Windows won't start up - Bad hard drive and/or Windows

[mindonstrike]

Originally Posted by billyo

i'm having the same problem now, windows would not open " a problem has been detected and windows have been shut down to prevent damage to your computer' " UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT-VOLUME "..trying to re-intall windows..i keep getting an error msg.. need help bad.....please !!!

I googled "unmountable boot volume" and got this from the Microsoft help center. Hope it helps

Sam

Unmountable Boot Volume
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Author:Soumitra Sengupta MVP
Community Solutions Content Disclaimer
Article ID : 555302
Last Review : April 26, 2005
Revision : 1.0
SUMMARY
When booting up to Win XP you may get a error that reads "Unmountable Boot Volume".
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SYMPTOMS
When booting up to Win XP you may get a error that reads "Unmountable Boot Volume".
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CAUSE
1.The file system is damaged and cannot be mounted.
2.You use a standard 40-wire connector cable to connect the UDMA drive to the controller instead of the required 80-wire, 40-pin cable.
3.The basic input/output system (BIOS) settings are configured to force the faster UDMA modes.

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RESOLUTION
If it be the connector cable problem then replace the 40-wire cable with an 80-wire UDMA cable.
If it's a BIOS settings problem then load the 'Fail-Safe' default settings, and then reactivate the most frequently used options such as USB Support.

If it's a damaged file system case then:-
1.Insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.

Click to select any options that are required to start the computer from the CD-ROM drive if you are prompted.

2.When the "Welcome to Setup" screen appears, press R to start the Recovery Console.

3.If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you must access from the Recovery Console.

4.When you are prompted, type the Administrator password. If the administrator password is blank, just press ENTER.

5.At the command prompt, type chkdsk /r , and then press ENTER.

6.At the command prompt, type exit , and then press ENTER to restart your computer.

This takes a bit longer, but the system should boot back into Windows.



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MORE INFORMATION
"STOP 0x000000ED UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME" Error Message When You Restart Your Computer or Upgrade to Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=297185

Description of the Windows XP Recovery Console
http://support.microsoft.com/default...;en-us;Q314058

If the above process fails to restore the system then in the number#5 step use fixboot command instead of the chkdsk /r command.

[billyo]

Originally Posted by mindonstrike

I googled "unmountable boot volume" and got this from the Microsoft help center. Hope it helps

Sam

i tried that too.almost all day today..still have the same problem....i kinda gave up..thanks for your help..im on my way to get a new laptop now,,so hopefully.i wont have this kind of problem again..ill just use my back-up laptop tonight got a show to do.( just got this one ( back-up ) 2 months ago..thank god ! )