windows 7 freezes to blank colored screen

Thanks for the detailed response.  So far I have removed the registry cleaner and have tried to run AVG 2013 in Safe Mode, with no results.  I also tried to run the Microsoft Safety Scanner and Microsoft Security Essentials, also with no results.  In fact, when I get about an hour into the scan the computer restarts with an error. This happens in Safe Mode and regular.

 

Unfortunately, I have no restore points earlier than when the problem began to manifest itself.  I ran sfc /scannow but only got to 18% of the way into the verification process with this error message:

 

Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation.

 

Finally, I examined the Event Log of System Events and found a variety of errors that cropped up shortly before each freeze:

 

Critical: "The system has rebooted without cleanly shutting down first. This error could be caused if the system stopped responding, crashed, or lost power unexpectedly." Event ID 41

 

Error: "The device, \Device\Ide\iaStor0, did not respond within the timeout period." Event ID 9

 

Error: "The ScRegSetValueExW call failed for FailureActions with the following error:

Access is denied." Event ID: 7006

and so on...

Whatever it is, it's pernicious, and I'm about ready to do a factory reset if I can't get it going soon.

v/r,

Tim

 

Those registry cleaners are snake oil.  They don't help and can cause problems.  You should back up anything you don't want to lose in case your system fails all together.  However here're some things you can check.

  It sounds like you could have a virus or other malware. Get your antivirus program up to date and boot into Safe Mode. Note that some viruses can hide themselves from your antivirus program in normal mode, so you really need to scan in Safe Mode. To get into Safe Mode when you first power up, hit F8 about once a second until you get the menu and select Safe Mode. Then run a full system scan.

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Microsoft has suggestions and offerings at

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/how-do-I-remove-a-computer-virus

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Forum moderator Keith has some suggestions along this line at

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows\_7-performance/windows-explorer-has-stopped-working/6ab02526-5071-4dcc-895f-d90202bad8b3

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If that fixes it, fine. If not, use System Restore to go back to a date prior to the beginning of the problem. To run System Restore, click Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Restore. Click the box that says Show more restore points.

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You can check for corrupted system files. Open an administrator command prompt and run SFC if the above doesn't help. Click START, then type CMD in the search box, right-click CMD.EXE and click Run as administrator. Then from the command prompt type sfc /scannow*.*

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Finally if all else fails, you can check the rather cryptic system event log. To do that click Start -> Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Event Viewer. Once in Event Viewer click on the system log and scroll through the entries looking for those flagged "error" to see if you can find hints as to where the problem could be.

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When you get your system back in good working order, I urge you to back your system up to an external hard drive and make regular periodic updates to it.

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I hope this helps. Good luck.

I tried running chkdsk, as you said.  Something strange happens some time during stage 4 of 5: the process seems to hang up for a long time, and then my computer reboots, kicking it back into a pre-startup check again and again.  Prior to that there are no reports of any bad sectors.  Also, this laptop is barely a year old, but it's seen some rough handling with some of my kids.

 

  You can try running chkdsk from the command prompt and see if that works.   Use F8 like you would to get to Safe Mode and select Command Prompt from the advanced boot menu.  Then issue this command: chkdsk /r /f .  If that doesn't work, you can be pretty confident that you have a failing hard drive.  If the computer is still under warranty, you should contact the manufacturer ASAP.

I tried running chkdsk, as you said.  Something strange happens some time during stage 4 of 5: the process seems to hang up for a long time, and then my computer reboots, kicking it back into a pre-startup check again and again.  Prior to that there are no reports of any bad sectors.  Also, this laptop is barely a year old, but it's seen some rough handling with some of my kids.

v/r,

Tim

From the above, I see some IDE device is having problems.  This is likely to be your hard drive if your computer's more than 2 or 3 years old.  I would run chkdsk and let it check for and attempt recovery of bad sectors.   Click Start -> Computer, right-click C: and click Properties.  Click the Tools tab, then click the Check now button.  Check the box to check for and attempt recovery of bad sectors box, then click Start and OK.  You'll probably have to reboot.  Be aware that depending you your hard drive size this can run 2 or 3 hours.

 Good luck.