Disk Boot Failure???

I have a relatively newer Compaq which I bought sometime last year and its been running smoothly. I have Windows XP running on it. Lately though for no reason I have been getting a weird message after the computer starts up. It says "Disk Boot Failure, Insert System Disk and Press Enter" I hit enter over and over and I sometimes cant get past this screen. I restart from there over and over and that screen still pops up. My computer does not have a disk drive (Floppy Drive) and it did not come with a recovery disk. What does this all mean and what can I do about it?

 

"Disk Boot Failure, Insert System Disk and Press Enter" means your computer can not find a bootable drive. Which would indicate that:

1. A cable is not connected correctly.
2. The drive is failing.
3. The IDE controller is failing.
4. The MBR is missing/corrupt.

You need the recovery CD to correct the last item. If you can boot into the computer, there will be an option in the Start Menu to create a recovery CD set, you will need upwards of 10 CDs.

 

I dont know what those last 2 choices are, I am kind of computer illiterate. I actually tried the on-board recovery system that comes with the computer, I even did a complete recovery/format and it still does this....very weird. I will look and see if I have 10 disks, I hope I do...

 

There is a cable plugged into your Hard Drive the other end is plugged into the on-board IDE controller on your motherboard

This is what tells the BIOS that this drive is a bootable device. The Master Boot Record resides on the first sector of your hard drive and if it is missing or corrupt then your drive won't boot.

 

Thanks for the help. I hope it works.