Can't see hard disk

Whilst doing a big cleanup, I binned contents of temp internet files (not cookies), scandisk, defrag. Restart no problem but later on on coldboot I got a boot error. Looked in BIOS hardisk detected, looked in paras c:\temp not found, in fact no c:\ drive at all yet auto found the disk details. Also, no windows detected. Screen froze on 'verifying dmi data pool' - 'load from cd insert cd' or similar msg, wouldn't load from ME disk, also asked for a DOS partition when booted from W98 floppy. I don't know the default parameters when booting step-by-step and I think I may have inadvertantly ******* my boot sector or a virus has, I turned off AV to get a bare bones boot as safe mode locked up. Do you think I've been hit by a virus? Or has the DD simply died on me?

Cheers,

pmdeebers

 

The only way to know for sure if the HD has died is to remove it and put it into a system you know works.

With that said...it's unlikely that deleting system files would make it impossible to detect your c: drive. It may not boot or may cause errors at boot but it should be visible from a boot disk. You could try doing an over-install to try to save files. Or fdisk, formatting and reinstalling Windows. But you will loose all files that you haven't backed up assuming they are still there.

There are a number of viruses that do nothing until you run scandisk and defrag at which time they kick in and do the dirty deed. So yes, it could be a virus. You could try running your AV from the CD to look for and repair viruses. But if system files and/or MBR and/or all of Windows has been trashed by a virus all that will do is give you an idea that it WAS a virus and which one. You would still have to fdisk, format and reinstall.

My first move would be to try the HD in a working system and if it's "seen ", move on to running the AV from the CD, if that doesn't help then fdisk, format and reinstall.

Good luck!

 

One more thing that I always forget to add...if your computer is a Compaq DO NOT fdisk. Just do format/s