Software and Hardware Malfunctions Cause System Errors in Microsoft Windows

Like other operating systems, System Errors are very common in Microsoft Windows operating system. The errors occur due to software or hardware malfunction. After such errors, the operating system becomes totally unusable and your system does not boot up. This behavior of Microsoft Windows operating system renders all your mission-critical data on the hard drive inaccessible, causing severe data loss.

At this point of time, you must have an absolute backup of your valuable data to restore data from. However, if the backup is not available, Hard Drive Recovery is the only way to extract lost data.

In a practical scenario of this issue, you may encounter one or more of the below error messages, while booting your Microsoft Windows operating system-based computer:

• *** Hardware Malfunction
  Call your hardware vendor for support
  *** The system has halted ***

• NMI: Parity Check / Memory Parity Error

• NMI: Channel Check / IOCHK

• NMI: Fail-safe timer

• NMI: Bus Timeout

When the error occurs, your system may hang (stop responding) and you may have to reboot it. The problem occurs on every reboot and the system remains inaccessible. To access your hard drive and stored data, you need to find out the factors that are causing this problem and perform Hard Drive Data Recovery by resolving them.

What causes startup system errors in Microsoft Windows?

The problem may occur if any of the below conditions are true:

• There is software or hardware malfunction.

• Some significant data structure of your Windows hard drive are damaged.

• You have incompatible or corrupted device drivers installed on your system.

Resolution

Try out any of the below methods to sort out this problem:

• Change the malfunctioned hardware and reinstall the software.

• Repair damaged hard drive using Chkdsk utility. It is an inbuilt utility of Microsoft Windows operating system that checks integrity of hard drive and file system.

• Uninstall and reinstall device drivers.

If none of the above methods work, format hard drive and reinstall Windows. However, formatting removes all the data from your hard drive and causes further data loss. In such cases, Hard Drive Recovery Software come to your help to retrieve lost data.

They Recover Hard Drive data in a quick, absolute, simple, and safe way with their interactive user interface and read-only behavior. The applications ensure perfect recovery in all data loss situations, as they methodically scan the hard drive using advanced scanning techniques.

Recovering Data From Formatted SATA Hard Drive

Windows XP operating system installed on a SATA hard drive becomes unbootable when the Ntdetect.com files saved on the drive get corrupted or damaged. Few main causes for Ntdetect.com file corruption can be improper system shutdown, MBR corruption, faulty hardware, and malicious software like virus. In most of these situations, a Windows XP user encounters an error message that makes the data saved in the SATA hard drive inaccessible.

To surpass such data loss situations, an ideal way is to format the SATA hard drive and restore data from an adequate backup. However, in case, the backup file is unavailable or damaged due to logical or physical crash, then the user needs to use a commercial Hard Drive Recovery utility that can recover data from a formatted SATA hard drive.

The above scenario can be explained with the help of below three error messages:

“NTLDR is Missing
Press any key to restart”

Or

“Boot: Couldn't find NTLDR
Please insert another disk”

“NTLDR is missing
Press Ctrl Alt Del to Restart”

These three error messages appear when your try to boot your Windows XP system. After any of the above error messages appear, the data saved in your Windows XP-based SATA hard drive becomes inaccessible.

Cause:

The above error messages appear when the Ntdetect.com files are missing or corrupted.

Resolution:

To resolve these boot error messages and to access the data, you will need to follow the below steps:

1.Put in Windows XP installation CD into your system.

2.Press any key when prompted to boot from CD.

3.Press 'R' in windows XP setup menu and start the repair process.

4.Now press '1' to log on to Windows XP installation. Press Enter.

5.Enter the administrator password, if prompted.

6.Copy the below two files and remove the CD from your system:

copy e:\i386\ntldr c:\

copy e:\i386\ntdetect.com c:\

In most cases, the above error messages do not appear after following the above steps. But, if they do, then you are not left with any option, but to format your SATA hard drive. To recover data after formatting, you need to opt for a third-party Hard Drive Recovery application. Such Hard Drive Recovery Software use effective recovery mechanism to recover almost all formatted hard drive data.

Resolving Windows Error 'CONFIG_LIST_FAILED'

Windows blue screen error messages can occur on account of various factors, counting from Windows hive corruption to an improperly installed hardware. Irrespective of the reason, these events won't allow your Windows to boot. Thus, it is imperative to know about various Windows Hard Drive Recovery solutions that can help you to get rid of these problems.

Occurrence of blue screens is common in Windows. One of the commonly observed blue screen error message is given below:

STOP: 0x00000073 (parameter1, parameter2, parameter3, parameter4)

Or

CONFIG_LIST_FAILED

This error can occur at the time of Windows startup and renders your data inaccessible by all means.

Cause

Stop Error '0x00000073' occurs when the system configuration link list fails. It suggests that one or more critical system hives have become unreadable or got corrupted. Some missing Registry keys and values are also known to cause the same issue.

Another reason can be that Windows is out of space on the system drive.

User Action

A user encountering Stop Error '0x00000073' must perform one or more of the below listed actions in order to resolve this problem:

• If you are running out of space, reboot your computer, delete the unwanted files, or if possible, move the system to a larger drive. In case, system memory is low, you can try resolving it by rebooting the computer, upgrading your RAM, and running less number of programs at a time.

• Remove recently installed hardware and boot again. Check the Hardware Compatibility List and make sure that no incompatible hardware is installed.

• If the issue persists, reboot your computer and select the 'Last Known Good Configuration' option.

• Repair the Windows installation or perform a clean install if repair doesn't succeed.

If you reinstall Windows, the next immediate requirement is to restore lost data from backup, which if not present or is invalid can bring serious consequences. To deal with such specific Windows Hard Drive Recovery requirements, there are various third-party utilities available that can scan a logically crashed hard drive and restore lost data. Hard Drive Recovery Software are easy to understand and use because of their self-explanatory interface.

Recovering hard drive when NTLDR is missing

NTLDR, short for NT Loader, is the boot loader for Windows XP and Server 2003. It is used to load the files and programs that are required to boot the computer system into the ready-to-run state. It requires at least two files to boot the system: NTLDR, ntdetect, and boot.ini. The configuration options for the boot menu are stored in the boo.ini file while NTLDR enables you to select the operating system. However, sometimes the system fails to boot up. It can happen because of various reasons such as virus infections, human errors, power outages, etc. In such cases, you consider taking appropriate measures to sort the issue. However, if you are not able to address the situation then consider using a third-party hard drive recovery software to recover hard drive.

Consider a scenario wherein there is some power fluctuation at your place and the system gets shut down abruptly while you were working on it. When the power is restored, you switch on the system it fails to boot up. An error message is displayed that can be either of the following messages:

NTLDR is missing
Press any key to start
Couldn't find NTLDR.

Cause:
There could be following reasons for the aforementioned error message:

The BIOS settings of your computer may be outdated.
One of the following Windows boot files is missing:
NTLDR
Ntdetect.com
boot.ini

Resolution:
To resolve the issue and get a healthy computer again, you should perform the following methods:

Verify that the BIOS settings are updated.
Manual file re-patching: This method replaces the corrupted (or lost) file from the Windows CD to your hard disk. The steps are:
Insert the Windows CD into the system as default boot up media.
Enter Windows Recovery Console.
At the command prompt, type the following commands:
copy X:\i386\ntldr C:\
copy X:\i386\ntdetect.com C:\
Press Y when prompted to overwrite any existing file.
Restart the system.

Reinstall Windows system. However, if you reinstall Windows then you will lose all the data.

So all said and done, if you are not able to resolve the issue or do not want to lose data in the process then you should perform a third-party Windows hard drive recovery software. Such tools are able to perform hard drive recovery using fast yet sophisticated scanning algorithms without any data loss.

Resolving Unknown Hard Error Ntdll.dll Errors

Windows operating system contains a description of 'NT Layer DLL' in a file named ntdll.dll. This is the file that comprises of all NT kernel functions. But there are various factors that can affect ntdll.dll file and halt its working in a Windows computer. Such situations are troublesome and call for Hard Drive Recovery solutions. The article describes some of these Ntdll.dll errors and the corresponding solutions to deal with those problems.

Ntdll.dll errors are usually caused after or before you use a program, when you start or shutdown Windows, when you are running a program, or when you are installing Windows. Some of the commonly occurring ntdll.dll errors are:

“STOP: C0000221 unknown hard error \SystemRoot\System32\ntdll.dll”

“Unhandled exception at [ANY ADDRESS] (NTDLL.DLL)”

“NTDLL.DLL Error!”

“AppName: [PROGRAM NAME] ModName: ntdll.dll”

If any of these errors occurs at the time of Windows startup, it won't allow you to access the data on the hard drive.

Cause

Most of the times, ntdll.dll errors occur because the ntdll.dll file is missing or damaged. Other reasons can be conflicting programs, corrupt hardware drivers, and malfunctioning hardware.

Steps to Solve the Issue

• Ntdll.dll errors can be temporary, which can be resolved by simply rebooting the computer

• If you encounter these errors only with a specific program, reinstall it. Also, reinstall all the patches and updates available for the program.

• Install the latest service packs for your Windows version.

• If ntdll.dll error occurs when you use Internet Explorer, one or more add-in might be creating the problem. Disable each of them, one at a time and determine the problematic add-on.

• Disable Data Execution Prevention for Explorer.exe. Make sure you revert these settings back to original ones if this doesn't resolve the issue.

• Update all the device drivers of your computer

• Replace the computer memory if required

• Replace the malfunctioning IDE cable and/or hardware components if any

• Repair your Windows installation

• As the last resort, perform a clean Windows reinstallation

For any type of backup concerns after reinstalling Windows, use a Windows Hard Drive Recovery software. These Hard Drive Recovery utilities can scan a Windows hard drive for lost files and folders and restore them at a safe location.

How to use Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery Software in case of hard drive crash

A hard drive can fail due to physical as well as Logical reasons.


There are two types of failures in computer hard drive - Logical hard drive failure and Physical hard drive failure. If the hard drive is making clicking and tricking noise instead of low humming or quiet whistling sound then there are chances of physical problem else it is Logical problem.


Physical reasons for hard drive failure

A hard drive can fail due to :
1.Scratched platters
2.Broken read/write arm
3.Hard drive motor failed
4.Humidity or moisture or overheat in the drive
5.Bad sectors on disk
6.Power surge.


Logical reasons for hard drive failure

1. Failed boot sector
2. MBR failure
3. Operating system malfunctioning
4. Corrupted file system
5. Improper shutdown
6. Reformatted hard drive, repartitioned hard drive.


If your hard drive fails then always follow the following steps hard drive recovery

• Avoid Using the Drive further
• Do NOT Shake/Hit the Drive
• Keep it away from extreme temperatures
• Never try to fix the issue with "Off The Shelf" Software
• Do NOT Run SCANDISK, CHKDSK or FSCK On The Drive
• Contact a Data Recovery Company As Soon As Possible

One thing I would like to add here. A reliable and an advanced Data Recovery Software can also solve the issue. As far as my experience is concerned , I have used the Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery Software V4.1. Its easy to use and user friendly to understand all the steps for data recovery process.


Steps to use the Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery Software in case of hard disk crash.


Step 1. Select the Data Recovery Option and choose the formatted lost files/ folder recovery from menu below.




Step2. Select the Drive you want to recover data from and click Start Scan button.





Step3. The following window shows the status of scanning process.




Step4. Here you can see the preview of all your recoverable folders . Select the folder you want to recover and Click Recover button




The user should take care of the fact that the windows data recovery software can be used recover hard drive data after a logical failure and . If the user faces physical hard drive issues then he must go for hard drive recovery services.

How to detect the hard drive failure with sound ?

When a hard drive faces a physical failure, it creates a typical sound which helps the data recovery experts to recognize the extent of damage. But there is nothing to worry about. If your hard drive makes noises like these and you are still able to recover hard drive data - backup immediately. If your drive can no longer be seen in your system please fill out our simple evaluation form to get a fast quote on our hard drive recovery services.

Western Digital

Western Digital desktop drive with bad heads clunking.

Western Digital 500GB desktop drive with bad heads slowly clicks a few times and spins down.

Western Digital 250GB desktop drive with head crash clicks a few times, then spins down.

Western Digital 250GB desktop drive with stuck spindle can't spin up, chatters.

Western Digital laptop drive with bad heads making clicking sound.

Western Digital 200GB desktop drive with bad preamplifier chip (located on the headstack) clicks a few times, spins down.

Western Digital desktop drive with unstable heads clicks a few times and stops spinning.

Western Digital laptop hard drive with stuck spindle trying to spin up with siren.

Western Digital 500GB desktop hard drive with bad bearings can't gain full rotational speed.

Seagate

Seagate desktop drive with failing heads making thrashing, then clicking sound.

Seagate desktop drive with bad heads slowly clicks and beeps on spin up.

Seagate laptop drive with bad heads making clicking/knocking sound.

Seagate desktop drive with seized spindle trying to spin up.

Seagate Momentus laptop drive with bad heads making nasty drilling noise.

Maxtor

Maxtor desktop drive with bad heads making clicking/knocking/beeping noise.

Maxtor drive with bad heads making steady clicking/knocking sound.

Maxtor desktop drive with stuck spindle playing futuristic cell phone melody.

Maxtor drive with stuck spindle and musical siren again.

Samsung

Samsung 80GB desktop hard drive with bad heads making fast clicking sound.

Samsung desktop hard drive with bad heads clicks, then spins down.

Samsung 40GB desktop hard drive with bad head knocks a few times.

Samsung desktop drive with degraded media making scratching sound when hitting bad sectors.

Hitachi

Hitachi laptop drive with bad heads clicks once on spin up, then beeps.

IBM desktop drive with degraded media making scratching sound when hitting area with bad sectors.

Hitachi/IBM laptop drive with bad heads making clicking sound.

IBM 40GB desktop hard drive with degraded media/heads rattles and squeals on spin up.

Hitachi 60GB laptop drive with stuck spindle can't spin up, makes humming/buzzing noise.

Toshiba

Toshiba laptop hard drive with stuck spindle trying to spin up(heard if taken close to your ear).

Toshiba laptop drive with failing bearings making grinding sound.

Toshiba laptop drive with bad bearings making loud grinding sound.

Toshiba laptop drive with bad bearings making nasty drilling/screaming sound.

Toshiba laptop drive with bad heads making clicking/sweeping sound on boot up.

Fujitsu

Fujitsu laptop drive with bad heads making clicking/knocking noise.

Fujitsu laptop hard drive with bad heads making sweeping sound.

Fujitsu 40gb desktop drive with bad media making scratching noise.

Quantum

Quantum desktop drive with bad heads making clunking sound.

Courtesy: http://datacent.com/hard_drive_sounds.php