Normal mode boot problem with Vista

Okay so let me start off with my computer specs. It's a Gateway laptop with Windows Vista Premium, 100 gig hd, and a gig of RAM. I recently brought it a few months ago, i would say around 2 months maybe 3 and just last month i started having this problem. It started after i downloaded a free game of Soul Reaver 2 onto my computer then the next day i got onto my computer it ran slow. I deleted the program and suck and my computer started freezing every time i booted up. I've tried your Malware support but someone told me to come here to seek answers to my boot problem. So now my computer boots up in everything But Safe mode. Do you guys have any suggestion on how to fix my problem? Any help is appreciated... And thank you for your time.

 

Try the steps below.

Steve

 

Sorry about that, i meant it start in everything but Normal mode. I can do safe mode and safe mode with networking (which i'm currently in).

 

Did you try it like this?

Steve

 

Yeah i tried doing it that way but it still didn't work... I think i might have to reinstall windows on the computer...

 

I tried a clean boot as well not to long ago and the same problem ensued when i went to start it up normally. I think i'm going to have to just re-install windows to get rid of my problem... Any other suggestions?

 

Did you try holding down F8 while booting and choose Safe Mode?
Saw the change, sounds like you are getting it from either direction.
boot.ini? Good Luck, wish I could be of more help.:banghead

 

Yup i tried holding down the f8 key and trying to boot from normal mode or through last known configuration. Still dosn't get the job done.

 

I'd suspect a driver problem, or maybe even an MS service issue.

Here is something to try.

Open Device Manager. Disable you video card, audio card, and unplug any nonessential peripherals. Disable any ethernet card or modem, too.

Then, if that doesnt work, go through this:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316434

This is NOT to be confused with a regular clean boot.

 

If you have a graphics card with an Nvidia chip, you may experience problems if you use Nvidia's drivers after version 61.77. On Windows Vista, the built-in drivers allow the game to be played, but NVidia's Forceware drivers may not.

Googled it, seems to perform better on older machines

 

I'm sure it's a third party device thing. Because it works perfectly fine in safe mode and safe mode with networking (which i'm using now). But when i try to start up in normal mode it's a no go. I even tried some of that stuff listed and still it didn't work.

 

Some?

Please try the advanced clean boot. Its just about your last hope to getting to normal mode. You can't disable much more than that and still have the OS run.

Maybe I missed it here, but what about System Restore to before the problem occured, maybe even before you installed the game?

 

Okay i'll try the full clean boot when i'm not as tired...... And yes i tried a system resource... Many times already. Still no luck unfortunatly.

 

Take your time. I'm looking for a little more detail. When you cannot get to normal mode, is it because

1. You reboot?
2. You hang/lockup?
3. You get an error?

 

I try to reboot it like normal and it dosn't work. It gets pass the green bar going back and forth and the Blue Screen saying welcome. Then it goes to my active desktop and the icons load up but soon after that (when i move the touch pad alittle) the cursor starts doing the loading sign and i'm unable to click anything. I even tried pressing the windows key to bring up the menu but that dosn't work either. Soon after the entire screen freezes and i'm forced to reboot.

 

I see. Have you tried a new user account? You could make a test one from Safe Mode.

 

Yeah i tried making a guess account and signing in that way but when i did that sometimes before i could even select which user it would freeze. And if i had the chance to select which one it wouldn't get past the welcome screen most of the time. I havn't tried that in about 2 weeks but i can try it again tomorrow... I need to get some rest.

 

Ok, good luck.

One of the last drivers to load is the video driver, by the way. I wonder if it would help to uninstall it from Safe Mode. I've seen video drivers cause similar in the past. Your call, of course.

 

Okay so i disabled my video driver and the same problem persists. I turned off some start up stuff (programs that were unsigned and the ones i didn't need) and still had the same result. I went to the link you posted and i couldn't do one of the steps because it wasn't supported in safe mode. It's starting to look more and more like i will have to re-install my OS.

Any other steps or things you might be able to recommend before i re-install my OS or something else i can try?

 

Do you have any USB devices/peripherals attached? If so, unhook everything and try a normal boot.

Steve

 

No i don't have a printer or anything like that connected to my laptop. All i have is the internet connected through DSL without a router. I tried booting without it on and the wire completely pulled out. I disabled the wireless connectivity option so no one could get into my computer and still it was a no go.

 

Do you have the Vista DVD?

Steve

 

Yeah i got the OS disc for my computer and the upgrade disc.

 

You can try the steps below "if possible". I am almost sure that this feature is only available on the full Vista install DVD but I could be wrong. Never used it only read about it. You are reaching a last resort point anyway looks like.

Steve

 

Yeah i believe i can do that. When i looked in the book it says that's one of the things i can do with the disc. I'll do that tomorrow while i don't have to much to do.

 

Ok,how about,You go to safe mode,run CCleaner (with advanced),run good registry cleaner say:Issue from CCleaner,and something compatible with Vista.After that run some spyware scanner also compatible with vista.Cos you can go to internet run online scanner,and tell us what happen?

 

That was one of the first things i tried... I run CCleaner regularly to free up space and i had a compatible Spyware scanner and Cleaner and still a no go on a boot up. Same problem persisted. I went to the virus section first and they redirected me to over here.

 

Okay i'm just giving this final update on my situation. My computer works fine now. I tried the repair start up when putting in the Operating Systems disc but it detected no problems what so ever. So i was forced to Re-install Vista on my computer and once i did so my computer starting running like clockwork all over again. I still don't know what was wrong with my computer but i'm glad it's over now. I'd like to thank everyone that helped me and i've learned some things since coming here... Just one thing though. Is there anyway to clear my hard drive of the old data? I used up about 30 gigs somehow (probably because of the partition) and was wondering is there anyway to get rid of that old stuff?