General Computer Chat v2.0

[Tsutarja]

*sigh* before people hate on me for the OS I am questioning, I must ask this..

I ran recovery discs on my HP a6437c desktop tower with Windows Vista SP1, and for some odd reason, whenever I log in, it's stuck on some installation screen taking up the whole desktop that says:

• DO NOT turn off your PC during this one-time setup process
• Your PC restarts several times during this setup process
• Messages may pop up on your screen. Ignore these messages until you are prompted to Restart or Shutdown your PC

This message has been there for hours and has done nothing.. is the recovery process supposed to take this long on HP computers running Vista?

 

[donavannj]

The restore process certainly does take a long time (between 40 minutes and 2 hours depending on the speeds of your system). And if it's stuck there, it's highly possible the restore process was interrupted, and you'll have to start it over. :x

At this point your data is probably lost because you improperly ran the recovery process. You only use all the discs when you are wiping the system completely to get a completely fresh install. Otherwise you just use the OS disc to use Windows Startup Repair.

 

[Tsutarja]

I don't mind the loss of data, since I dont have a lot of files needed from the machine since it was given to me, but I did produce a backup just in case. And almost 12 hours later, it's still stuck >_<

 

[Archenoth]

Still stuck..? Does the CPU appear to be working on anything? Or is it hung?

If it's hung on a recovery, you may just be SOL, I'd recommend you download a LiveCD for something like Linux Mint and use it to backup your more recent data, then proceed to either attempt to boot into "Safe mode" (Accessed by pressing [F8] as Windows boots) and if you manage to get in trying to run "sfc" (System File Checker) from the command prompt (Accessed by clicking or hitting "Start", typing "cmd" and hitting [Enter]) to make sure your system files are OK.

If they aren't, you may have to reinstall and restore your backup that you made from the LiveCD.

If that all fails, PM me, I can probably help you out.

 

[Tsutarja]

I am able to exit this screen and the OS will work fine (minus the HP bloatware), however it comes back up everytime I log in :\ Ive attached a photo of the screen.. and the PC model is an HP Pavilion a6437c with Vista Home Premium x64

 

[Archenoth]

Hmm.... A little bit of searching reveals this.

This guy sounds like he knows more than I do, so try to follow these instructions.

 

[Tsutarja]

Apparently the HDD is failing :( Diagnostics returned an BIOHD-8 error.

 

[quilzel]

Apparently the HDD is failing :( Diagnostics returned an BIOHD-8 error.

Well that sucks. If you are going to get a new one, and don't need a huge amount of storage space, spring for a SSD. I picked a 60GB one up for $99USD, It makes the computer so much faster. Files move off the thing so fast, you'll swear you have a top of the line machine. My budget build boots to desktop in just about 20 seconds.

 

[Legendary Silke]

SSD or HDD it depends on whether you have a lot of files to store. Since I have hundreds of GBs of downloads and media, I cannot use a SSD. SSD a are more efficient in everything except size, of course :) Determine your needs and usable models before you buy!

If your computer is a laptop, you'll need to find notebook size drives, though it should be relatively easy to replace it, though you'll be saying goodbye to your warranty if it still exists.

 

[Tsutarja]

I'm gonna need a hard drive.. I do a lot of video recording (mostly TV shows though), and I am a large packrat when it comes to PC files lol.. but thanks everyone for the help and suggestions! :)

I have been looking around though at some hard drives (Western Digital, Seagate, Hitachi, etc).. any recommendations on which to stay away from or ones to try I didnt list?

 

[double trouble!]

I'm not really sure. I know a lot of people like to use WD drives.
I heard a lot of bad stuff about Hitachi in the past, and I don't know if that's changed. And I don't really know much about Seagate.

 

[Gerri Shin]

I use WD drives mostly, I highly recommend them. If storing files is the main purpose of a drive, I'd recommend getting a green series drive; they save energy by spinning down when not in use, so they are great for storage. For a boot or system drive, you would get much better performance from a Black or Blue series drive.

 

[Legendary Silke]

I am a fan of Western Digital. stay away from Seagate since all the drives that went bad quick were all from them.

 

[Thomas]

WD is really all I use. I haven't bought too many HDD's, but when I do it is WD brand. I've bought two externals from them and they've both lasted a really long time. The last one I bought was a while ago...not sure when, but to give you reference...120 GB was over $100. Yeah I feel old.

What really makes me feel old though...the first flash drive I bought (in 2002) was 64 MB (yeah MEGA) and it cost me $100. I kept it for a long time too...until it got left outside and got rained on a couple of years ago.

 

[Archer]

I have been looking around though at some hard drives (Western Digital, Seagate, Hitachi, etc).. any recommendations on which to stay away from or ones to try I didnt list?

Not really. The main thing is not to use "Green" or "Low Power" drives in a desktop, where possible. They're slower and tend to be lower binned drives (basically, higher end is the better stock).

These days you're pretty much right with any brand. From what I've seen fail, I'd personally steer clear of WD 3.5" Caviar Greens. Other than that, go for it. My personal preferred brand is Hitachi, but WD/Seagate/Samsung are fine. I wouldn't take people's advice to avoid a particular brand too seriously.

Keep in mind that Seagate has bought Samsung's HDD division and WD just bought Hitachi's. So by this time next year, there will likely be two brands to choose from.

Thomas, my first flash drive was 32MB, lol. Was enough to fit on a GBA emulator and a few compressed games, which at the time was the most important thing to me. :P

 

[Legendary Silke]

As for me, my first flash drive were already in the 2GB territory.

SD cards? 512 MB. (If MMC counts, 32 MB.)

 

[Captain Fabio]

I am a user of WD as well. I have never had one let me down at all, so can't go wrong.

I am currently specing up a new computer I am going to be building in the coming weeks. Settled on the i7 2700k processor, most likely 560ti GPU, got other stuff written down somewhere but yeh, should be nice. Yes, I am putting and SSD in it! XD​

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[Legendary Silke]

I am a user of WD as well. I have never had one let me down at all, so can't go wrong.

I am currently specing up a new computer I am going to be building in the coming weeks. Settled on the i7 2700k processor, most likely 560ti GPU, got other stuff written down somewhere but yeh, should be nice. Yes, I am putting and SSD in it! XD​

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Someday I want to do a benchmark with you so to see how my aging components hold up. :P

 

[Tsutarja]

Once again everyone, thanks so much for the feedback! I will likely be going after a Western Digital drive :) although I have had a past experience with WD.. I got a 1TB external HDD from them two years ago that failed after a couple of weeks only because of the factor I deleted the WD Smartware from it without reading on how to do it carefully <.< oh well..

As for portable memory on me, jeez I am late.. I got my first flash drive in 2008 as a 1 GB one and my first SDHC card in 2008 at 8 GB.. my parents were late boomers into technology, so without me, we would still be in the older days of life and computers :P

 

[double trouble!]

I am a user of WD as well. I have never had one let me down at all, so can't go wrong.

I am currently specing up a new computer I am going to be building in the coming weeks. Settled on the i7 2700k processor, most likely 560ti GPU, got other stuff written down somewhere but yeh, should be nice. Yes, I am putting and SSD in it! XD​

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Awesome. I have that GPU and a 2600K.