Dell 1520 Windows Vista problem

White Knight123

Posts: 14   +0
Hey there.

Just been given a laptop from someone to see if I can do anything with it. Basically when trying to boot into windows, it will get as far as the logon screen, and from there it just hangs. It does however boot into safe mode, although it takes a long time to get into it. Tried changing startup programs and reinstalling drivers with no luck.

I then thought of reinstalling windows but I have a few problems. Firstly the laptop is Vista home basic, I only have the Home Premium CD. However the laptop has a recovery partition. So I press F8 when the computer turns on, get into the advanced options and select "Repair your computer" which after looking around seems to be how to access it. Thing is it does nothing. No repair screen like others have, it just boots up as normal.

So really, I'm wondering is there any other way of accessing that, or installing windows.

Thanks
 
The "recovery partition" exists, true. However, the recovery discs are still necessary to access it. Beyond that, Dell ships with a password protected, locked BIOS. This is to prevent people that have, "Just been given a laptop from someone to see if I can do anything with it", from doing something with it. This is where the SNAFU erupts. To enlist the help of Dell, you would need a legitimate bill of sale from the prior owner. I suppose you could always ask the person who gave it to you for the recovery discs. The catch 22 here is, they've usually lost the recovery discs, which is why, "they didn't do anything with it".
 
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