Blue screen after software install

Hi
My Daughter has just put some software onto her computer from a CD disc, now she has a blue screen and can not boot her computer. The blue screen is saying bad software install, press f8 and start in safe mode. But every time she boots in safe mode it comes back to the blue screen. We has tried every thing on the safe mode page but with no luck.

My Daughters computer is a dell and comes with a restore disc, we tried to boot from the disc but again it comes back to the blue screen. The computer is running XP Pro. Every thing we have tried so far has failed please can some help us with this problem.

Thank you

Rover 45:cry

 

What is the exact error, word for word?

 

What exactly is the error message at the 'blue screen'?

To boot from the dell Cd you need to enter setup (the bios) and set the boot order to CD first. Then save changes and exit. To enter bios power up the pc, tapping the del key.

When you next boot the pc with the dell os disk in the drive watch the screen for the message 'press any key to boot from cd' and hit the space bar.
If you miss this the system will march on and boot from hard drive to your 'blue screen'.

post again when you hav ethe message and control of your pc.

Studio T

 

Hi
Thank you for your reply regarding this problem, I will be going to my Daughters home in the next few days. I will copy down exactly what is on the blue screen. Regarding setting the CD boot in the bios, we have done this and tried booting from the Dell restore CD as exactly as you said but the computer still goes back to the blue screen.

Thanks again for your time

Rover 45

 

Dell provide several cds labelled restore with a pc. You must use the one also labelled operating system to boot from. If you do this and have done the bios correctly the system MUST boot from the CD, with or without the hardd rive connected.

Studio T

 

Hi
Thanks again for the reply. The disc that cam with the computer has on it.

For Reinstalling Dell Euro tools System Software, there is no mention of the operating system. The computer is booting from this disc but ends up back at the same blue screen. Do you think it would be better to format the hard drive and use the Dell disc to reinstall the operating system and software

Rover 45

 

But as you said, that cd is a tools system software cd-rom, you must have a windows xp cd to reinstall windows.

How old is the computer? Is is still under waranty?

i personally would find any copy of xp just too see if you can boot from it.

 

Hi
The computer is only two months old and has an extended warranty of three years. When you say try any XP disc, dose it matter if it is XP HOME or PRO

Rover 45

 

well no it can be either, its just to see if u can boot with it, but if ur wanting to reinstall windows its easier just to get the version you want or allready had

maybe contact dell and ask about the windows disk, they might supply you with one, who knows

 

Didn't send out an operating system disk with the operating system, sounds like dell, wonder why they are having difficulties, they were sending them in years past, but I have seen that has changed in the past few years. Acer is stepping on the heels of both dell and hp, as they do one thing well, instead of many things haphazardly. By all means have the information about, or your pc handy ,and call dell for the Operating System CD. They will probably tell you it is on a separate partition on your hard drive, tell them you want the CD that should have come with the computer. I know others who have received one within a week that way.

 

Hi
Thank you for the advice, I will contact Dell ASAP and let you know how I get on, thanks again for every thing.

Rover 45

 

Hi,
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you regarding this issue. Any way I contacted Dell who told me the operating system restore is on the hard drive.
I had to burn this to a CD and I could only do this once. But I tried to explain the blue screen and that I could not get into the computer to do this, I just do not think they under stood what I was trying to say, they just continued to say the restore needs to be burnt first??? Any way a friend came over and used his XP home disc and and managed to boot from that and used the repair XP option and this worked, So my Daughter is up and running again.

Thank you to you all for all your help and advice

Rover 45

 

Now that you have your pc back up and running, take Dell's advice and burn the recovery CD. Then wite a letter to Dell, of complaint at your treatment.

Studio T