Windows will not load

[ganjaman]

Hi all,
          The other day I went to turn my pc on and it gets as far as loading windows,
then a black screen with a curser in the top left corner. I use this pc just for storage
and have all my music, photos etc on it. Is there any way I can rescue them?.

cheers

[JJ 3000]

Help us help you. Below is additional information and suggestions on what you should list when asking a question on the Computer Hope forums.

What operating system are you using? For example if you’re using Microsoft Windows, what version are you using?

If you're getting an error what is the error message?

Basic details on your computer, manufacturer (Dell, HP, custom built), how much RAM, CPU (Intel/AMD), etc.

If you're having a problem with a software program, game, or utility what version is it? If you're using  Windows this information can often be determined by pressing the F1 key.

If you're having problems with a hardware device such as a printer, modem, video card, etc. mention if you have tried the latest drivers.

When did the issue start occurring? Did you recently install a program, new hardware device, or visit a web page?

[ganjaman]

What operating system are you using?lol
windows XP since it is on the XP site...

Dell Dimension 8100
and it's shite

[Azzaboi]

More importantly does that cursor blink at you? 

Try on boot pressing F8 and selecting HDD as boot device.
or have a look in BIOS setup...specifically the boot priority.

Check the DVD/CD drives don't have a disc in them.

That's the basics to try first, sometimes a blinking cursor top-left corner is just from trying to load a different boot device.

[Allan]

You said it gets as far as "loading windows". Exactly what do you see on the screen before it goes black? And what happened just before the problem arose (new hw, sw, virus, error, etc)? Obviously if Windows begins to load you don't need to go anywhere near the bios and your boot device order is fine.

[BC_Programmer]

Make sure there are no flash drives plugged into it- my laptop does the exact same thing if I have a non-bootable USB drive in it for some reason.

See if you can start in Safe Mode.

[dahlarbear]

Backup Data.  Slave the "hard drive" to a working computer to backup any data you can't afford to lose.  If the working computer supports it, you may also run "chkdsk <drive_letter:> /f /r" on the logical volumes of the problem disk to verify and fix any problems within file system.  Then return drive to original computer to troubleshoot.

If you run "chkdsk" do not interrupt it.  Let it run to completion.