22 replies to this topic

[jlhaslip]

So I've been having some difficulties with my Laptop computer. Not the least significant of them was this problem of not being able to find the O/S.

What to do about it? How does the computer not find the Operating System? I know that it is in there someplace, I had just re-installed it, but the BIOS was not able to locate it.

On the phone to the Manufacturer's Help Centre. Explain the problem. Real nice guy. Had the answer right handy. Send me an email right away. Good thing I had another machine available,huh?

On startup, the powering on of the machine triggers a process whereby the very beginnings of your operating system are read from a small chip. These instructions are required to find the operating system and your hardware and link up all the pieces and parts, like drivers, to assist with all the inner workings and carrying ons that happen deep inside.

Seems when this process is disturbed, all the linking pieces aren't found and connecting properly, and the system won't startup because the computer is not smart enough without all of this information. So, how do you reset the process back to the 'default' settings and continue on your way with a fully operational machine? Well I never knew this before, but on my particular machine (Compaq) , tapping the F10 function key resets the BIOS and the computer will then be able to find its way and gather all the things it deems neccesary for operation as per your configuration. Wow, that simple. Tap a button until it either works or it doesn't. That is how to reset the Bios to its default setting. Once the Bios screen appears, though, you have to reset the clock and calendar before you proceed. Use the arrow keys and the numeric keypad. Because the system isn't set to recognize the mouse, the keyboard is the only input device you will have.

Sorry this article isn't more technical, but I am not a technical kind of guy. And like most users I know, all that techy stuff gets real confusing when the alphabet soup language that pervades the Computer industry are tossed around. (acronyms - that's the word I needed).

Two lessons come out of this posting. First, this is how to reset your BIOS, and second, just a reminder to all the techy types, that you don't need to use all those acronyms when you are talking about computers. I only used one -- BIOS -- Binary Input Output System. Or something near like that. I might have been sleeping by the time it got explained in class.

[BuffaloHelp]

I would like to add to the post with this information.

Compaq does not have an actual BIOS chip. Compaq's innovative, then it was thought, ways of storing the entire flashable BIOS information on the hard drive sometimes can lead to the entire computer crash--face it hard drives are not that reliable.

To access the BIOS in Compaq, until this date either desktop or laptop, boot up your computer and watch for flashing white cursor block on upper right hand corner and press F10, just as COMPAQ's red flash screen appears. It may not reset itself by tapping but you can surely access the BIOS information and set/reset settings if you need.

Majority of BIOS for PC hardware have agreed on either DEL or F1 key during the POST (Power-On Self Test).

[Saint_Michael]

reall i wish i know that about 2 years ago then maybe i wouldn't have had to get a new hard drive everytime my compaq laptop crash, but yeah i do notice it sometimes when i do boot it up. make sure to put that in my notes of stuff to do before calling to order a new hard drive.

[nelimitat]

Did you solve your problem yet? I had a lot of troubles with my operating systems in the last days so I just did a quick clean install of the operating system.

You should know some dos commands in order to delete your old installation so it should be a really clean installation.

If you need advice about this don't hesitate to write down;

[jlhaslip]

Thanks for the info Buffalohelp. I didn't realize my machine was unique in that it doesn't actually have that chip. The way I described it up there was wrong then. Are Compaq's the only machine that use the Master Boot Record on the Hard drive?

St Mike - How many Drives have you been through?

Neliminat - I remember some DOS from a way back. Like 20 some years ago. It actually does come in handy once in a while. With all the emphasis on GUI's in the last 20 or so years it is not very often required. It was nice to have the background, though.

[niloc]

i dont understand how bios info can be stored on the hard drive. the bios ... basic input output system ... is the software that enables all the basic components of a computer to operate. it tests the ram for errors , it looks for an 8259 chip which controls interrups , it loads software into ram to initialiase what happens when input from the keyboard or mouse is received ... ie it loads interrupt vectors , software to be run when a certain interrupt is received. it looks for ide channels .... what your hdd are connected to ... if it finds ide channels it loads interrupt vectors 14 and 15 with software to run when it gets a request from the primary or slave hdd. how can bios info be stored on the hdd when it is the bios that initially sets up the hdd to operate??

[iGuest]

The problem has mainly three causes. One is that the System Bios is not detecting the hard driver, or the Master Boot Record (MBR) is currupted, or finally to say honesly the Hard Disk has gone west!Check in the Bios, on main menu, under Primry Master if the HDD is detected or it looks 'None' there, if it's the case either your Bios has not detected the HDD or the HDD is failed.If you can see the HDD under Primary Master (make sure your seeing not the CD/DVD Drive), go for MBR repair. Insert the Windows XP (or relevant) CD to your PC and boot from CD, after pressing enter to continue, press 'R' to run the Recovery Console and type hte command 'fixmbr'..later estart your PC ans see if the problem solved!Hope it'll help you!Insaf MuhammedKSA

[iGuest]

I have a problem with a Compaq with Win98SE that will not boot from any disc, and gives the message "operating system not found". Also, when accesing the Bios, I get a flaah message to run phdisk, partition too small.

I removed the hard drive, put it into an enclosure, and hooked it up to an identical laptop with same operating system, formated the disk, ran scan disk, and loaded all the C: and D:restore programs from that computer.

All seemed normal with that process, and the hard drived behaved properly as an F: and G:restore mass storage device. Upon reinstalling the hard drive, and using a freshly maded boot disc from the identical computer,

I still got "operating system not found" and in the Bios, the same flash message about the partion being too small. I'm convinced the hard drive is all OK, but can't put my finger on why neither the A drive or CD won't boot a boot floppy or Compaq recovery CD. Anyone able to help?

-Bob Huntington

[member]

Try fdisk on your compueter.This can be done with DOS command fdisk.It is needed if your Main boot record hase been deleted.Or FAT (File allocation Table )is missing.But before this backup your data as it will cause data loss.Other wise try booting from XP cd and delete all existing partion and recreate it.Maximum chances are that you will get every thing working after that.As i have tried it.Hope this helps.

[iGuest]

Advent 7096 mouse/keyboard frozen
Operating System Not Found

I have an Advent 7096 which switches on and boots fine into winxp, however the mouse and keyboard are frozen and you can do nothing from there(no F2,DEL,F8,F10 etc)if anyone can assist on how to reset the system or repair the problem it would be appreciated...Have tried usb mouse and keyboard--no success

-question by peter cleary

[iGuest]

Operating system not found -error message
Operating System Not Found

I have Window 98 on a HP Pavilion computer. When I turn on the computer I only get "operating system not found" message. Need any/all suggestions/help.
Tks,
Pete

-Pete.

[iGuest]

Operation system not found -- Tryed alot of stuff
Operating System Not Found

Yea I was trying to activate my windows when I found a XP Activator I DLed it passed 3 diff kinds of virus detects and I opened the file putting me in to reboot my comp which when I did I had to reformat it. I put my xp disc in and installed windows xp...Problem is It re loops the setup screen on the disk if I leave it in But if I remove it All it says is [- Operation System Not Found -] How can I fix, would really appreciate it a lot!

[iGuest]

hard drive repair needed?
Operating System Not Found

This problem is common with hard drives that have gone bad. Once a hard drive goes, it's pretty hard to get your data back. If there's something important on your drive, you can send it to a data recovery company to extract it.

Most of these companies are quite pricey, but I had a great (and relatively inexpensive) experience with DriveFish. (http://www.Drivefish.Com)

They don't charge you anything just to check your drive to see if the data is recoverable.

Hope that helps

-Gerald.

-reply by Gerald

[iGuest]

How do i get my laptop running again?
Operating System Not Found

Yes,I am getting this error
Intel Undi,PXE-2.1(build 082)
Copyright © 1997-2000 Intel corporation
For realtek RTL 8139(x) /8130/810x PCI
Fast Ethernet Controller v2.17(051202)
PXE-E61:Media test failure ,check cable
PXE-M0F: Exting PXE ROM
Operating System not found
How do I get this laptop runing again I have no boot disc and my cd drive wont open I got an external cd -drive by usb . I have an acer 5050 series how do I get this thing running again



-question by ----------

[iGuest]

What did you end up doing?Operating System Not Found

I have the same problem, and I tried to do a recovery on it but something is preventing that from happening, so I'm thinking it could be some sort of virus. But now I really don't know what to do!!

[iGuest]

operation system not foundOperating System Not Found

It just happened to me.I fixed it by doing the following:

Inserted a cd-r with the bootable free program"Super Grub Disk" burned onto it. It gives the option to boot into Windows manually. My desktop came up normal. I turned the laptop off and it booted up normal by itself. Why it happened in the first place I don't know. But at least I'm running normal again. 

-reply by mikey

 

[iGuest]

operating system not found...I have the same problem.. I can go to bois and I reset it and nothing happens... I tried bootable win and dos disk but still I get the operating system not found message..I have the recovery disk but since it does not boot I can not do any thing... How can I go to dos prompt... To check the hard dish or run recovery disk my laptop is compaq 1700 presario with win 98se...

what happend I tried to load ubuntu in it  and I chosed one the options that format the whole hard drive then it took long time to load and I unpluged the laptop  and after that the problem started.. Anyone can help me please 

-question by shak

[iGuest]

Creating a startup CD, not Floppy for laptopOperating System Not FoundI have a laptop, but when I try to install Windows XP from CD, it just sits there and nothing after the initial installation screen, seems the pc freezes up, is there some free programs I can download to a CD/DVD and then install on Laptop, Laptop had 320GB HD, 2GB ram,...HelpThanksTimP.S.I have read the responses above and tried most, but they do not work with my laptop.

[iGuest]

I am seriously considering reformating my hard drive on my laptop. I have very little space left on it and want to start fresh. I have already done this with disc I recieved with the laptop but it really did not erase everything so I still have only a little space. I am going to actually erase everything. I have done a back-up on what I want to put back on it.I have come across a few people stating that after erasing their hard drive and putting XP running systems back on that they could not use their keyboard or mouse functions. I believe though this was on a desktop. Will this happen on a laptop? If it does, what do I need to do to get them to work again and continue installation?Any help would be very much appreciated before I do this.-question by Melody

[iGuest]

operating system not foundOperating System Not Found

Operating system not found/txtmngr/images/smileys/smiley6.Gif...I have the same problem.. I can not go to bios to reset it ... I tried bootable win But still I get the operating system not found message..I have theRecovery disk but since it does not boot I can not do any thing... HowCan I go to bios To check the hard disk?I have HP desktop.

-reply by Adam

 

[iGuest]

operating system not foundOperating System Not Found

I have a hard drive with Win XP loaded. I can put the drive in one desktop and it works great. When I put in a different system I get operating system not found. Can anyone help me understand this issue.

-reply by Kerry Harmon

[iGuest]

operating system not found error message quick fixOperating System Not Found

I had the same .Error..."operating system,,...Any key to try again"..+ heres how I easily repaired (altho I don't know why it happened or if it is fixed for good and not just now)...I have a compaq with windows me, and I had the same black screen message...I went to bios by pressing (F10 ) and holding it down. (after turning my computer off and then on again.).Upon rebooting, and found my boot order was set to cd drive (1) floppy (2) hard drive (3)..That sounded wrong, my compaqs cd drive and my dells too are both fried...Sooo...Solution...Drumrolls accepted here...I switched it to hard drive (1)...Left bios..It started...Worked... Oh yeah...Hope this helps someone...

 

 

 

 

-reply by brad wheelerKeywords: compaq operating system not found

[iGuest]

Startup Repair ProblemOperating System Not Found

Once,my computer was down so I needed to use startup repair.The problem?It said in problem signature 06 that No OS was installed! Try using recovery manager to recover the Windows portion of your computer.

-reply by Ashton Snapp