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General discussion

HELP!

Nov 15, 2004 11:52PM PST

I went away for the weekend and came back to discover that my laptop no longer will start up properly. For one it takes ages to even load xp and then often takes hours loading up everything else. I got a message saying HD failure is emminent and that i should back up files. However when i finally get into windows and try to back up the files it says there was an error and it was cancelled. So i'm deathly afraid of losing everything on my computer, anyone know how i can somehow back everything up? and also can anyone tell me what could have happened over a weekend to cause my computer to go to hell and back? it was running perfectly before i left and i got back and now it's crawling. Thank you help!

Discussion is locked

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"try to back up the files"
Nov 16, 2004 12:41AM PST

Vaboy,

Tell what you do (while trying to backup and the exact error message. However, this might be a sign of a failing hard disk. Then you might be too late with the backup.
Please also tell your OS.

Kees

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Re: HELP!
Nov 16, 2004 12:49AM PST

va,

Hard drives have their own schedule on when they are going to go bad. Some last for years and some die quickly. Because of that, it's EXTREMELY important to frequently back up your personal files and documents. Hopefully, you have done that before now.

Lots of questions here...

How many files are you talking about? Recognize that a new hard drive will allow you to reinstall all of the basic operating system stuff with programs etc. The only thing you will truly "lose" are those files and documents that you have created or placed on the computer. In addition, if you no longer have the installation CD's for programs that you've placed on the computer, then those will be gone also.

Is this a new computer? If so, take it back to have the HD replaced. If it's an old computer, then you'll need to attempt to back up files by using any method possible. Do you have a floppy drive on the laptop? Do you have a CD burner? What options are available for copying files to a removalble media?

Is your computer using NTFS or FAT32 file system? If using FAT32, have you tried using a bootdisk and copy the files using DOS instructions?

Hope this helps and let us know more.

Grif

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Re: HELP!
Nov 16, 2004 2:59AM PST

well i'm talking about maybe 15 gbs worth of crap...the laptop is only about a year and half old i don't know what could have gone wrong. and i believe it's using NTFS since i am seeing that name more and more.