A little while ago my computer was infected with some sort of virus. While trying to remove it, something must have went wrong. The result is that everything is gone! When I start my computer, there is a message: BIOS ROM checksum error Detecting floppy drive A media... INSERT SYSTEM DISK AND PRESS ENTER I used to have Windows XP on my computer but have been unable to re-install it. I know it sounds stupid, but I am completely lost when it comes to computers. Is there anyone willing to help me, pleassssseee?????? I still have an old laptop (Compaq presario 1260)which I can use to download but there is no CD burning facility and the system is very instable. I live in the Netherlands and I desperately need my desktop!So if there is anyone out there......I would really, really appreciate it! Thanx! Farrah
Yikes! "BIOS ROM checksum error" eh? Not good... You must attempt to enter your BIOS setup. At POST you must press 'Del' (or 'F10' or however you enter BIOS setup with your mobo). Then, you must attempt to re-detect your harddisk. There will be a mechanism within your BIOS to AutoDetect Harddisks or somesuch. If your HD will not detect, then your HD is damaged. If it will detect but won't start OS, then your Master Boot Record (or Partition Boot Record) have been damaged. Either scenario means your HD is basically trashed; may still contain data but recovery (by professional) is impractical... You must FDisk HD (or DelPart for NTFS) and start over. Then, restore your data from Backup. Hopefully someone has given you good advice, to backup your data regularly Might not be what you want to hear... But try the Autodetect in BIOS first, Good luck. _X_X_X_X_X_[small] ABIT AN7 nForce2 Ultra 400 XP2500+ Barton @ 3200+ 2 x 512MB PC3200[/small]
you're not going to like this, the virus got into the bios of your motherboard & screwed it up. does it give you the option to press DEL for setup or does it just come up on screen as you describe. the fix is possible if you are up to it
Note that if your Boot Record(s) are damaged, all is not lost. Simply install another OS to your system, on that HD or another one, to access the data you require. If you reinstall to the same HD, same partition, your Windows, Program Files, My Documents etc. will be overwritten. Other than that, other stuff will still be there right where you left it... If the HD itself is OK but will not boot OS, I would put it into another PC to access the data that way. You could burn important data off to DVD or even CD, or you could transfer it off via Network or something. If you do transplant the HD, scan it with latest Antivirus FIRST thing! Don't even look at it with Explorer. It's actually the most effective way to remove virus (quite difficult to disinfect HD when it is running the OS). L8R
ddp, I have heard of this but I have never encountered it. Is it possible? I hope (for Farrah's sake) it is not so... I would imagine the BIOS could simply be re-flashed, or what? Regards
the_ogs, yes it is true, happened with my next door neighbor's brother who got a virus on the system & screwed up the bios. cost him a couple hundred for new board & reset everything. farrah's does show up on screen so hopefully she can get it reflashed at a good computer store. on some boards you can enable or disable bios chips either in the bios or a jumper on the motherboard, always disable bios update because besides a virus you can also get the wrong bios update into your computer even with dual bioses. so you might have to get new board or new board & cpu if you can't get board for your cpu
Hi guys, Thanx for all the info! Ddp, there is no option for DEL to enter SETUP. The screen is just as I described. I am eager to give it a try, so what should I do first? Farrah
yes farrah there is still hope, it just depends on you. you can try & reflash(reprogram) the bios chip your self if you think you can or you can take it to a computer store & they should!!! be able to do it?????. they might say it is not worth while to fix & try to sell you new board. what is the specs on your sick computer(amount of ram, cpu speed, etc)than you have to decide what to do. me, i can fix it but as the brits say your on the otherside of the pond & i am here in canada
How about I try to reflash it myself first! I went to some computer store yesterday but the guy just told me a lot of mambo jambo and in the end wanted to sell me a new computer! Now I am going to ask the most stupid question ever: how can I check the specs on my computer. I inherited this one not so long ago..... I just unscrewed the CPU unit(?) and I see a lot of wires etc. Pity you are so far away! Farrah
farrah, do you know if you have a p3, p4 or equivelent amd processor. check on your mother board for a word a name or a number like asus, p4vxasd2 or something like that. it will be in big & bold lettering printed on the motherboard. what we are trying to do is find out who makes your motherboard & model of it so we can get the correct bios & flash program for it. do you have the manual & or driver cd for your motherboard
Ddp, Maybe I got some information. I noticed that when I start the computer the following appears on the screen: Version 205170300 32 OMB RAM.It disappears very quickly, but I think I got the numbers right. After that the following text appears: Award BootBlock BIOS v1.0 Copyright (c) 1998, Award Software, Inc. then comes the BIOS ROM checksum error I mentioned before. Farrah
that 32meg appears to be the ram of the video card as 32meg is to low for xp. so you don't manual or cd?
I think I have found something. I assume the motherboard is the panel inside the CPU unit with all the wires etc on it. There is a kind of hologram sticker with the text: AWARD 1998 PCI/PNP686 239067527 Farrah
I don't have the manual and the only CD I have is the XP CD. I think the brandname and type of the motherboard is: VIA KT133, if I am not mistaken the person I got the computer from told me it is a P3. Farrah
you are getting close. the first one is the bios manfacturer & the 2nd is chipset by via. the problem is that award makes all different bioses for different motherboards, the same with via. we need the name or model# printed(hopefully) on the circuit board with all the wires attach to. still no manual or cd???
the problem is that we have a whole pile of motherboard manufacturers to choose from pc partner, asus, msi. we still need the name & model# of motherboard. can you ask that person if they know & if they have the manual & cd
Hope you haven't given up on me yet...... It around midnight in Holland and I am completely pooped, so I better call it a day! Are you going to be on-line tomorrow? I will ring up the person I got the computer from and try to find out the specs of my PC. Farrah
no i haven't given up, i've got patience do you as you are the one to decide at the end what to do. i'll be on 10.30 eastern time
Hi there!Glad you haven't given up on me....... I checked with the person I got the computer from and he gave me the following info: RAM: 256, CPU 300 (not completely sure though!), Pentium 3. I checked the motherboard for any other printed numbers. It was only until I removed the small ventilator that I found the following: AMD DURON D850AUT1B AKCA 0166 FPDW 95391440212 Besides this there is no other number, name available. Hope this is the info you need ddp! Farrah
