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Stuck with a black screen with white circle of dots

Anonymous
2017-12-22T02:31:46+00:00

Hello,

I am having trouble with my laptop.  When I power up I get a black screen with white circle of dots.  I've searched the internet for answers and nothing has fixed it.  Here is a list of what I've done in the Windows Recovery Environment:

  • Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>Startup Repair
  • Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>Startup Settings>Option 4: Enable Safe Mode
  • Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>System Restore
    • There were three restore points; none of them worked
  • Troubleshoot>Reset this PC
    • This didn’t work; I get a message that says “There was a problem resetting your PC.  No changes were made.”
  • Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>Command Prompt
    • Execute the command:  sfc /scannow
    • I get the message “Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation.”

I'm kind of at a loss at this point.  I saw where someone said unplug any USB dongles but I don't have any.  Everything is backed up so I'm not too concerned about losing data.  I just need my laptop back.  There was an update that ran a few days ago.  I'm pretty sure it didn't install correctly and that's whats causing the problem.

Thanks for your help

Pete

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Windows update

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Anonymous
2017-12-28T06:07:35+00:00

Thank you for providing those details. We suggest creating Windows 10 installation media to help you with the issue that you are experiencing. To do that, please check this article. Download the Media Installer of Windows 10 and perform a boot. Choose Repair this PC then Startup repair. This method is quite different from the one that you’ve already performed using the Windows Recovery Environment.

After that, we suggest using the System Update Readiness tool (DISM) to help you fix Windows update errors. This will fix corruption errors that happen due to fail installation of Windows updates and service packs. Please refer to this article made by one of our MVP ZigZag3143 (MS -MVP) and follow the steps on how to perform DISM.

If you need further assistance, don't hesitate to reach out.

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  1. Anonymous
    2017-12-23T14:23:18+00:00

    Here is what I typed in and the response I got:

    *x:\windows\system32>cd /d c:\Users\Peter*

    c:\Users\Peter>bootrec /scanos

    Scanning all disks for Windows installations.

    Please wait, since this may take a while...

    Successfully scanned Windows installations.

    Total identified Windows installations:  0

    The operation completed successfully.

    c:\Users\Peter>bootrec /fixMBR

    The operation completed successfully.

    c:\Users\Peter>bootrec /fixBoot

    The operation completed successfully.

    c:\Users\Peter>bootrec /rebuildBCD

    Scanning all disks for Windows installations.

    Please wait, since this may take a while...

    Successfully scanned Windows installations.

    Total identified Windows installations:  0

    The operation completed successfully.

    c:\Users\Peter>

    Thanks,

    Pete

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  2. Anonymous
    2017-12-23T10:27:38+00:00

    Thank you for the quick reply. Let’s disregard for now the messages that you get with chkdsk. We suggest repeating the steps that you did to access command prompt via Windows Recovery Environment. Then on the command prompt, please type the following command one by one and get back to us with the return message from each command:

    • bootrec /scanos
    • bootrec /fixMBR
    • bootrec /fixBoot
    • bootrec /rebuildBCD

    We’ll be waiting for your response.

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-12-22T12:55:42+00:00

    Hi John,

    Thanks for the response.  First, I cannot get into windows.  The only way I can interact with the machine is through the Windows Recovery Environment.  So, that said, here is what I did.  In the Windows Recovery Environment I clicked on Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>Command Prompt.  It asks which account to use (my own) and asks for the password.  Once the command window comes up I typed in chkdsk /r.  The response I get says:

    The type of the file system is NTFS.

    Cannot lock current drive.

    Windows cannot run disk checking on this volume because it is write protected.

    The drive/directory I'm on is:

    x:\windows\system32>

    So I type cd /d c:\c:\Users\Peter\ and type in chkcdk /r.  Now the response is:

    The type of the file system is NTFS.

    Cannot lock current drive.

    Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another process.  Chkdsk may run if this volume is dismounted first.  ALL OPENED HANDLES TO THIS VOLUME WOULD THEN BE INVALID.  Would you like to force a dismount on this volume? (Y/N)

    I typed "n" and then it said:

    Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another process.  Would you like to schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)

    I typed "n" again.  I'm not sure what open handles are and I didn't want to cause more problems.

    Am I on the right track?   Should I type "y"?

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-12-22T09:41:06+00:00

    Hello Peter,

    This issue might be caused by corrupted system files. We suggest that you run chkdsk to help you with your concern. To do that, please follow the steps below:

    1. Type cmd in the Cortana search box.
    2. Right-click on Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.
    3. Click Yes when you get User Account Control prompt.
    4. Type chkdsk /r in the Command Prompt and press Enter. Enter “Y” when asked to schedule checking disk.
    5. Close the Command Prompt windows and restart your PC. Your PC will then start checking disk and fix the errors that automatically detected.
    6. Run sfc /scannow to check if it works.

    Let us know if this works for you.

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