bucketwater

Thanks for replies. I enabled boot logging and took a look at the boot-log file through bitDefenders knoppix/linux recovery OS - Drivers seem to load up until: Did not load driver Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC Thus I am wondering what the issue is with that driver and windows. This is now occuring dually in a fresh XP install on a new drive, and on my old drive that was originally in the computer. This would explain why knoppix loads (I suppose) whereas windows does not, right? So does this point back to faulty/issued Power Supply situation? Again, nothing new was installed/upgraded, software/drivers or hardware wise prior to this occuring.

Hello, First let me say thank you for having a great forum. I've searched, and elsewhere quite a bit and have found similar problems but not quite 'the same' problem as I'm having. No new hardware or software installed. Over the past 6 months (or longer?) I have occasionally noticed my computer is at the login screen in the morning or when I get home from work. I wondered about it, but just chalked it up to microsoft updates doing some ridiculous restarting on its own or something. This past month I turned my computer off before I left for christmas. Upon return a week+ later, I turn the computer on, it seems to make much louder noise than normal (like a bad hard drive almost). It gets a certain part into the boot cycle, either right before the 'windows is loading' splash screen, or during it, or right before it goes into showing windows actual desktop/login screen, then it reboots. Safe mode gives the same issue, loading the minimum drivers, and then rebooting after it seems like it will login. I took the cover off and tried to listen to where the sound was coming from, and sort of 'shake' the computer a bit.. and walahh.. it made it into windows. Had it there for a few days, tried doing troubleshooting to figure out what was going on, couldn't find a thing. shut it down again, then tried powering up. Stuck on the reboot loop + weird sound. Purchased a new HD, installed an unattended winXP, was able to get that loaded and into it, had that up for about a day, could see my old primary drive with all content. moved the most important of that content to an external drive. was away from the computer for a few hours and came back to find it in the reboot loop. burned bitdefender and kaspersky anti-virus boot cds -- have them load, update, and scan - find nothing. (I am/was thinking a boot sector virus) No luck getting into windows-just reboots at variable spots between from the beginning to the end of the 'windows loading' splash screen. Listened closer, heard that the sound was coming from the PSU. Tapped the PSU a few times and tried booting, was able to get to the windows login screen (further than all previous times). Shut it down and tried with my old primary HD, got the same result. Shut back down, tapped the PSU a few more times and then was/and am back to old reboot loop. Tried tapping it lightly again and the fan really made a huge noise..and bios gave me a PSU fan error message. Okay so I am thinking the PSU is dying? Tapped the fan some more to get it to stop making the horrible noise, vaccuumed out all dust. still can't boot into windows. However, can boot the bitdefender cd which seems like it would put the same load on my computer as would getting into windows. Because my cd drive is running and I can access my hard drive.. that seems like plenty of load on the PSU and that bitdefender linux or whatever it is seems quite stable. I've done a fixboot and something /mbr when I thought it was a boot sector virus. Any thoughts? help? It is a sony vaio rs420. Thanks so much Matt