[chyorain]

Hi I have a Toshiba T9100 laptop, and recently while I was listening to some music with Windows Media Player it suddenly crashed, showing a blue screen with the error description 'Unmountable Boot Volume'. When I try to restart it, a black screen appears saying: We apologize for any inconvienience, but Windows did not start successfully. A recent hardware or software change might have caused this. Please choose an option below by using the up or down arrows on your keyboard:Safe ModeSafe Mode with NetworkingSafe Mode with Command PromtLast Known Configurationstart Windows Normally I've tried all the options but after seemingly trying to boot Windows up, it would bring me back to the blue error screen 'Unmountable Boot Volume'. I am wondering now if it is still possible to retrieve the data on the hard disk. What, I've just realized, that adds on to the problem is that Windows XP was pre-installed and I do not have the installation CD.I'm not very technically-inclined, any help would be greatly appreciated. :)

[mphenterprises]

Hi chyorain. The error message you have received is in relation to your hard drive. Since you have a laptop, your options are limited at this point. Normally, when you receive this message, either A) the hard drive has become detached from the motherboard connection or B) the hard drive has failed.Since you do not have the recovery discs, the recovery information may have been stored on the hard drive... :unsure Also, since you do not have the recovery or reinstallation discs, you cannot run the repair process.This is not going to be pretty. I do not want to jump to a new hard drive and Operating System. If any of our fellow forum members have an idea, I am sure they will share it.

[rgreen4]

I agree with mph that it is the HD and it will probably not be recoverable. One way to tell is to turn on the machine and as it begins to boot you will get several options across the bottom of the screen, one of which will say "Press xx for startup" xx could be <F1>, <F2>, <F10>, <Delete> or another key. Press that and go into the BIOS setup and see if the drive shows up. If it does not, you are facing the purchase of a new HD and Windows OS.

[yeokm1]

As mphenterprises has said, it is possible for situation B to happen. It seems unlikely to for A to happen as if that was the case, how did the BIOS manage to boot the system up to the menu page? This answers rgreen4 question. The drive will definitely appear is it can even boot up the MBR. The only option I see is to use a Linux Live CD such as Knoppix . To do this, u need access to another computer. Just download the ISO image from an appropriate mirror and use the software to burn it to disc. DO NOT just burn the file directly, u need to use the option "burn image" or similar of your CD burning software .After burning, configure your computer to boot from the disc and the Linux OS will start up. At this stage, your only hope is to pray that Knoppix can detect your partiitions. If it can, an icon will appear on your desktop with a name something like /dev/hda1. Don't be alarmed, this is the LInux method of designating names to HD partitions. Just double click the icons and Knoppix will automatically mount the drives and open the folder.Your next milestone would be to access the files and copy them off to removable flash drive. If your laptop has a supported CD burner, you can attempt to burn your files to disc using the k3b program.

[mphenterprises]

Excellent workaround yeokm1. Hopefully this will work for chyorain.

[rgreen4]

We don't hear from yeokm1 very often, but he usually has some very good points when we do.

[yeokm1]

Thanks for the compliments mphenterprises and rgreen4.I think it is kind of relative when you(rgreen4) say you do not hear from me very often (no offence meant).Actually, still being a student, I have to still have to balance my school work and time at the forums.Nvm, lets wait for chyorain reply.

[chyorain]

Hey guys, thanks so much for all your help and suggestions :)I had actually spent quite some time trying to understand and doing what yeokm1 had suggested with Knoppix. However being the novice i always am i dont think i still understand what exactly is required to be done here :oops: So i'm hoping you guys are able to guide me how to do it the right way :) Basically, I've downloaded the ISO file which has a name like this: KNOPPIX_V5.1.1CD-2007-01-04-EN.iso. I hope this is the correct one? It's 696MB in size.Then I use Nero to burn the file. I'm given two options under Current Recorder:1) E: BENQ DVD DC DW16702) Image RecorderI chose Image Recorder, because I assume it is similar to "burn image"?Then I'll be prompted to save the image on my comp. Initially I had saved the image as a .nrg file. Afterwards in my next few tries i had saved the image as a .iso file. After it's done, I had burned that image onto a disc.But whenever i tried to boot my laptop using the disc, whether the image file is a .nrg or .iso, i'll still be brought back to the black screen that i've mentioned in my first post. I don't know how to get into BIOS with my laptop but pressing F12 when it's booting up allows me to manually choose the boot drive from a few options; i chose the CDrom drive this way. Can you guys show me where i've gone wrong? Sorry if it all sounds too ridiculous but i am not very IT-technically-inclined :( Btw, I do have the Toshiba Product Recovery CDs but i tink using the CDs will make me lose all my data in the hard disk, right? Thanks so much!

[yeokm1]

The file you downloaded is correct. The burn "image to disc" option is available under the "Copy and Backup" tab.[quote:87cad3265e]Then I use Nero to burn the file. I'm given two options under Current Recorder:1) E: BENQ DVD DC DW16702) Image RecorderI chose Image Recorder, because I assume it is similar to "burn image"? [/quote:87cad3265e]This is wrong. You are supposed to select the Benq option. After all, you are burning to a CD right? I understand that the Image recorder option is confusing in itself. This option is supposed to be used by people who want to create a CD image from data files but do not want to burn the disc yet.[quote:87cad3265e]I don't know how to get into BIOS with my laptop but pressing F12 when it's booting up allows me to manually choose the boot drive from a few options; i chose the CDrom drive this way.[/quote:87cad3265e]This method to boot from the CD is also feasible.[quote:87cad3265e]Btw, I do have the Toshiba Product Recovery CDs but i tink using the CDs will make me lose all my data in the hard disk, right? [/quote:87cad3265e]In a large extent, you are correct. Recovery CDs generally restore a computer to its factory settings and this entails reformatting the entire hard disk. Normally, I would choose to use the OEM Windows CD to reinstall my OS instead of the recovery discs. This gives you the freedom to personalise your installation and programs. However it is also troublesome as you have to hunt down every single driver manually.Recovery CDs willl install drivers for you but most of the time they are not updated. Sometimes come pre=installed with many junk software.

[makingplans]

i also have the same problem as the other guy. I have a toshiba satellite A100....and a product recovery disc..most of my work is backed up...im not worried bout my music.....i want 2 reformatt the c drive....should this fix my problem?

[mphenterprises]

Yes, a reformat and reinstallation would correct your problem.

[rgreen4]

If the drive is functional, a reformat will get it ready to receive the reinstall. This will also verify that the drive is healthy.Be prepared for a failure to format. If you had a sudden crash like that and the system gave you an unmounted drive error, the odds are fairly high that the drive cannot be recovered.However, installation of a new drive is fairly straightforwad and then utilizing the recovery discs you should be back to the original laptop configuration.I am not familiar with Toshiba, but most of the laptops have a removable panel on the bottom to gain access to the HD. Some (older Compaq and HP) have the drive attached to the panel so when you open the panel the drives comes out. They use a special slide connector that goes over the pins. With the newer SATA drives they use a tray with a pull tab to ease the drive up so that you can pull it out.Some slide the drive in from the side. Check your documentation, and remember patience and don't force anything. When you have the drive out, it will tell you what type you need to buy as a replacement. You can take the opportunity to increase the GB if you want, you can even increase the speed slightly if you want (ie: go from a 4,800 RPM to a 5,400 RPM). I would not jump from 4,800 to 7,200. The higher the rotation speed the higher the drain on the battery.

[makingplans]

quick question....how to i get my product recovery cd to boot from CD.....could some1 explain how 2 boot from CD in simple terms....like 2 do it as soon as the computer turns on

[jbking]

When your computer first boots up there is something called the BIOS that you can enter usually by pressing the "DEL" key, though there can be exceptions to this, to get into it and this is where you can set the boot order of the computer to boot from the CD/DVD drive first instead of the hard drive.Regards,JB

[mphenterprises]

Hi makingplans. Okay, the steps are universal for all modern computers:- Restart your computer- When the computer begins its restart process, immediately start to tap one of these keys:DeleteTabF1F2(This will enter the BIOS Setup)- Within the BIOS section, look for "Boot Sequence" or "Boot Priorty"- Within that section, you can configure the bootable drives in the order you want the BIOS to look for the Operating System. To boot from the CD, put the drives in this order:CD DriveHard Disk DriveFloppy Drive (or any other drive)- Push F10 to save and restart the computer. Make sure the CD is in the drive before you push F10.

[makingplans]

hey everyone who gave me advice in the past 10 or so hrs....i reformatted my c drive and everything is running smoothly so-far.....so it looks like my problem is gone......fingers crossed....THANKS 4 ALL THE HELP...I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT ! :):lol:

[mphenterprises]

With Pleasure. Please keep us posted.

[chyorain]

Hi everyone! I'm back, and with great news too! :P I took some time fiddling around with my laptop, and i finally managed to retrieve ALL my data from the hard disk.Yay! I can never do that without the great help i get from you guys over here! Special thanks to yeokm1 for introducing Linux LiveCDs to me; i'm very much awed and impressed by Knoppix's capabilities and its features, all downloaded in one single CD! :shock: The only thing i have yet to do now is to reformat my drive; i hope it's still functional. if it's not then i'm sure rgreen4's description on installation of a new drive will be useful for me too. :) Thanks once again, i can never thank you guys enough! I hope that some day I can help other people the same way too and pass it on :D