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Grrr! I hate Software!

Windows crashing or other software problems? Don't worry! We know the sort of things that can go wrong with Windows and how to fix them. Give us a call today and see how we can make a difference!

Computer won’t start?

Are you having startup problems?

We get a lot of calls from people who say their computer won’t start. The trouble is that there are so many ways in which a computer "won’t start" that it’s difficult to know why without taking time to investigate.  If you are suffering from startup problems, it is always good to try and work out at what stage the computer is failing to start to give our technicians a better idea as to what’s wrong. Here’s a handy guide to some of the symptoms and their causes.

Computer doesn’t even turn on - you press the button and nothing happens - no noise, no picture, nothing!

  • Could be not plugged in (really, do check!)
  • Power supply failure (the part of your computer where you plug the lead in is faulty)
  • Power button broken?
  • Motherboard failure

Computer seems to start - fans come on, lights on but no picture

  • If you don’t hear the hard disk sound (whirring about) then it could be a motherboard failure
  • Could be motherboard failure
  • If you hear the hard disk whirring then it could be a faulty screen or loose screen cable

Computer seems to start, but you just get a flashing underline cursor

  • Could be hard disk failure
  • Could be that you’ve left a USB stick or memory card plugged in
  • Could be loose cable internally

You get an error message "missing NTLDR"

  • Could be hard disk failure - need a new hard disk
  • Could be windows file system corruption - relatively easy to fix

Windows appears to start, but gets stuck at login screen, Welcome screen or Desktop

  • Could be a virus
  • Could be windows file system corruption

Windows begins to load, but then resets and starts again looping round forever

  • Could be windows file system corruption
  • Could be a faulty hard disk
  • Could be a virus

Computer starts but won’t work properly - no internet, weird messages etc

  • Could be windows internal error
  • Most likely a virus or spyware

Computer shuts itself down in the middle of you doing something - no message, doesn’t restart just shuts down

  • Overheating - itself caused by:
    • Dust buildup
    • Faulty heatsink
    • Burnt out or stuck fan
    • Badly designed cooling system
    • Faulty power supply
    • Faulty motherboard or processor
  • Could be a virus

So as you can see, there are lots of different ways that a computer can fail to start, and many different reasons for that happening.