few weeks. Besides, like I said, aside from the audio & '98-ish look, it's working fine. Isn't it just something w/ the start up?

Let me explain what happens: I turn computer on. HP logo appears. Blank screen. Loading bar & appears. Blank screen for awhile. Mouse appears, but still nothing. Vista logo/sound FINALLY happen. Welcome appears, but takes way longer than usual (like 3-5 minutes). Desktop is now shown & I can use the laptop.

I'm saying that every bit of data on your computer will be gone by the time you finish reformatting it. Period. Save your documents, stuff you've downloaded, and installed. Otherwise you're going to lose them.

The Snipping tool is not an image maker in the context I speak in.

Disk image - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You need to make one of those.

Yeah thats the result of some nasty malware. I've done this one 4 times already. Get Service Pack 1 and Service Pack 2 on that system as quickly as you can once you've got the thing reformatted.

zonic505 · 08-17-2009, 12:12 AM

Alright, I'll figure out tomorrow how I'll back up the data. We really don't have the money to get a spare hard drive or anything else to store our stuff on (except my 512/256MB USB sticks, my 1GB memory stick, & 2GB SD card which won't be enough to hold all my 9.3 GB of songs/videos).

Will anything happen if I wait to do this? Does it HAVE to be done as soon as possible?

Blackraven · 08-17-2009, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dieKatze88

be more careful on the internet. Computer malware protection is just like a car's seatbelt, You have to use it properly in order for it to work, If you drive 95 miles an hour and don't wear the top half of the seatbelt, you're going to die. This is the exact same thing. Don't bother trying anything else. Fire it up in safe mode, grab your data, and reformat it. If its taking 30 minutes to start you've already lost that fight.

This time, when you get it working, make an image of it using some image software and the next time it fucks up you've got a 10 minute recovery time.

95 mph/150+ km/h is indeed crazy.......yet then again, majority of drivers in the Middle East GCC go to like 100 mph/220 kmh without seatbelt. Damn, I guess safety is not a priority for them

Anyways, Sir dieKatze88 is right. Anti-virus and computer security protection is indeed your best protection against unauthorized attacks and malicious and deadly programs. Sure, in the case of Vista and Windows 7, its sourcecode and constructs are stronger and more robust than Windows XP. However, it alone must be complemented by robust protection. This is a necessary thing especially if you are just using XP.

Heck, I'm using MAC OS X Leopard for my Macbook. Still, I decided to get free antivirus software just in case. Nothing is safe really these days so it's best to be prepared for anything (as much as possible).

In any case, you could try running it in safe mode and see if it will work. Otherwise, you'd have to use an image program (like Norton Ghost) and thus reformat your whole unit.

@
Didn't HP provide a backup utility disc or something?

zonic505 · 08-17-2009, 09:39 AM

As I've stated, it started fine in Safe Mode (w/ Network). I'm not entirely sure if we got a backup disk w/ our laptop. It was about 3 years ago, so I'm not sure where it is if we got one.

I'm doing a scan right now & I'll see what comes up.

Just got the sound working, so really, the only problem is the slow start-up time. I might just put it to sleep or hibernate when we're not using it.

9:30 update: Well, computer locked up, so I turned it off, & amazingly, it started up like normal. Didn't take very long (well, slightly longer than usual, but only by like a minute) & everything is working. Will see if it continue to keep working like this.

TougaKiryuu · 08-22-2009, 12:00 PM

I would still make backups just to be safe.

zonic505 · 08-22-2009, 09:03 PM

Yeah, for some reason, it seems to be doing it randomly now, but still works fine when it starts up.

Perhaps when I go back to school, I'll ask my electronics teacher how I can back up my stuff.

WiLLiSTER · 08-24-2009, 12:13 AM

You plug in some kind of external drive (flash drive, esata, usb hd, etc) and drag and drop your stuff. If your drive is large enough you could get some kind of imaging software and do things that way, though I like to just save the important stuff (pictures, music, downloads) and start with a clean slate, regardless of what other people say about images.