Windows won't start properly.

[Bake]

I'm using Windows 7 Ultimate and I have a problem when it doesn't start properly. It hangs at the desktop, doesn't load any icons on it except the ones in the taskbar. I can move my mouse around but can't click anywhere and cannot open task manager or anything like that.
The way I "fixed" it was to turn it off by holding the power button down for a few seconds, start it into safe mode, then restart and start it normally. It usually works but today it gave me a bit of a trouble.

Now this might sound silly but I figured I should point it out anyway.
Earlier today I made Steam not start up as soon as I turn my PC on. After a couple of hours later my laptop froze (it does that sometimes) and I tried the old method of turning it on again but it didn't work even after like 10 times. I then went into Safe Mode, made Steam start up as soon as my laptop is on and restarted my whole laptop and it worked again. Does Steam by opening give it a little "push" so it doesn't hang at the desktop? Pretty weird if you ask me.

Now I've had this problem before, a year ago. I would hear noises inside my laptop and I had same problem. I had warranty and they said hard drive was busted and needed to be replaced. After I got it back it worked fine except I heard the noises again. Then they replaced the fan. After that everything was fine, no noises, windows started properly.
But now, about a year later I have the same problem except I don't hear any noises (I can safely assume, those two problems weren't connected).
So it's weird to me. They already replaced the hard drive but is it possible it's the same problem again? Or is there something else?

 

[trumpet-205]

To be clear, everything runs fine under Safe Mode?

 

[Bake]

To be clear, everything runs fine under Safe Mode?

Yep, no problems there.

 

[Rydian]

Make a new account in safe mode, can you log into that one normally?

 

[Bake]

Make a new account in safe mode, can you log into that one normally?

Yeah, but I'm currently not in safe mode cause ever since I made Steam open whenever I start my PC, method worked fine.

 

[trumpet-205]

Okay, so the workaround you found so far is to,

* Go into Safe Mode.
* Open Steam.
* Restart laptop back to Normal Mode.
* Everything runs fine.

What if instead of restarting you turn off the laptop for 10 minutes (no power/battery), then turn it back on to Normal Mode?

 

[Kirito-kun]

Step 1) Back up your files onto external HDD

Step 2) Boot into recovery partition

Step 3) Factory reset

Step 4) Copy files back onto computer

Step 5) ???

Step 6) PROFIT

 

[Kirito-kun]

(repeat post, mods please delete)

 

[Kirito-kun]

(repeat post, mods please delete)

 

[Ericthegreat]

Step 1) Back up your files onto external HDD

Step 2) Boot into recovery partition

Step 3) Factory reset

Step 4) Copy files back onto computer

Step 5) ???

Step 6) PROFIT

Screw factory reset, download a copy of windows (he already owns a legit copy) and put it on a bootable DVD/USB and you'll prob be better off (you also keep your files they go in a file called windows.old) no bloatware, but you gotta reinstall your own drivers.

Edit: also issue could be that you installed 2 anti virus programs, remove one in safe mode. (Windows defender should be disabled if you have another anti virus)

 

[trumpet-205]

tl

I'm not confident at this point to say his problem is software only.

 

[Bake]

Okay, so the workaround you found so far is to,

* Go into Safe Mode.
* Open Steam.
* Restart laptop back to Normal Mode.
* Everything runs fine.

What if instead of restarting you turn off the laptop for 10 minutes (no power/battery), then turn it back on to Normal Mode?

Thing is, even after I just wake up and I turn the laptop on, it sometimes still hangs at the desktop. And of course, while I sleep, laptop is turned off the entire time. Battery is still in there tho.

Oh, and the Steam thingy was just today. I turned it off and Windows wouldn't start even with my method so I just turned it back on and it worked. I always had Steam start up before. It's just that today I realized about it.

 

[Kirito-kun]

Hardware based? The only component which I can see being problematic in this system is the HDD.

1) Download popular Linux distro.

2) Burn to DVD or make into live USB.

3) Boot into Linux.

4) Run HDD diagnostic tool.

If it fails:

5a) Buy new HDD

If it passes:

5b) Reinstall Windows

 

[Rydian]

Step 1) Back up your files onto external HDD

Step 2) Boot into recovery partition

Step 3) Factory reset

Step 4) Copy files back onto computer

Step 5) ???

Step 6) PROFIT

Stop this shit, okay?

 

[trumpet-205]

I once had a problem with a laptop that experienced the "opposite" of what OP is experiencing. With that old laptop, I can boot into Windows perfectly fine the first time, but if I were to reboot it, it either locks up during POST or BSOD while in Windows. Unplug the power cable + battery and discharge the laptop does the trick. I traced the problem back to RAM sticks.

Somehow I feel like RAM should be taken a close look at.

 

[PityOnU]

I'm using Windows 7 Ultimate and I have a problem when it doesn't start properly. It hangs at the desktop, doesn't load any icons on it except the ones in the taskbar. I can move my mouse around but can't click anywhere and cannot open task manager or anything like that.
The way I "fixed" it was to turn it off by holding the power button down for a few seconds, start it into safe mode, then restart and start it normally. It usually works but today it gave me a bit of a trouble.

Now this might sound silly but I figured I should point it out anyway.
Earlier today I made Steam not start up as soon as I turn my PC on. After a couple of hours later my laptop froze (it does that sometimes) and I tried the old method of turning it on again but it didn't work even after like 10 times. I then went into Safe Mode, made Steam start up as soon as my laptop is on and restarted my whole laptop and it worked again. Does Steam by opening give it a little "push" so it doesn't hang at the desktop? Pretty weird if you ask me.

Now I've had this problem before, a year ago. I would hear noises inside my laptop and I had same problem. I had warranty and they said hard drive was busted and needed to be replaced. After I got it back it worked fine except I heard the noises again. Then they replaced the fan. After that everything was fine, no noises, windows started properly.
But now, about a year later I have the same problem except I don't hear any noises (I can safely assume, those two problems weren't connected).
So it's weird to me. They already replaced the hard drive but is it possible it's the same problem again? Or is there something else?

As a few others have said, it's difficult to tell if the issue here is being caused by hardware or software.

It's pretty easy to check your RAM using Windows 7, so you may want to try that first (insert "dropping a coin on a dark street" analogy here). You can also check your drive for errors by using "chkdsk" in command-prompt (run "chkdsk /?" for info on how to use it), or by using the Windows 7 GUI tool to do the same (I'm not sure how verbose that one is, though).

If those both come back clean, then the next easiest thing to check is software. If your laptop starts EVERY TIME you try it in safe mode but not otherwise, this is most definitely the case. If you boot into safe mode and run the System Configuration tool, you can check which processes and services are set to run when you start the computer (one advantage of safe mode is that it ignores all of this, eliminated most problems cased by malevolent programs).

PRO TIP - When using System Configuration in the "Startup" tab, you can set the tool to show what it calls the "command-line" of what is set to run - i.e. the full path to an executable and the arguments being passed to it. If an executable is being run from system32, appdata, or temp, you should probably look into it.

If you find anything fishy, a full reinstall is probably your best bet. The problem with a PC being compromised is that anything beyond the most basic of malware and viruses embeds itself so deeply in the system that it's impossible to remove fully without breaking things.

Good luck, mate.

 

[Bake]

I'll get to that soon.

Thanks for helping guys.

 

[zuron7]

You could try using a Windows 7 DVD and going into repair. Usually tends to fix such problems.
Or delete all the Bloatwareeeeee.

 

[Bake]

Sorry if this is considered a necro post but I just wanted to say that the problem has been "sorta" resolved.

My Windows had new updates to install and after that my PC would turn on and off faster and would always start the Windows properly.
Tho I never really figured out the cause, I guess it's just bad hard drive. I'm sure the problem will be back in the future again.