Personal Computers Questions

How come I keep getting a blue screen on a laptop running Windows Vista?

by on October 12, 2011

Q: My friend has been running her laptop (Vista) with no antivirus (she thought she had downloaded one). Now she is getting the blue screen with white writing. I have run malware & spybot (30 issues). Machine is better but still won’t shut down correctly and still gets blue screen each time I try to shut down. My question is: can I download an antivirus program? (realizing it might not allow me to install anything) Is there a way for a non-geek to fix the blue screen problem without taking it to the shop? (no money for that right now)

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8 Responses to “How come I keep getting a blue screen on a laptop running Windows Vista?”
  1.  

    Generally this means the computer is having a problem with either a hardware component or with a piece of software.
    In order to determine what the actual issue is you’ll need to do the following.
    When the blue screen error message pops up again write down the following information.
    1. The message that is displayed to the left of the first red arrow in this picture: http://tek.io/ngoiGJ
    2. The two lines following the header ‘Technical Information’ as seen in the above picture at the 2nd red arrow.
    Post all that information in a comment here and we can help you further.

     

    Mark (Uber Geek) says: on October 12, 2011 at 10:03 am

  2.  

    BLUE SCREEN: It does not show a Page Fault line.
    For the technical info line, ” *** STOP: 0X0000008E (OXC000000) 0X82E7FDD1 OX8BF689LC 0X00000000

    Here is what is happening:
    Initially, the Windows Error Recovery screen appears saying “Windows did not shut down successfully…” I chose “Start Windows Normally.”

    The next screen is from Microsoft Windows: Windows has recovered from an unexpected shut down.”
    Problem signature:
    Problem Event Name: bluescreen
    (and some other id info)
    Additional info about problem:
    BCCode: 100000Se
    BCP1: C0000005
    BCP2: 92E490D1
    BCP3: 8BF571C
    BCP4: 00000000
    OS Version: 6_0_6002
    Service Pack: 2_0
    Product: 768_1

    Files that help describe problem:
    C:\Windows\minidump\mini101211-01.dmp
    C:\ Users\Terry\appdata\local\temp\wer-169760-0.sysdata.sml
    C:\Users\Terry\appdata\local\temp\werdef8.tmp.version.txt

    Thank you!

     

    hihat5 (Newbie) says: on October 12, 2011 at 10:46 am

  3.  
    Picked as best answer

    First, you should have no problem installing Microsoft Security Essentials (free) on the computer. I suggest running a complete scan using it. Also make sure Windows Updates are fully run and update any Important or Optional updates, including drivers.

     

    Mark (Uber Geek) says: on October 12, 2011 at 11:15 am

  4.  

    Security Essentials installed fine; quick scan found two severe entries. It fixed one. The other one was: Trojan: DOS/Alureon.A Got error code of 0x80501001. Am running full scan now. Is there a way to get rid of the trojan?

     

    hihat5 (Newbie) says: on October 12, 2011 at 11:56 am

  5.  

    You have two options. You can follow the instructions below to use a removal tool or just wipe the system.

    http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/virus-removal/remove-tdss-tdl3-alureon-rootkit-using-tdsskiller

    If you have the ability to do so, I’d consider doing a complete system wipe and performing a fresh install of Windows. This insures that there isn’t anything bad still hidden on the computer that might get missed by a scan.

    Also, once you’re 100% certain that the system is clean your friend should change all her passwords, as there is a chance that they have been compromised by the malware on her computer. Optionally, she could use another clean computer to do this while you’re cleaning the system

     

    Mark (Uber Geek) says: on October 12, 2011 at 12:33 pm

  6.  

    Hi Mark,
    You have been SO helpful. I have never tried to do a system wipe. I’ve been told that requires more knowledge than I have, plus I have no idea how to reinstall drivers, etc. I will try bleepingcomputer.com to see if it will help. And changing the passwords from a different computer is a great idea. Thanks so much!
    Lisa

     

    hihat5 (Newbie) says: on October 12, 2011 at 12:44 pm

  7.  

    It’s all pretty straightforward. Vista will handle just about everything.

    What is the make and model # of your laptop?

     

    Mark (Uber Geek) says: on October 12, 2011 at 1:03 pm

  8.  

    It’s an HP G60-125NR Notebook PC.
    Can’t believe this is all good now! I’m really impressed! Everything seems to be working fine, blue screen gone. I can’t seem to figure out how to turn on the sound, but that probably works too!

     

    hihat5 (Newbie) says: on October 12, 2011 at 1:42 pm