Chapter 22. What to Do When Your Computer Doesn t Start or Freezes Up

Chapter 22. What to Do When Your Computer Doesn't Start or Freezes Up

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Dealing with system startup problems

• Troubleshooting Windows startup problems

• Starting Windows in Safe mode

• Dealing with system freezes

It happens.

You go to turn on or reboot your computer, and something bad happens. Either your system doesn't start at all, or it hangs in mid-startup, or it issues forth with some incomprehensible error message. It's then that you know that you have a bit of detective work ahead of you to track down and fix the problem.

If you're waiting in vain for your system to start, this chapter is for you. The good news is that there are some specific procedures you can follow to get your system up and running again after a crash, and I'll tell you about them. (I'll also remind you, right now, how important it is to back up your important files and settings just in case this sort of disaster happens to you!)