My laptop froze while I was watching a video, and the last bit of audio repeated loudly until I held the power button to shut it down. Since then, it crashes every time I try to start it. Sometimes it reaches the desktop for a few seconds, but other times it crashes while Windows is showing the "Diagnosing your PC" recovery message, before I can reach the troubleshooting menu. I can stay in the BIOS indefinitely, and it detects the CPU and hard drive. I don't see my NVIDIA GPU listed there, although I'm not sure whether it should appear. The RAM is soldered, so I can't remove or reseat it. I need the laptop for college and would appreciate advice on figuring out whether this is a Windows problem or failing hardware.
2 Answers
Since you can remain in the BIOS without a crash, that suggests the system is at least stable before Windows loads. The crash could still be caused by the SSD, corrupted Windows files, overheating, power delivery, or another hardware fault. If you manage to reach Safe Mode, check C:WindowsMinidump for crash logs and copy them somewhere safe; those files may identify the failing driver. Also back up your college files before attempting a reset or reinstall.
The most useful next step is to boot from a USB drive rather than the internal Windows installation. A Windows installer or recovery USB can let you try Safe Mode, run startup repair, check the disk, and copy important files. A Linux live USB is also useful: if the laptop runs normally from it, the problem is more likely Windows or the internal drive; if it still freezes, hardware becomes more suspicious. You can create the USB on another computer, and the laptop can boot from it even if Windows itself crashes.
I don’t currently have a bootable USB, but I’ll try to make or borrow one. I wasn’t sure whether it could work when the laptop crashes before startup.