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View Full Version : I need computer HELP!!!

BeerAdvocate
06-10-2009, 03:23 PM
I started having problems with my computer today. When I turn it on, the 1st screen I get is a black screen that reads "Intel Boot Agent", it then starts running a series of "tests" or something, then after awhile it ends says "Reboot and Select proper boot device" I tried to reboot but it just keeps saying the same thing over and over and I get no where.
Can anyone please help me?
The Poet
06-10-2009, 03:24 PM
Sorry, I left my hammer at home.
hikari
06-10-2009, 03:27 PM
Can you give us some more information on the computer and Operating system?
Prospector
06-10-2009, 03:50 PM
Sounds like its hung up in the BIOS looking for the default boot device (typically your primary hard drive) but not finding it. Do you know how to get into setup and change the boot device? Do you have a bootable CD that you could try? I don't think its even getting to the OS so that is not the problem. Either a BIOS setting got corrupted or your hard drive is not working properly.
BC-Axeman
06-10-2009, 03:56 PM
Sounds like its hung up in the BIOS looking for the default boot device (typically your primary hard drive) but not finding it. Do you know how to get into setup and change the boot device? Do you have a bootable CD that you could try? I don't think its even getting to the OS so that is not the problem. Either a BIOS setting got corrupted or your hard drive is not working properly.
:tpd:Yep. Press delete for setup, or F2, or F2 or whatever and look for boot device settings. Maybe your hard drive died. It should list detected things like that when it is first booting up
Volt
06-10-2009, 04:00 PM
Not a lot of info, but it sounds as if the boot sector is gone. Whether it is because of scrambled software or bad sectors - hard to tell from here.
BeerAdvocate
06-10-2009, 04:45 PM
I got it to the BIOS screen and it said: "Please select boot device" and my options were: "4M-JLMS XJ HD166S" or "1BAFE Slot 0240U4110" choosing either one takes me back to that black screen....
mikeyj23
06-10-2009, 04:47 PM
Do you have any discs in your drives? Do you have a flashdrive plugged in to your USB? Make sure everything's empty and unplug external USB devices you might have plugged in.
SeanGAR
06-10-2009, 04:53 PM
I got it to the BIOS screen and it said: "Please select boot device" and my options were: "4M-JLMS XJ HD166S" or "1BAFE Slot 0240U4110" choosing either one takes me back to that black screen....

4M-JLMS XJ HD166S is a LiteOn CD drive, I'm not sure about the BAFE, but it doesn't look like a hard drive to me.

It appears to me that your hard drive is toast. I can't be positive without looking at it, but that's what it seems. If you're lucky and have lived a clean life, reseating the cable connections to the hard drive or replacing the cable may fix the problem. Not being seen in the BIOS suggests that it is worse than a corrupted boot sector (which could also prevent booting).

I have had more hard drive failures in the last 2-3 years than the prior 20 combined. They seem to be built cheaply these days.

It is generally possible but expensive to get data off of a hard drive that has suffered a hardware failure. I have my desktop backup all data files daily automatically to a separate drive since I don't trust hard drives anymore.
BeerAdvocate
06-10-2009, 05:26 PM
I find the real BIOS screen you were talking about and changed some things around.
Not sure what I did, but it fixed it. Thanks for the help guys!
Tenor CS
06-10-2009, 05:59 PM
Congratulations!
BOTL ingenuity at its best.
BC-Axeman
06-10-2009, 06:36 PM
I have had more hard drive failures in the last 2-3 years than the prior 20 combined. They seem to be built cheaply these days.

It is generally possible but expensive to get data off of a hard drive that has suffered a hardware failure. I have my desktop backup all data files daily automatically to a separate drive since I don't trust hard drives anymore.
I don't do it daily but I do back up and multi store data. I totally agree about the failure rate. I have personal photographs stored in four separate locations.

Big sigh of relief to the O.P.
RGD.
06-10-2009, 08:42 PM
I find the real BIOS screen you were talking about and changed some things around.
Not sure what I did, but it fixed it. Thanks for the help guys!

Hmmmm - I don't think so. I'd suggest that you back everything up and prepare to change the hard drive. Unless you accidentally left a disc in your CD/DVD or a portable drive connected - you just got a warning and need to take steps now.


Ron
taltos
06-10-2009, 08:46 PM
I wonder if the battery on his mother board is going and screwed up settings when the machine was turned off. Had symptoms like this on an older machine and it was the battery, I do agree about backing up stuff though.
BeerAdvocate
06-11-2009, 06:17 AM
Dont worry. I always back everything up on an external HD.
Its time for me to get a new computer anyway. I think this one is close to 6-8 yrs old.
hikari
06-11-2009, 10:36 AM
Glad to see you got things worked out.
poker
06-11-2009, 10:50 AM
Hmmmm - I don't think so. I'd suggest that you back everything up and prepare to change the hard drive. Unless you accidentally left a disc in your CD/DVD or a portable drive connected - you just got a warning and need to take steps now.


Ron

:tpd:

When something fails, it will usually not fix itself.
Its a sign from Murphy it will fail again at the most inopportune time possible.
mosesbotbol
06-11-2009, 11:33 AM
Sounds like the hard drive is unplugged and the computer is passing by as it does not see it connected...
357
06-11-2009, 11:37 AM
When you power it on, listen for a clunking sound. If you hear that, your hard drive is toast. Someone with skill might be able to get some data off if you're lucky.

No clunk, then I would snug up all the cables from your hard drive to your motherboard and power supply.
GTCanuk
06-13-2009, 06:56 AM
Make sure you have no USB drives or camera cards plugged in. Might be trying to boot off of 1 of those. This includes card plugged into printers by the way:mad:
Silound
06-16-2009, 10:37 AM
Backups are your friend. Redundancy is your friend, and redundancy is also your friend.


I can't tell you the amount of data I've tried to recover from toasted drives over the years. I'm singularly disappointed that so many people don't at least keep a second copy somewhere on a disc or drive, but I guess most people are happy to believe it won't happen to them.


My personal advice to everyone that has data that's too important to lose is to use a RAID 1 or RAID 5 configuration with at least 4 drives. There's no such thing as enough redundancy for data security, and 100 new drives at 100 each are still cheaper than most data recovery services (the good ones run $15,000+ for larger drives). As a secondary, it's not a bad idea to burn all data to DVD's once a week/month, even with a RAID, because those DVD's offer an off-site backup in the event of fire, flood, or electrical damages.