Windows Vista Computer will not re-boot, only does Safe Mode

Hi,

I'm looking for some help with my laptop that has stopped re-booting normally. It's a Toshiba Satellite with Windows Vista Ultimate and I've had it for about 7 years.

It has really never given me all that much trouble, but it recently stopped booting up normally. It will freeze at or right after the Windows loading screen. I'm able do a "hard" re-boot and boot up in Safe Mode (w/Networking), no problem.

I ran MalwareBytes and found a Rootkit. I got some help from the malware removal board and we got cleaned up (I'm posting the link to the thread below).

Link to Old Malware Thread

However, the computer will still not reboot normally. It actually did it one time while we were removing the rootkit, but I restarted and it went back to freezing up.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

If it works, using the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files will save you from having to start over with a "factory fresh" image from years ago.

Detailed instructions here:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929833

Scroll down to the Windows Vista section. Run this tool in safe mode.

If a number of system files are damaged, you may have to run sfc as many as three times to get everything fixed. If C:\System32\dllcache is missing or damaged, you may have to retry your recovery disk.

You say that your recovery disk did not work. Here is a link to Toshiba's instructions. Look for your model number on the left of the page to see if they apply to you.

http://support.toshiba.com/sscontent?docId=98082279

 

Found this article at MajorGeeks on only starts in Safe Mode:http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=229374

I saw a similar article which suggested Event Viewer was the problem. Neil.

 

I tried the system file checker. I ran it once and it said it successfully fixed a few files. These:
2014-05-03 19:41:40, Info CSI 000001d5 [SR] Repairing corrupted file [ml:58{29},l:56{28}] "\??\C:\Windows\system32\wbem "\[l:42{21}] "Wdf01000Uninstall.mof" from store
2014-05-03 19:41:40, Info CSI 000001d6 [SR] Repairing corrupted file [ml:58{29},l:56{28}] "\??\C:\Windows\system32\wbem "\[l:24{12}] "Wdf01000.mof" from store

I ran it a couple more times and it said there was nothing to fix. I restarted the computer and nothing changed.

I also tried the "Event Viewer" suggestion. When I restarted, where it normally freezes it went to a "Blue Screen of Death" that talked about new hardware that didn't load correctly. I tried it again and the same warning came up.

Not sure what all that means...

 

C:\Windows\system32\wbem and Wdf01000Uninstall.mof seem to be related to a problem with a Vista update gone wrong. Links to old threads below.

(Quote) "Two patch Tuesdays ago, Microsoft released a slightly broken update which caused SFC to incorrectly detect its files as corrupt (simplistically). This is what is happening here, and what is happening to Vista computers across the world at the moment. The problem is with SFC - the actual files are not corrupt, will not cause a problem, and are nothing to be concerned about. "

Unfortunately, the solution was to go back before the update and wait for a fix.

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...updating/384bc395-42eb-4cab-b583-a1b1deb7a3e9

http://www.sysnative.com/forums/win...ystem-file-checker-cannot-commit-repairs.html

I thought retiredlearner was on the right track with the event viewer issue, and wish that had worked.

So what about the recovery disks? Have you looked to see what is on them? Is there a separate section with the drivers, or just one big image?

It would help to know the model number of your laptop, and what you plan to use it for.

 

Sorry, I probably should have posted the exact model earlier. It's a Toshiba Satellite A205-S4617.

I have looked at the Recovery Disk and while I don't see a folder that says drivers there is a ".exe" that gives you the ability to install them individually. I'm posting an excerpt from the "Readme ":

TOSHIBA CBCD/RADCD

This CD contains software designed to assist in recovery and
reconstruction of a PC system after a problem has occurred.
It allows you to reinstall some or all of the original
software delivered with the system from the factory.

This CD may also contain software which was not preinstalled
at the factory but which may be installed if desired.

This CD may only be used on the model of PC for which it was
designed. It cannot be used on other models.

The user interface for this CD should appear automatically
after inserting the CD into the CD-ROM drive on a Windows
system. This user interface can guide you through the use of
the following options:

1. Installing individual applications
2. Installing the factory system install
3. Creating and installing a custom system install (for CBCD only - please see note *)

Option 1 is recommended if a minor problem has occurred, and
one or more individual software components need to be
reinstalled. It can also be used to install applications
that are available on the CD but were not preinstalled at
the factory (if any).

Option 2 is provided if the system is no longer bootable (or
otherwise unusable), and all other attempts to restore its
usability have failed. This option will erase the hard disk
completely and restore the original factory system install.

HOWEVER, I don't know if this matters, but I installed Vista Ultimate right after I bought the computer. It came with Vista Home 32-bit. Obviously the recovery disk would not have that on there. I'm ok with that, but I wasn't sure if that would cause problems.

Ultimately, I would just like this computer to go online, watch videos and movies with the occasional document editing. I don't game with it although I have tried. I boosted the RAM to 4 GB, but it didn't help. I guess I just don't want to lose all of the programs I've installed over the years. A couple of which are expensive and I've lost the license number for.

Let me know if there is anything else that you need to know about the recovery disk.

 

It works in safe mode, so I'm going to assume it's a software issue, perhaps a driver.

Toshiba has excellent support. Explore the tabs on this page, especially drivers & updates.

http://support.toshiba.com/support/modelHome?freeText=1700051

Begin by making sure the optical drive is empty, then shut down and unplug the charger from the wall and the laptop from the charger. Remove the battery. Disconnect anything else that is plugged into an accessory socket or port. Wait 20 min., then reinstall the battery, connect the charger and access the BIOS.

Be sure your optical drive is the first boot device. If it isn't, make the change and retry the repair options with your Vista Ultimate Disk.

Reset to the safe or default configuration if you have such an option. Save and exit to boot.

Start > Control Panel > System and Security, and then, under System, Device Manager.

Reinstall drivers for, or disable, any device that shows a yellow question or exclamation mark.

Then do what Microsoft calls a "clean boot "

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

The idea is to disable everything that isn't Vista. If it then boots normally, reallow one thing at a time until you find out what is causing the problem.

 

Use Belarc Advisor before you do any restores. You will be able to get your Licence data and record it. Neil.

 

Thanks for the continued help guys. I did have a question about your instructions, antik.

You seemed to be recommending I set the computer to boot from a disk at start-up and then try to boot from my Vista Ultimate Disk. THEN, if that doesn't work, go back to the BIOS and reset to the safe or default configuration if you have such an option. Then Save and exit to boot.

I want to make sure that is what you are suggesting. I still cannot boot from Windows Vista Ultimate Disk. It gets to the "Starting Windows" screen and freezes for hours. If you think "resetting to default configuration" in the BIOS will change some of that then I will try it. Is it going to mess up anything besides the drivers?

Thanks

 

adidaman27, you have understood correctly.

Resetting the BIOS to a "safe" configuration is something in the "leave no stone unturned" category. It will have no impact upon drivers. You can make the BIOS changes and then try to boot from the Vista Ultimate disk. You can also burn your .iso file to disk on another computer and try to boot from that.

Don't mean to insult you by pointing out the obvious - that you should make copies of the BIOS pages so you can restore your settings, and make a backup of the hard drive if you have any means of doing that. Before doing anything, always take time to think how can I go back from this? RetiredLearner made a good point about using Belarc to record all your keys, although I understood you to say you want to avoid reinstalling Vista.

It is puzzling that you cannot boot from the Vista Ultimate disk, since that is an operating system independent from the one on your hard disk. I read through the manuals available on the Toshiba site, and it does not appear that they installed the Vista Recovery Environment on the hard drive. It has to be in a separate partition, preferably on a second drive.

Without getting into VistaRE via the disk, you can't do a start-up repair. I can't guess what is familiar to you and what is strange. Trying to communicate through a forum is awkward at best, so following are a couple of links to the Microsoft FAQ, and a step by step tutorial.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/startup-repair-faq#1TC=windows-vista

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/repair-windows-with-windows-startup-repair/

I suggest reading both, and the section starting on Pg 178 of the Toshiba Satellite Users Guide. Measure thrice, cut once, and all that. Maybe there is some some small omitted step that will make a difference.

In Device Manager, if everything says "this device is working properly" then nothing to do.

In the safe boot configuration, you are not changing anything, just putting things on hold for a while to simplify the issues. Everything is reversible.

Good luck.