Reboot and select proper boot device or insert boo

[Haz]

 :-?
Please help.. my pc recently have tis prob: "Reboot and select proper boot device or insert boot media in selected boot device and press a key". tried almost everything that i noe to bring it back to live but fail. Can anyone pls help me. Got urgent work to finish.

Mysystem: HP Pavillion  PC  W1284D
P4 2.93 GHz, Processor 515
512Mb DDR400
80GB Hdd
ATI Radeon X300E
Lightscribe DVD-RW

10q.....

[Neil]

Does it say where it is looking for the boot device? floppy/cdrom?

When your computer starts, go into the BIOS. This is usually done by repeatedly press delete or another key when your computer starts. Look in the options for boot order/boot priority/etc. There should be three enteries, containing things such as harddrive and floppy. Please list them and the order in which they appear.

And make sure you don't have any disks, especially floppies, in your computer when you start.

What was you doing just before the problem started?

[Haz]

Hi Neil,
Thanks for your reply, I've tried select Boot from Cdrom so that i can load the recovery cd & press F10 but it could not save the setting.  I was doing my normal work, shut down as normal and the next day(Friday) this occured.

[pcdoc4christ]

Haz:

When you press the key indicated on your monitor to enter the BIOS setup, does the BIOS indicate that the hard drive is connected to the computer?  If not, the hard drive or the power supply might be shot.

Doc

[Haz]

Hi pcdoc4christ,

Yes it does, it detected the Hdd, Ram & Dvd-rw as well. Even when I changed the dvd-rw to a cd-rom, it also detected the cd-rom. What can be wrong...
Very Frastrated..

[patio]

Try this...power down and remove the plug from the power supply on the rear of the machine. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. Hook everything back up and power up.

Did this change anything ? ?

patio.   8-)

[Haz]

Patio,

Yes did it already, but it is still the same.

[Neil]

load the recovery cd & press F10 but it could not save the setting.

What exactly do you mean? What does it say?

[Haz]

Have done what was suggested by Patio but still  got tis Stupid Mess: "Reboot and Select proper Boot device or Insert Boot Media in selected Boot device and press a key".  Really  PITAS ( Pain In The *censored* ). Do you think it has do with some kind of virus???

[pcdoc4christ]

Haz:

Assuming the BIOS is set to boot to the hard drive first, i'd say it is either a hard drive failure, or damage to the boot sector or master boot record of the hard drive.  Try opening up the case, turning on the computer, and feeling the hard drive or listening to it.  Do you feel or hear any slight vibration that would indicate the disks inside are spinning, or does it seem dead to the world?

If there is sign of life, try using your Windows XP CD to fix the boot sector:

http://support.microsoft.com/KB/314503

Please keep us posted,
Doc

[GX1_Man]

Unfortunately the question that hasn't been asked is do you have a real Windows CD?

[pcdoc4christ]

...Do you think it has do with some kind of virus???

Yes, it is possible it is a boot sector virus (see the warning in the Microsoft link in my previous reply).  Booting your computer with an antivirus CD that has a program to search for, remove, and repair the damage done by a boot sector virus is a good idea.  I would strongly recommend doing this before using the FIXMBR and FIXBOOT commands of the Windows Recovery Console.


Doc

[Haz]

Hi PcDoc,

I've a bought a new Seagate Sata 320Gb thinking the hdd was faulty, but it still acte dthe same. Thanks I shall try as u advised.

GX1_Man, Yes it is. I'm using the HP Recovery Disc.

Do you guys think that my Sata port is faulty cuz when i replaced an old hdd with Win95 on IDE cable, its could detect the hdd but there an eroor with hdd(spoilt).

[GX1_Man]

Do you guys think that my Sata port is faulty cuz when i replaced an old hdd with Win95 on IDE cable, its could detect the hdd but there an eroor with hdd(spoilt).

I don't even understand this.

[pcdoc4christ]

Do you guys think that my Sata port is faulty cuz when i replaced an old hdd with Win95 on IDE cable, its could detect the hdd but there an eroor with hdd(spoilt).

I don't even understand this.

Neither do i.  

Haz, are you saying your motherboard has an IDE and an SATA connector to accommodate both types of hard drives?  If so, you can try an SATA to IDE adapter to connect the SATA hard drive to the IDE connector to see if you can boot to the hard drive (albiet with a loss of read-write speed).  I'm still thinking it is a boot sector virus or a corrupted boot sector or MBR.

Many system restoration CDs do not offer the ability to boot to the Windows Recovery Console, but yours might give you this option.  If not, you will likely need to obtain a Windows CD, as Gman seemed to be implying.

Doc