beeping, looking for operating system, now won't load at all

I haven't used this laptop in 2 years- when I put it away it was operating well and stored in a box in the bedroom closet. It was dry and should have been no extreme temperatures etc. I got it out because a friend offered to buy it from us and I was going to take him up on the offer.

Upon start up it beeped rapidly for about 15 seconds. Then this screen will load:

After I selected Vista- it progressed just fine to the windows desktop.

I ran the Windows Memory Diagnostic and it passed the test with no errors detected. I tried to do a system restore but the dates were from 2010 and it said it was too old to perform a restore. I wanted to set it back to system settings but it asked for a disk that I did not have. Frustrated I looked through my computer stuff and found a disk for Windows XP professional I bought a long time ago.

I tried to install Window's XP Pro on it and it goes through the motions... I follow the menu as its loading up then about 1/2 through when I'm accepting the TOS the computer just turns off. By itself- everything shuts down.

I reboot the computer and it does the same thing. I took the disk out and when rebooting it just sits at a command prompt and does nothing.

I tried hitting F11 for recovery at startup- nothing.

Unless there is a disk inside- it just sits at a prompt and beeps when you press anything on the keyboard.

I guess I shouldn't have messed with it but I've done a reinstall/recovery/ect many times before and never had a system just completely crash on me....

Any suggestions on the next step?

 

Tried to install Windows XP Pro again after taking a break. This time made it to the install screen- about 3% installed and then the laptop completely shutdown again. Any ideas why it would be shutting down like this? Thanks

 

Hi Amy.Welcome to Computer Help Forums.
Having had Vista installed and now trying to install XP, you may have to go into the Bios and set the SATA operation from AHCI to ATA
This should let you install XP.
I would completely wipe the drive of all partitions first.

Is the battery fully charged?

Another thing to consider Microsoft support for XP ends April 2014.

 

Real good possibility Dougie is right there as most newer systems now default to AHCI which supports all sata drives. It is also possible though if you change that you won't find sata drivers for XP either so if I were you, I would go and get a Vista disk if you want to try to install Windows clean. Most brand name pcs have restore disks you can buy as well which are far less money than a Windows disk offered to you at their sites under downloads or by calling them.
Also don't forget where it is an older system and hasn't been used for a while, the hard drive is most likely shot anyway which is why it can't find Windows or restore to it.

 

Listened to all your advice and tried a few different things. Managed to get all the way through the install for XP and it didn't install. Computer just sits at the prompt and beeps alot. I think I dreamed in beeps last night...

We are going to evaluate if its worth trying to fix it up at all; and if it is I think the next step is probably to order the "recovery disk" from the Compaq site.

And I think i should get rid of the Windows XP disks I have lol. We use Windows 7 on our current computers and I suppose there is no reason to save them anymore!

Thanks for your help DSTM & Rich-M.

 

Well I have a serious question about the hard drive then because if it was a sata driver then that should have stopped your install. Next step is restore disks and that will be about $22 so its worth a shot.

 

Yea it did look like it completed; went through the whole install process. Just didn't help in the end.

I wasn't sure how much the restore disks would be so thanks for giving me a ballpark figure. Have to wait till payday but will probably give that a shot then.

 

That's fine keep us posted.

 

Further to Rich's good advice I also agree the HDD could be duff.
How old is this Laptop? Amy.
I would be thinking seriously whether you may be throwing good money after bad in the event you may have to chase another Hard Drive as well as the other costs involved.

 

True Dougie yet she will have to put Windows on it with a new hard drive anyway and this is the least expensive most complete way to do it with drivers and programs and all.

 

If as you said in the first post you only wish to sell the laptop Amy, then it may be best to look entirely at the costs involved in getting it going again first.
Cost of new operating system, cost of replacement hard drive if it proves the hard drive is dead and anything else that may turn up in the process.
Is the amount you are going to get from the sale going to cover that and still give you something at the end of it?

Nev.

 

Right but remember I see non working laptops sell all the time on eBay up to $250 depending on make and model. Now a hard drive has to be $50-75 and $22 + freight for the restore disks getting more than $100 for it not working is not easy on the otherhand it it works I see at least $200 in your pocket. As long as you see posting from the motherboard the odds are good it will run again just fine. If you see nothing at all pushing the on/off button then that is where you should stop unless you just list as non working and try for $100 might actually be the best solution of all because there is none of your time involved there..