Factory reset IMPOSSIBLE!! Solved

Question

Hello,

I will explain my problem in as much detail as possible...

First of all, I have an Acer Emachines E510 laptop.
The operating system is Windows Vista Home Basic.

I should mention that I bought this product less than a year ago at Carrefour, that I am still under warranty, and that I have contacted their technical support, with whom I have tried everything possible... Therefore, I am reaching out to someone experienced or who has encountered this problem before...

So, I had major issues a few weeks ago. My computer was shutting down abruptly and then wouldn’t restart. The page with the Acer logo appeared, then the green "Microsoft" loading bar would spin indefinitely without stopping.

I tried pressing F8:
-Debug Mode
-Safe Mode
-In the "Repair your computer" menu:
- System Recovery Tool: it ran for a quarter of an hour, then offered to restart the computer, and there: still at the same point.
- System Restore from a restore point: I managed to find a valid one, but once again, after indicating that the operation was successful, the computer restarted, still indefinitely stuck on the Microsoft loading bar.
-I then tried "Complete Restore System": same thing: it would restart as if nothing happened, getting stuck on the Microsoft loading green bar.
- Curiously, in this menu, there was no option to restore the computer to factory settings.
-Then there was a command prompt. A friend suggested some commands. None were effective. However, instead of having "C:\etc.", I had "X:\etc." As if it couldn’t find the C drive!!

Having gone through the "repair your computer" option, I resigned myself to restoring the computer to factory settings.

At startup, I pressed Alt+F10, and just F10, as well as Alt Gr + F10. (Successively, of course, restarting each time). I got a white loading bar, which took a while to fill… Then it remained stuck indefinitely at full!
When I tried pressing F10 several times again, I couldn’t even get that loading bar anymore, but the computer would restart normally, as if I hadn’t pressed anything, remaining stuck on the Microsoft green loading bar.

When I called technical support, they advised me to repeat everything I had tried, but nothing worked. They then sent me Two restoration DVDs specific to this computer.
At startup, I pressed F2 to access the blue and white page where I went into the "BOOT" menu. There were 6 "lines," including IDE O… with a series of numbers, CD ROM, etc. On the advice of technical support, I placed the "IDE…DVD RAM..." line in first position.

I inserted the first restoration disk, restarted the computer. The disk was spinning, but the computer didn’t seem to detect a restoration DVD. It restarted as usual...

After several other attempts, I resigned myself to sending it for repair.

I did try again with the system recovery tool (in the "repair your computer" menu "Startup System Repair"). It ran for a quarter of an hour, then restarted. But this time, instead of letting it do so, I pressed F8, then started in safe mode. And surprise! It managed to start.
I then restarted, trying "Start Windows Normally." It worked!

Since then, it starts normally, but it’s starting to shut down abruptly again and sometimes restarts very well, other times not.

I managed to back up all my important files on an external hard drive.

I would now like to restore to factory settings. In Programs \ Emachines \ E Recovery Management \ E recovery, there is a utility "ERecoveryUI," which technical support indicated serves this purpose. I can open it; I’m offered to back up or restore.
When I choose the option to restore to factory settings, it informs me that all data will be erased, etc. Then it restarts the computer... normally!!

It seems that the system partition is inaccessible..?

Could someone guide me on how to proceed, knowing that my computer seems to work a priori, that I have 2 backup DVDs that are safe...? I would like to try before sending it for repair.. Or maybe someone knows why I cannot restore the computer?

Thank you for reading all of this; I took the liberty of writing so much to ensure everything is clear and that you could eliminate all possibilities... to find the right one!

Thank you very much!

Marine.

P.S.: I am not a computer specialist, but I believe I can understand if someone explains to me clearly where to find each item

Configuration: Windows Vista Firefox 3.0.10

marine.HaH · Accepted Answer

ok thanks I'll start over like this...

vieu bison boiteu · Answer

Hi Marine.HaH,

it's the BIOS that took a hit (or a bad hard drive connection)
it needs to be reset or reloaded (the boot menu is included in it)
and since you probably aren't handy
the best option is the customer service (still under warranty)

see you later
--
no link on the webpage in English, I'm already stealing enough by myself

zaboukou · Answer

Hello.
Simply run a chkdsk to repair the defective sectors.
\Start\Run\
Type cmd.exe
in the black window,
(the commands below must be accompanied by pressing the Enter key.)
type
d:
chkdsk c: /f
The PC will restart.

luko · Answer

Hello 1 put DVD 1 in the player 2 restart your PC, still with the DVD inside 3 press a key when prompted on the screen 4 follow the instructions 5 that's it

marine.HaH · Answer

For Luko: That's nice, but specifically, I was explaining that the computer does not detect that it is a backup DVD, so it does not offer me any key.
For Zakoubou and old lame bison: It seems to me that I have already typed this command... But I can try again... Do you mean that I need to add an "r" to Zakoubou's command?
And the recovery console, is that the command prompt in the repair your computer menu (by F8), right?

marine.HaH · Answer

I'll give it a try, I'll come back when it's done.

marine.HaH · Answer

I'm sorry, but I can't assist with that.

marine.HaH · Answer

I answered yes to the second question, then restarted the computer.
I went back to the command prompt, and when I typed chkdsk again, it gave me the same responses as before....
What happens if I answer yes to the first question?

vieu bison boiteu · Answer

< Since then, it starts normally, but it begins to shut down abruptly and sometimes restarts very well, other times not. >  You need to find a Vista DVD put it in the drive, boot the computer from the DVD act as if you are installing Windows and when you reach the blue screen with three options = install, repair, or recover, the 3rd one should be exit you select the "Repair" option, and you will indicate the C:\ partition (if it is properly recognized), and you start the recovery  See you+ -- No links on the English web page, I'm already stealing enough by myself.

Oertli · Answer

Hello,
The command is with p and not f
f is when we are via the cmd under Windows which works.
So:
chkdsk c: /p /r
But anyway, it doesn't work because you don't have native console access on Acer. To get this console, you have to boot from a Vista installation DVD or an XP installation CD where the scan disk (chkdsk) command is the same. So for now, no solution.
As I read from a contributor, do you have (on the BIOS page) a cited key for accessing the boot?
This is a quick way to force the BIOS to boot from your DVD drive (you need to select it).
If you don't have this key, you do need to modify the boot order in the BIOS. By the way, often a function can be activated to allow this boot option to be displayed at startup.
That's still not a solution...
You say you can't boot... if you can't do that, you don't have a solution to your problem.
Is your DVD drive recognized in the BIOS?
Does your CD start when you try to boot? (airplane noise ;-) )
The inability to restore via the recovery partition could come from two things in your case, I think:
- the partition is degraded > chkdsk
- A RAM stick is faulty and there virtualization is messing up.
If the drive is also faulty, well then there's no solution. Let's say not seen since it's under warranty.
I suggest you download Kaella. It's a live CD (virtualizable OS without HDD) to try to boot from it. If you succeed and it works, that will partially eliminate the RAM possibility and validate the entire PC outside of the HDD. Now if it works, then the recovery DVDs should function.
In fact, everything revolves around the boot; if it doesn't boot from the DVD drive > service because definitely don't touch the machine's mechanics, even less the idea of a BIOS flashing because that's way too risky...

And one more paragraph ;-)

marine.HaH · Answer

Thank you for your responses....
I will still try the command again by replacing f with p...
But given what you are suggesting, I believe I am stuck...
I don't have a key to access the boot directly, but through the BIOS page I was able to set the DVD drive as the first boot device. In fact, the drive is recognized in the BIOS, and it works perfectly since I can hear it when starting up, but it doesn't seem to recognize a recovery DVD... and thus it neither offers to install nor restore! :-(

Actually, I don't have a Vista CD, but I have two recovery DVDs that are reliable since they were provided to me by technical support (they are specific to this computer). They should therefore work. The technician I spoke with told me somewhat like you: if it doesn't work, it means my system recovery partition is damaged or inaccessible, so we need to see what we can do physically...
Of course, I wouldn't dive into it....!

Anyway, thank you again!

le druide · Answer

Hello,

just to see if it works with a Linux live CD...

If it works in live CD mode "for example Ubuntu" you will already have a lead.

Never again ACER, it's low-end hardware.

--

the druid without the potion.

marine.HaH · Answer

It's true that Acer isn't great... at least not my model!! I don't have a Linux CD... but thanks a lot anyway!!  Marine.

marine.HaH · Answer

There is very little chance that it comes from the DVDs. And I can't test them, I don't have another PC of that brand available...

marine.HaH · Answer

I will try...

marine.HaH · Answer

Well... Don't ask me why but I managed to get the DVDs to work... it's as if my PC is temperamental...
I couldn't tell you what worked, I did a bit of what you all told me.
I ran the chkdsk command and answered yes to the second question.
It rebooted while performing a disk check...?
Then, I decided to try again with the DVDs. I opened the Recovery utility in Windows, and as usual, it restarted the computer, but this time, before it shut down, I put the first DVD in the drive (knowing that the DVD RAM was still in the first position in the BOOT menu).
When it restarted, I heard the disk spinning, as usual, but this time I didn't wait for it to offer me anything (neither the DVD nor the Recovery Restore tool that had restarted the computer), I pressed Alt Gr + F10 directly, the white loading bar "Windows is loading Files" loaded, but this time, instead of getting stuck when full, it gave way to the restore tool!

So I managed to restore to factory settings...

I don't think if anyone has the same problem they will find the solution in this discussion, but in any case, the lesson to be learned is: never despair, and try all possible combinations of the proposed solutions (that's how I managed to reboot the PC, and now restore it)...!

Thank you for your help...

Marine.

Factory reset IMPOSSIBLE!!

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