Trouble with compaq NC6230 laptop

Hello, I run my own IT support business and am having a tough time with a user's Compaq NC6230.

-When I boot windows its giving a Blue Screen c000021a error, no safe mode options work.

-Apparently it's a registry issue but when I try to boot from the 'notebook multibay', which I assume is the DVD drive, it doesn't read the disc. It seems like it doesn't even try to read the disc (no sound or vibration from drive) which makes me wonder if the 'boot from notebook multibay' option is the how I should be trying to boot from the DVD.
-User says that DVD drive was working fine and that there is no issues with it, just the windows/virus problem.
-Also her BIOS is passwd protected and she doesn't know the passwd. This was formerly a work laptop but she hasn't been with the company for 2+ years. She doesn't even know what a BIOS is and I'm assuming the the IT department where she used to work put the passwd on the BIOS

Any suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

 

Microsoft article about 0xC000021A here: How to troubleshoot a "STOP 0xC000021A" error.

 

Yeah, I know what the resolution is but currently I can't get to a command prompt, I can't even boot from a CD. Thanks for the tip on the google search though.

 

Check this blog post here.

 

That's a much better solution than the parallel install, thanks Cordialis. I contacted HP and they said to press F9 at the HP logo to boot from CD, I'm gonna try it tonight. Thanks for your time.

 

Ok, I reset the BIOS by unplugging the internal battery, but when I try to enter the bios it still asks for a password. I know that I successfully reset the BIOS because now when I boot, before it gets to the blue screen error it displays a 'date and time not set' message. It's almost like there's a default BIOS passwd but I can't seem to find anything like that in the manuals on the HP site. I'm really frustrated with this thing, thinking about just telling the client that there's nothing I can do at this point.

 

Seems like you are dealing with a locked hard drive. Most newer notebooks come with this feature/capability, and is set within BIOS to prevent data theft/loss in the computer is lost or stolen. Resetting the computer's BIOS doesn't get rid of the locked hard drive password. Might be worth checking into.

 

I don't think that is the issue because it's when I try to enter the BIOS that I'm prompted for a password, I can boot to Windows just fine, it actually crashes just near the end of the Windows boot. If there were a hard drive passwd I would assume that you'd be prompted to enter the passwd when trying to boot into Windows, not when you try to enter the BIOS.

 

My bad, but as you are sure that you reset the BIOS, this should have cleared any user or supervisor password.