Need help with used Laptop not sure where to post..sorry

My husband bought a used Laptop for me since i have 2 websites and need it to keep up with them while away from my Pc.. ok the problem is it is the hard drive is pass worded and wont boot from the disk to re-install windows xp.. he has tried all the F's and we even tried just unlocking it by using the password hint they have as stand and cheer Lol If anyone has any ideas please let me know.. we have various disks like techies tool kit, the boot disk for various serious of windows...we just cant get it to boot from the disks.. Thank you very much..

 

Just to be clear, this is a password that has been set using the BIOS Setup menu?

 

Yes evidently who ever had it set up a admin password and because we cant get it to boot off a disk we cant even reinstall windows so we are trying to get into it via the F keys to set it to boot from disk and not hard drive. We cant even get the dell screen to pop up, it goes straight to loading windows then ask for the Pass word.

 

Okay, you've tried F8 to get into safe mode, and try to log on as an Administrator and that didn't work. Correct?

Or the Setup menu, press F2 IMMEDIATELY at startup is locked out by a password as well?

What is your Dell model of PC, exactly?

The more info I have, the better it is for me to find you a solution.

 

Doesn't sound like its passworded from bios.

Maybe its the delete key to get you into the bios menu.
Sometimes its also the FN+F1 or FN+ESC keys.

 

Okay, if your Dell splash screen doesnt even show up you need to get into your BIOS and reset the settings to the default settings.

 

Press F2 or F1 immediately at startup, repeatedly, by the way.

I have another procedure which could work, but we'll wait on the physical removal of parts.

 

The Dell info is: inspiron 8600
He is trying the FN etc right now.
It doesnt give any option at all with the F8,F2 etc the screen goes blank the goes straight to the user password screen
after thinking we could figure the password out by using the hint -stand and cheer- So we decided to just re install windows for me. which is what brought me to here when we cant even do that..where i usually end up ..An he is about ready to do the parts removal thing Lol

 

Stand and cheer, wow, that could be a college fight song for all any of us knows!

Who sold this to you in the state it is in?

I don't really recommend pulling the hard drive, BUT, it may be the only way to access the BIOS.
With your model, the BIOS setup should be F2.

 

Dell usually makes that series of laptop BIOS accessable through F2. Start up the computer press F2 multiple times right as the power turns on. If that doesnt work, you will need to try to remove your hard drive. If it still prompts you for a password then you have a password on your BIOS.

 

Lol i know right?!
He tried the F2 and he said it froze..
We got from a man here in Wisconsin.
I really appreciate you helping with this...
he said and at this point he is ready to try anything Lol and what part ya want him to pull..:-D

 

To begin, make sure you have discharged any ESD (static electricity) from your body by touching something bare metal that is grounded. Like and unpainted screw on an outlet plate. Do this more than once. I always keep an anti static wrist strap around for just such and occasion.

Disconnect the power cord, and the battery.

Using a NON-magnetized Philips head screwdriver, a fairly small one, remove the screw by the infrared port (oval dark tinted window), and slide the release down.

Proceed to remove the hard drive, and set it somplace safe where it will not accidentally fall to the ground.

Insert the battery, then the power cord, and try to access the BIOS to change your boot priorities. (F2)

Installation is the reverse, following all power down procedures.

 

Ahh yes, I forgot to mention the whole how to do it part too LOL.

Also, as long as the philips is slightly magnetized (only strong enough to lift a screw), it shouldn't cause any harm.

 

LOL thank you guys.. he is picking our son up from work and is going to do this when he gets back..I will let ya know if i became a widow LOL

 

Okey doke. I am off to bed, and will check in around 7-8 AM, E.S.T.

 

Well he made it..Lol
we had a few problems when he took the hard drive out and he thought he maybe done something to the battery because then the thing wouldn't start back up..even when he put it all back together but on the panel right below the flip part there was a little panel strip he noticed "moved" so he pulled it out and it hadn't been fully "latched" in so when he did he then got the dell screen etc to show up an everything you said to do finally worked.. so he got into the bios and set it to run off drive and pulled his windows disks etc out..Lol but...the drive evidently doesn't work (screen stays black with a blinking lil line in top left corner)rolleyes and wouldn't ya know it..the phone number the man gave him is a wrong number..so a 100.00 for a laptop that doesn't work.. he is going to try to use windows via a flash drive if nothing else works..you can hear the disk "thingy" make a ticking sound when trying to read the disks..
"He bought it for me and my websites i have and the man couldn't read etc and needed money so he felt sorry for him..an bought it"
Thank You so much for trying to help with this..

 

If you could find a compatible CD-ROM drive for sale somewhere, I'd go for that. I have some "junk" laying around myself. Let me look into it.

 

This is how you restore a Dell to factory settings. This deletes all user created content:

http://support.euro.dell.com/suppor...48AE3870775D64E040A68F5B2877D4&doclang=en&cs=
http://en.community.dell.com/forums/p/19243206/19375518.aspx#19375518

When you're done you visit Microsoft Update several times in order to get various service packs and other updates. It's not possible to get it all at once. Windows Installer usually fills up and can't proceed. But then you just run Dial-a-fix and/or reinstall Windows Installer and continue.

Dial-a-fix: http://majorgeeks.com/Dial-a-fix_Full_d4899.html
Windows Installer 4.5: http://www.microsoft.com/DOWNLOADS/...6f-60b6-4412-95b9-54d056d6f9f4&displaylang=en

 

So, will CTRL-F11 at startup work on this Inspiron 8600? That is the question.

Only hang up may be is that, BIOS seemingly cannot be accessed with the HDD installed.

I guess Miss Robin's tech will have to give it a shot.

Isn't that second link for Vista? The Inspiron 8600 should have shipped with XP...

Robin, just to double check, what is your OS?

 

Yep the F's work now when he took it out like ya said Mekanic and he was able to switch it to run from the disk but it wont read it now so yep yep on the cd/dvd drive needing replaced..
The OS is yes Windows Xp home edition
and yes if you have any "junk" we know that's usually the best "junk" to get is from one geek to another Lol Lol
Yes yes i need a Tech..your hired..LOL
After he made sure that strip was in place and the prongs were touching right and the dell screen finally came up, everything you said to do worked so now its just getting it to read the disks if the flash install wont work..rolleyes

 

Did he try CTRL + F11?

 

Yep and it just beeped when he pushed it frequently like the F 12 or 2...but just to double check in case he didnt do the CTRL, I am now an i have a screen there now that says Dell PC Restore..Ooo what do i do Lol hmm it would show up when im home doing it Lol

 

KICKASS!! Simply follow the instructions to reset the PC to factory default.

 

Ooo thank You Mekanic!! i chirped him an he said nope he forgot you said CTRL also Lol..
Now..my cursor wont show up to push the restore and the arrows only let me highlight reboot is there a button i push etc i can substitute?..But at least we are getting somewhere nowLOL

 

So, he actually gets to the Dell System Restore screen, and it will not allow him to use the recovery program?

Did he try pushing the letter "R" on the keyboard? Or possibly the Alt or Ctrl key in tandem with "R"?

 

Im so Hiring You!!! LOL the ALT and R did it! now i have a screen that says confirm or cancel and i aint doing anything until ya tell me what substitute keys to use Lol last time i pushed enter it worked only for the not to do it..and yes yes i want to do it! hmm dont sound right...but yes i want to restore! LOL

 

Do the arrow keys work to highlight either option?

If so, highlight confirm, and press Enter.

 

Yep it worked with arrow key which is good seeing how it wouldn't with the other screen..and its doing it now its almost 50% so when ya read this it will probably be done Lol its going so fast :-D

 

Well, let's wait and see if you have a fresh, bootable copy version of Windows for your very own!

 

When you're done you'll have quite a lot of work in front of you because transforming the PC to factory settings means going back in time. Therefore nearly all programs will be outdated. This is not just true for most Microsoft/Windows programs, - also 3d party software will be outdated. Flash, Adobe Reader, Java, etc.

Downloading Secunia will be a great help for you: http://majorgeeks.com/Secunia_Personal_Software_Inspector_PSI_d6096.html

 

Updating is the next step. It may not even be SP1, but we'll have to see...

Nothin' good is ever easy.

 

You actually don't need to install SP2 you can go directly to SP3. The question is: can you skip SP1 as well? It's important because all this install/uninstall leaves a lot of garbage files behind. And who needs them?

I know: Google is my friend...

 

Here it is:

Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is a free update for Windows XP. SP3 includes all previously released Windows XP updates, including security updates, hotfixes, and select out-of-band releases. To install SP3, either Windows XP Service Pack 1a (SP1a) or Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) must already be installed.​

Link: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsxp/sp3/default.mspx

Then SP2 must be the best choice. One must assume that SP1 contains more obsolete files than SP2 since SP2 is the newest. So I would pick SP2 and SP3 and ignore SP1.

 

Going straight to Windows update after the first boot is usually my recommendation. As well as visiting no other sites BUT that until protective software is up and running. Then use other software if you feel it is necessary, but regular use will inevitably have you downloading all the components you need to update. Java, Adobe, etc.

Just like a nice fresh V8 in the muscle car, you have to break it in proper.

 

Lol Yup the updates was my first thought also Lol got em all installed and now like ya said its going from one to another as to what it says it is needing Lol im more a software etc knowledge type and graphics,coding etc..this is NOT my field Lol so im glad i had ya in my pocket Mekanic "so to speak" since he is at work an i just knew i was gonna blow it up or something lol and yep to ya earlier on the fresh windows disks etc
Its says on the system info its SP1 and if ya want the other specs etc lemme know..
and of course your hourly rate for future needs LOL
sorry it took a few to answer, i was switching the mouse back an forth from my PC to this one

 

It's OK, I've got a few irons in the fire myself.

What you want to do, if you haven't already is:

Start>All Programs>Windows Update

Run it, and restart until it says you are completely up to date. Don't forget to check the Hardware, and the Software sections on the left where the update categories are listed.

 

Kk and yep on the up to date now
also on all the restarts Lol
i went to the Sp an it still went to the SP2 install so im doing that..it said to install em it needs to be on the AC adaptor...hmm so now its inspecting it
:-D

 

Yes, very important that the AC is plugged in. Frequently the processor speed will be reduced while running on batteries. Plus, the update process will drain the batteries, and you don't want a power failure while updating!!

 

And don't forget your security programs. Don't go anywhere on the net until you've got them installed. Really. You just made yourself a totally clean PC. Don't ruin it. An average PC will only stay clean on the internet for a few seconds without

- one good firewall
- one good anti-virus program
- one good anti-spywareprogram

 

Thanks for the chimes. We are a pretty good loosely knit team, the lot of us, ain't we? :-D

 

Check Check to both Lol
ya i sat here an waited then it decided i needed the AC hooked up an started em over Lol
And I use BD so far no probs with it after my ole Avg let a nasty through my other Pc and i lost almost everything..luckily i ALWAYS have it backed up due to my businesses and the things i cant afford to lose lol

 

LOL and life savers for sure! cuz i was sure like...oh goody! it would wanna work right when he aint here! so i waited at each screen that popped up for it to say..you ruined me now dont touch me again! LOL Thnx Guys!!

 

You're very welcome, and good luck with your new wares!

 

It works great! thnx so much! it actually is faster than my main one Lol if ya look thru ya things and have a extra cd/dvd thingy just lemme know and we give ya dolla dolla Lol

 

Here's a couple pics, not sure if it will fit in your Inspiron, but I'm reasonably sure it would.
Unfortunately, it is strictly a read drive not read/write. I'll see if I can find the one (R/W) that was in a C600 chassis I have.

 

kk i will show him when he gets home and ty so much!! its still running very good! how much do those cost so i know what to tell him? i also have my email up * i think it shows* feel free to email the info etc there also if ya would like