PC Troubleshooting FAQ

Lockups and Crashes

1: My computer "hangs" on start-up, or after Windows loads. What can I do?

First, undo recent changes. If you've added or removed new hardware, altered CMOS settings, or installed new software, there's a good chance those changes are the cause of your problems. A PC that's been running well and hasn't been altered won't die suddenly, in general. So if your problems can't be solved by obvious solutions--like plugging in an unplugged power cord--try returning your PC to its original, pretroubled configuration.

Of course, problems do sometimes arise without overt provocation. Hard disks crash, chips burn out, and monitors eventually expire. Software, too, can be corrupted. A power failure or an accidental press of the reset button can shut Windows down improperly, damaging key files, and that can lead to all kinds of trouble.

The following troubleshooting tips should help you get your system running again.

Screen Is Blank

Check the obvious. Start by checking all your cables--monitor, keyboard, and others--as well as the power cords for both the computer and the monitor. It's best to completely unseat them and reattach them to ensure you have a solid connection; a connector that looks and even feels like it's firmly attached may not be. And don't forget to check the power outlet and your surge protector. Some surge protectors come with fuses or circuit breakers that can be triggered by an intermittent power surge. Usually a surge protector has a small button that you can press to reset it and get the power flowing again. You might even try an alternative power cord to make sure that hasn't gone bad.

Is it the monitor or the PC? The easiest way to know for sure what works and what doesn't is to connect a working monitor to your PC. If the test monitor works, your monitor is bad. Alternatively, you could connect your monitor to another PC; if it works, something in your PC is bad.

If your monitor is defunct, you may find someone who can repair it, but usually a replacement is in order. You might even take it as a reasonable excuse to upgrade to a larger or better model.

If the problem is in your PC, listen carefully to your system as it powers up, and look for a green power-on light on the front of your PC's case. If you don't hear the whir of your hard disk spinning up and the hum of your power supply fan--which should be visible on the rear of your PC--then you're not getting power to the PC. The likely cause: a bad power supply that will need replacement.

If you suspect the power supply is bad and you're comfortable tinkering with your PC's innards, you can replace it yourself. Otherwise, take it to the shop. But before you do, try reseating your PC's expansion cards: Sometimes the cards can partially work their way out of their slots on the motherboard.

A word about safety here: Many professional repair people would advise that you get a grounding strap from your local computer store and work on an antistatic mat. That may be further than the average amateur troubleshooter wants to go. But to make sure you don't damage components, first make sure your PC is turned off while plugged in to a properly grounded outlet. Touch your system's metal case, and then unplug the power cord from the back of your system. (Unplugging will protect you from an AC shock.) If you do your work immediately, you should be okay. If you move around, however, you'll want to repeat the procedure, as walking on carpets and so forth can cause you to accumulate another charge. (Of course, you'll also want to read your PC's documentation and heed any instructions about opening the case and maintaining the PC.) After you take steps to avoid frying yourself and your components, gently remove and then reseat each card with a firm pressure on the card's top edge. Avoid touching the faces or chips. Make sure all the power connectors for your drives are firmly seated as well. Then try powering up again.

PC Locks Up Before Windows Loads

Watch for clues. Before Windows starts, your PC performs an initialization process for many of its components. As it does so, on-screen messages either confirm the devices' proper initialization or report errors. So watch for clues as your PC boots up; you may be able to identify a troublesome component. If a message flashes on and off the screen too quickly to read, you can freeze the screen with the Pause key.

Reseat expansion cards. System lockups that occur before Windows' launch can be caused by poorly seated expansion cards. Reseat all cards following the instructions given above.

PC Locks Up When Windows Is Running

Check Windows 98's System Configuration Utility. Select Start, Run, enter msconfig in the field, and click OK. Click the Startup tab in the resulting dialog box. Look down the list and make sure that Windows isn't starting up a given process more than once. If you see the same item twice, uncheck the box beside the second occurrence. Another thing to try: Uncheck suspect items you may have added recently that have no uninstall routines. When you're done making changes, click Apply, and then close the System Configuration Utility. You'll have to reboot before your changes take effect.

Restart in Safe Mode. Press F8 shortly after your PC powers up--when it displays the "Starting Windows 9x" text message--to arrive at the Windows 9x Startup Menu. Select Safe Mode, and Windows will load a stripped-down version of itself with a plain-vanilla VGA display driver and a minimum number of other drivers.

Unless Windows is damaged beyond repair, it should successfully launch in Safe Mode. If it does, your problem is likely a corrupted registry file, damaged or missing system files, or another Windows-related problem. Look for the root cause of your trouble by doing the following:

Run Scandisk to look for hard disk damage. A possible cause of missing or corrupted files is a dying hard disk. Run ScanDisk ( Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, ScanDisk) or type scandisk at the DOS prompt. Under "Type of test," select Thorough. If ScanDisk finds damaged sectors, that's a sign of significant system corruption or real hard drive problems (modern hard drives map out disk errors at the firmware level, so ScanDisk shouldn't report any). Back up everything immediately. On the other hand, a few cross-linked files or lost clusters is nothing to worry about, especially after a loss of power or a system crash. Just make sure you clean them up, as they can cause problems for Windows.

Look for hardware conflicts. Right-click My Computer, select Properties, and select the Device Manager tab. Scan the listing of your PC's components. If a component is marked with a yellow circle and exclamation point, double-click the component's name. At the center of the General tab is the Device Status box, which will tell you if the component is working properly. If it isn't, click the Resources tab and look in the Conflicting Device list.

If you find a conflict in that list, you must remove it. Do that physically--by removing one of the conflicting devices (of course, by powering down first and following good safety procedures)--or through software, by checking the "Disable in this hardware profile" box at the bottom of that device's General tab in Device Manager. Then try restarting your PC.

Start Windows with step-by-step confirmations. Restart Windows and hold down the F8 key to bring up the Windows 9x Startup Menu. Select Step-by-Step Confirmation. Windows then initializes devices one at a time and prompts you for a "Yes" or "No" before moving to the next device. A "No" skips that device's initialization. A "Yes" should lead to either a message confirming the device's initialization or an error message indicating initialization failure. So if Windows locks up, at the very least you'll know which device was being configured and, at most, you may even find out why.

Check your Registry files. Most of Windows' hardware settings (and most software settings) are stored in the Windows Registry. A damaged Registry file can lead to all kinds of PC problems. Fortunately, Windows 98 provides ScanReg, a utility that automatically creates and stores five days' worth of Registry backups.

To run ScanReg, restart your PC, press F8 to reach the Windows 98 Startup Menu, and select Command Prompt Only. From the DOS prompt you can then type scanreg and restore a backup of your Registry. For more complete instructions on using ScanReg (as well as some more advanced Registry recovery techniques) see "Troubleshoot and Repair Your Registry."

Create a boot log. If you're still stumped, restart once again, return to the Windows 98 Startup Menu (use F8 to get there) and select the "Logged (\BOOTLOG.TXT)" start-up option. As Windows launches, it will meticulously record each step of the start-up process in the file c:\bootlog.txt. Reading the file can reveal exactly what Windows was working on at the moment of its launch failure. The file's long list of techno-gibberish may appear useless, but putting it on a floppy and taking it to a specialist may save you many troubleshooting hours and dollars.

Odd Behavior When Windows Is Running

Check your system files. Windows 98's System File Checker looks for and replaces damaged or missing system files. To run the utility, click Start, Run, type sfc, and press Enter.

Use the Windows Troubleshooter pages. If you experience problems booting into Windows, you're not alone. Microsoft's article Q202633, offers a series of step-by-step walkthroughs to help you identify possible causes for boot failures. Sure, using the Troubleshooter can be a bit tough when your machine won't boot, but use a friend's PC--it might save you an expensive repair bill.