Posted on 12/11/2005 7:05:52 PM PST by Slump Tester
I need advice from anyone having experience setting up a dell notebook. I build desktops but have never done anything with notebooks.
I have an Inspiron 6000 that I bought as a refurb from the Dell outlet. (Like an idiot, I didn't buy the warranty.)
It appears that the hard drive is bad, as after the Dell screen, the system never boots to windows. It just stays black. (I did have a BSD earlier.)
I booted from an XP install cd, and it saw 3 partitions:
The first one was a fat, and was 55Mb.
The second on had a "-" on the left, said "unknown" and was 71Gb. (It said there was 71Gb free.)
The 3rd one was about 5Gb, and was a fat32.
I powered up with the HD out, and was able to get into the setup, so that's on a rom. It appears one of those 2 smaller partitions has diagnostics. (which DO work, and say there is a HD error while waiting for "not busy"), but what is the other small one for?
There is no floppy drive, so my next step after posting this is to make a bootable CD with some dos stuff on it so I can look at the 2 wierd partions.
If I get a new hd, how do I get these "stripes" back? The only thing that came with it is a CD that appears to just be an XP Home install cd.
I thought Compaq was the only ones to do this BS. Am I screwed, or can I just get a new HD and set up 1 big NTFS partition?
Sorry to be harsh but this is a news/political forum.. correct
Yes and without a working computer uddely useless
Oh great- now I suppose that your going to tell me that I'm not patriotic too... right?? </sarc on>
Just making the point that their are hundreds of sites to go to for computer help-- a political forum should not be one Nothing more to add...
My question is about the warranty, though - a refurb should have come with a 1 year warranty standard. The only thing you might have had to buy would be an extended warranty beyond the 1 year. If you're less than one year from purchase, you can still get service under warranty. If you're not sure, go to the Dell website and plug in your service tag - it'll tell you if you're still covered or not.
ROFL
Did you know most IT departments are comprised of conservatives?
If you have enough brains to be a network geek, you're smart enough to see how stupid liberals are.
First, completely power off the computer, then then power it back on. As soon as you see the "Dell" logo simultaneously press the Ctrl + F11 keys ONE TIME ONLY. If it's a very fast machine your window to do this can pass quickly, so press them as soon as you press the power button.
This should boot the computer to the System Restore screen. Just follow the prompts to reinstall a clean install of Windows and the bundled programs which originally came with the computer.
If the drive is bad, you'll have to replace the hards drive and reinstall from a Windows disk.
I can get a 60Gb HD in 3 days for $80, and if it's a warranty issue I can probably count on being down for quite a while.
I'm gonna double check though.
Anyway, one of the posts up above detailed how to restore the system - try that before ordering that new drive, is my suggestion.
Had a similar problem w/a toshiba. Check to make sure the RAM module is firmly seated.
replaced the HD on my Inspiron 8000 about a year ago after it went bad. Not so bad in setting it up and setting up the partitions. Worse getting the bad drive working well enough to back up the critical data I needed.
Took a few calls to Dell's Indian tech support to talk me through it, but in the end it was not so bad.
I wouldn't be 100% sure it's the disk yet. Consider getting an after-purchase service agreement. In case it's memory or something different, it would be good not to have to play 20 questions with the hardware, looking for the real problem.
It said it was windows 98, but I'm seeing something about NTFS files. I'll let you know how this comes out. Thanks!!!!
I'm getting a "write sector failure", and a "not ready reading drive c".
I guess I'll go for the new HD and do 1 partition. Who needs restore and diagnostic stuff if the rest of the drive is useless?
Dell does the same thing as Compaq; partitions for setup, diagnostics, etc. along with restore cds that will pretty much restore to factory condition. You can stick a new drive in there and install whatever you want, make it a whole ntfs if you wish, but the restore cd may not allow that option, so you would need regular installation cds.
As for the physical installation of the hard drive, laptops can be a PITA. My Dell's hard drive was completely internal, so I had to disassemble it to the point of opening the case halves to get it replaced. Some can be removed externally almost as easy as cd drives, etc. If you need to open the thing, the best bet is to go on to Dell's site and find the support pages for your model/service tag. They should have manuals online, including a service manual which should have replacement instructions so you don't have to tear the whole thing apart unnecessarily.
Good luck!
Ah, well - it was worth a try. One final thing you might consider is cracking open the cover for the drive and making sure all the connections are solid and in place. While you've got it open, check the brand of drive you've got - many hard drive manufacturers will have diagnostic software available that can run low-level tests on the drive. Look for a bootable CD image on the manufacturer's website, that you can burn to a CD and use to test the hard drive. Best of luck :)
What operating system will you install and where is your CD for it?
Who needs restore and diagnostic stuff if the rest of the drive is useless?
Sorry the drive was bad and System Restore didn't work for you. It was worth a shot.
After you get the new drive installed and a fresh Windows install, you can go to the Dell Support web site and download the necessary drivers for your computer. Just do a search by the Service Tag # or Model #.
I hope I don't need too many drivers.
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