Computer only Starts in Safe Mode

Hey guys, i'm compltely stumped (along wiuth the people at Dell) I have an Inspiron 8500 Laptop running XP and the thing will ONLY start in safe mode. If I try and start it regulary it gets to the WINDOWS XP screen the goes black. I ahve tried reinstalling windows and that doesn't even fix the problem. However, as I said I CAN start the computer in SAFE MODE. What's causing this, and wha t can I do to fix this?? THanks for aLL the help!

Zach

 

Unless I'm wrong, reinstalling Windows doesn't doesn't fix any problems in your MBR. It just uses the same MBR and reformats. I use the Ulitmate Boot Disk to zero any hard drives and go from there, and have had no problems. Other, more experienced members will probably jump in with more helpful suggestions.

 

Hi,

Have you upgraded any drivers recently?

Boot to safe mode,

1. Set screen to windows default VGA Mode and reboot.
- if this fixes your problem VGA drivers need reinstalling with older / newer versions

2. Change IDE controller back to Microsoft drivers not Via / Nvida etc.
- if this fixes your problem then stick with the Microsoft drivers

3. Disable modem and sound cards

If non of the above work, post again.

Good Luck
KCL

 

Is there anyway you could give me some detailed directions on how to do all of this? Thanks!

Zach

 

kcl is right, the most common cause of this problem is inproper or misbehaving device drivers, it could also be unsupported display settings such as too high screen resolution/refresh rate and/or color depth at a given screen resolution. When you login in Safe Mode try lowering your screen resolution. I am kind of surprised that re-installing the OS didn't correct the problem? Did you delete the existing partitions and re-format before re-installing? Did you do a full (unconditional) format? If you did a full delete/re-create/full format install then it could be a problem with your BIOS settings but I would lien towards a bad Video card if all else fails...

 

Yes, when I installed the OS, I deleted all the old partions, and re-created them. This did NOT fix the problem. Also, before the problem occured I noticed a funny smell coming from the computer, like the smell of something burning. Could it have been my video card burning up?

 

any burning smell coming from the case can not be a good thing! Well, I would think you would not get any picture at all if it was the Video Card but it could be partially damaged too, I would suggest removing all PCI cards along with the AGP Vide Card (assuming it is not an integrated card?). Then reinstall (firmly, making sure it it fitted properly)the Video card but do not install any other card, just Video, RAM, CPU/fan, PSU and HardDisk, then boot and see if you can get in, if YES then one by one install the other cards. If problem occurs again then it could be a resource conflict between devices.

 

oh wait! How many RAM sticks do you have? That smell could have belonged to one of the RAMs (if you got more than one if not ignore the rest of this post but I do recommend you try another RAM if you can).
if more than one, try booting with only 1 installed (also switch slots for each RAM stick too!)...try this (if applicable) before trying the stuff on the previous post.

 

I have two ram sticks and I switched them out last night. I put in two 128 sticks instead of two 256 sticks and this didn't work. The problem with taking it apart is it's a laptop and I tried last ngiht to see if I could see if anything was burned up or appered to be, but I could only get it taken apart to a certain point before I was stuck and didn't knwo what to do. Suggestions?

 

sorry didn't know it was a laptop, yeah forget about taking all the cards out, anyhow it makes more sense to assume that one of the RAMs or RAM slots was damaged. So try installing one of the RAM sticks at a time and trying both slots and see if you can boot in normal mode. Try each RAM stick alone and try it in each slot ...hope it helps.

 

is your laptop still under warranty?
i think it might be time to send it back to dell

 

Unfortunately it's not, that's why i'm on here trying to figure it out. The Dell tech's couldn't even diagnose my problem, I spwnt NUMERous days on the phone with them, and EACH time I would get a different reason why the computer wasn't orking correstly....i'll let you know about the ram stuff shortly...thanks for all the help y'all...

 

Tried the RAM suggestion, sadly it didn't workl...what now?

 

If you are sure you tried all that had been suggested so far...I am gonna have to suggest that it is a faulty/broken HW component which would be hard or not possible for you to replace....sorry, laptops are a bit out my my knowledge area too.

 

I think you've cooked your CPU or at least burnt out the paste on your CPU.

I would check that your CPU fan is running. If the fan stops CPU overheats and shutsdown, why it would work in safe mode I have no idea though?

something isn't right and unfortunately the smoke is not a good sign at all. It needs to go back to some professionals for repair.....

Good luck
KCL

I assume when you reinstalled you did not use a recovery CD?

 

Could only boot on safe mode. Thanks to your suggestion, I went to device manager-display adapters-and the troubleshoot which suggested decreasing the hardware acceleration (settings, advanced, Troubleshooter) and after that, thank God, I could restart in normal Windows. Thanks for pointing out where to look.

 

Hi! I had the exact same problem. Tried everything including windows repair and system restore. Then I ran a simple disk check (go to start, computer, local disk (c), right-click, click properties, select tools, error-checking, check both options (forget what they are) and start). It took about an hour but it depends on the number of files you have on your hard drive. Believe it or not, my computer restarted and the problem was fixed! So try this before doing anything major.

 

Re: Computer only Starts in Safe Mode, My 1st Post EVER!!

Do you have disk partition D? If so, search for HP Recovery on your computer, double click it, and it will take you into partition D. You use D: to fix major problems.

Notes:
1: If you go into D:, keep your CPU fan runnin', 'cause it takes quite a while
2: You will be able to keep your files
3: Keep your computer running thru it all, otherwise, you will have to get a new... I don't know, but it'll cost 'bout $100.
3A: If it ends up shuttin' down before it's finished, ask the repair shop to recover the files and put them in a folder on your desktop, (I prefer SaveData.) they're still in the memory, even though...
3B: If you use Disk Defragmenter, some files might still work.
4: This works for Windows XP.

 

Austeon347, please don't dredge up a post from 2004. Zach3713 has not been here since 2004 so has either given up or possibly has a new computer in the 4 1/2 years that have elapsed. You'll also note that the computer in question 1 was a Dell, not an HP.
The two comments added in 2008 were from people who tried the suggestions in the thread and simply reported success on the computer.