Each major part in this book ends with a troubleshooting article like this. The troubleshooting articles provide quick solutions to common problems. That’s about it. You won’t catch me yammering on for paragraph after paragraph in these troubleshooting articles!

The Computer Won’t Start

If the computer does absolutely nothing when you first turn it on, first check all cable connections. Make sure the power plug on every device that plugs into the wall is firmly plugged in. Also, make sure the mouse, keyboard, and all other devices are firmly plugged into their slots. If it’s a desktop computer, look for a 0/1 power switch on the back of the computer and make sure it’s on (flipped to the 1 position). Turn on the computer again and as it’s powering up, push the button on the floppy disk drive (if the computer has one) and the CD or DVD drive. If there is a disk in either drive, remove it. If the computer sounds like it’s starting up, but you don’t see anything on the screen, make sure all plugs to the monitor are firmly seated. If it’s a desktop computer, make sure the monitor’s power cable is firmly attached to the monitor and wall socket, and that the cable connecting the computer to the monitor is firmly attached at both ends of the cable. Make sure the monitor is turned on. Then restart the computer.

Non System Disk or Disk Error

This message appears when the computer attempts to boot from a disk on which Windows is not installed. If there’s a floppy disk in the floppy drive, remove it. Likewise for any disk in the CD drive or DVD drive, or any drive that’s connected to the computer through a USB port. Press any key to continue startup. If that doesn’t work, press Ctrl+Alt+Del or restart the computer with the main on/off switch.

Computer starts but mouse and keyboard don’t work

If the computer starts, but doesn’t respond to the mouse and keyboard, turn off the computer. Unplug both the mouse and keyboard from the computer. If the mouse connects to a round PS/2 port, make sure you plug it in firmly. If the plug is round, make sure you plug in into the PS/2 port for the mouse (usually colored green). Make sure nothing is resting on the keyboard and holding down a key. Then firmly plug in the keyboard. If the plug is round, plug it into the PS/2 port for keyboard (usually purple in color). Check all cable connections to the computer one more time. Then restart the computer.

Computer keeps trying to start, but never gets there

Get to Safe Mode and choose the option to disable automatic restart. If that doesn’t help, get to the Safe Mode options again and try the Last Known Good Configuration option.

Screen turns blue during startup, then stops

This is commonly referred to as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD). It doesn’t mean your computer is permanently broken. The most likely cause of this problem is a device driver that doesn’t work with Windows Vista. If you recently connected or installed a new hardware device, disconnect or uninstall it. Then start the computer again. That’s your best bet. If you still get the Blue Screen of Death, you’ll likely have to boot to Safe Mode and disable the device through Device Manager. This is not the sort of thing the average user normally performs. This is more the kind of thing that a professional would handle. If the error persists, look for an error number on the Blue Screen of Death page. It will most likely start with the characters 0x. Jot that number down on a sheet of paper. Then, if you can get online through another Web site, go to Microsoft’s site (http://search.microsoft.com) and search for that number. You might find a page that offers an exact solution to that problem. If you can get online through another computer, you might also consider posting a question at the Windows Communities site. Be sure to include the error number in your post. You might find someone who has already experienced and solved that very problem.

Computer Takes Too Long to Start

In Windows Vista When the computer takes much longer to start than it used to, the problem is usually caused by too many programs trying to auto-start. For the remaining programs, use Windows Defender to prevent unnecessary programs from starting automatically. See “Conquering Spyware with Windows Defender” in Article 8 for more information. See Article 14 for additional information on controlling auto-start programs. Many things that prevent a computer from starting have nothing to do with Windows Vista. It often takes even seasoned pros many hours to diagnose and repair startup problems. But before you resort to the repair shop, here are some other things you can try.

Restore system files to an earlier time

If you can get the computer to start in Safe Mode, try restoring your files to an earlier time. In Safe Mode, click the Start button, type Restore, then click System Restore on the Start menu. Follow the onscreen instructions to restore system files from a date prior to when the problem began. Choose the most recent date. For example, if the problem started today, restore files from yesterday or the day before.

Repair Install Windows Vista

If you have a CD or DVD with Windows Vista on it, you can boot from that disc and do a repair installation. Put that disc in the CD or DVD drive and start the computer. Watch the screen for a message that shows “Press any key to boot from CD or DVD” (or a similar message), then tap the Enter key or Spacebar. If the option to boot from the CD or DVD never appears, and the computer won’t boot from that disc, you need to change your BIOS options to start from the CD drive. How you do that varies from one computer to the next. Typically, start the computer, then immediately start pressing the F1, F2, or Del key (perhaps all three, if you don’t know which is required) repeatedly as the computer is starting. This should take you to the BIOS Setup options. There you can configure the computer to try starting from the CD before it tries starting from the hard drive. Close and save the new settings. The computer will restart, and this time you should be able to boot from the CD or DVD. If you’re able to boot from the CD, the first screen you see will likely ask about your language and locale. Make any necessary changes and click Next. On the next page, click Repair your computer (not the Install Now option). Then just follow the onscreen instructions to do a repair install of Windows Vista.

The instruction manual that came with your computer

Most computer manufacturers provide some means of helping you troubleshoot and repair startup problems. Be sure to look through whatever documentation you have for your computer manufacturer’s recommendations. That could be your best bet, because all computers are unique in some ways. The manual that came with your computer provides information that’s specific to your exact make and model of computer.

Restore from a CompletePC image: If you’ve backed up your entire hard disk using Backup and Restore, see “Using the Backup and Restore Center” in Article 33 for information on restoring from that backup.

Restore to an earlier time: For information on restoring your computer to an earlier time, see “Using System Protection”.

Removing programs: If you think a faulty program might be preventing your computer from starting, you can uninstall the program using techniques described in Article 43 (assuming you can get to Safe Mode so you have access to that program).

Removing Hardware: When faulty hardware or drivers are preventing Windows Vista from starting, techniques described under “Removing Hardware” in Article 47 might help.

Troubleshooting Hardware: Startup problems are often hardware problems.

Resources in Windows Help If you can start the computer in Safe Mode, you can get to Windows Help too. In fact, the Help window should open automatically as soon as you enter Safe Mode. If it doesn’t, click the Start button and choose Help and Support. Then search for Safe Mode for additional information on using Safe Mode to troubleshoot startup options.

Online resources If you can start in Safe Mode with Networking, you can access online resources. You might try searching Windows Communities (which you can get to from Windows Help) for words related to the startup problem you’re having. Or post a question describing the problem in as much detail as possible. You can also search Microsoft’s Web site for words that describe the problem you’re having. Be sure to include the word Vista in your search. Otherwise the search result will likely include other irrelevant Microsoft products. Starting your search from http://search.microsoft.com will help limit the search to Microsoft, rather than the entire Web. If that doesn’t help, you can try searching the entire Web from www.live.com, www.google.com, or whatever search engine you prefer. If you’re not a technical person, don’t expect it to be easy. Like I said, startup problems can be difficult to troubleshoot, even for the pros. If all else fails, you may have to take the system to a repair shop to get the problem resolved. Or call a mobile service that will send a computer geek to your home or office.

Programs Won’t Start

In Windows Vista If a favorite old program won’t start, it’s most likely an incompatibility issue. Try right-clicking the startup icon for the program and choosing Run as administrator. If that doesn’t help, try the program compatibility features. See Article 42 for more information on getting older programs to run with Windows Vista.