Computer will hang indefinitely after startup, even after a clean install.

[HeadphonesOn]

My computer will hang indefinitely after I boot up, and if I try to force it to respond to CTRL-ALT-DEL, it'll hang indefinitely as well.

The problem started one day while I was at my desktop monitor, trying to open up my browser and then my computer shuts down and freezes completely on me. I shut down the computer, and try to restart it. Every time I do restart it though, it ends up in an infinite start up loop, never actually getting past the Windows Logo sign when I do. I was advised to give the computer a fresh install of windows, and after doing so, the computer would start up and get past the logo, but hang indefinitely. I no longer have that copy of Windows (since a friend installed it for me) and can no longer do another fresh install. It also hangs after safe mode start-up, making diagnosing through safe mode a huge hassle.

I don't think I can get warranty on it either, since the computer is about 5-7 years old (I don't know the exact age, the comp was a hand me down from a friend whom I'm not in contact with anymore who used it as a gaming comp but upgraded). I have a feeling it's a problem with the hard drive, but I wanted to make sure it isn't anything else that could be repairable before I spend some money on a new hard drive and a new OS disc.

If it is the hard drive, I'd like some help too on where I can go on the forums for help with replacing hard drives on a RAID-0 setup D:

Thanks for your time!

 

[Phillip Corcoran]

Test the hard drive with either Seagate SeaTools for DOS, or Hitachi Drive Fitness Test for DOS. You can download the CD Image for either here:

SeaTools for DOS: http://www.seagate.com/gb/en/support/downloads/item/seatools-dos-master/

Hitachi DFT for DOS: https://www2.hgst.com/hdd/support/download.htm#DFT

Either one will test any brand of hard drive below 3TB capacity.

Create a CD from the CD Image with IMGBurn: http://www.filehippo.com/download_imgburn

Then boot your computer from the CD you just made.

I cannot assist you with anything RAID-related as it's not my area of expertise.

 

[HeadphonesOn]

Test the hard drive with either Seagate SeaTools for DOS, or Hitachi Drive Fitness Test for DOS. You can download the CD Image for either here:

SeaTools for DOS: http://www.seagate.com/gb/en/support/downloads/item/seatools-dos-master/

Hitachi DFT for DOS: https://www2.hgst.com/hdd/support/download.htm#DFT

Either one will test any brand of hard drive below 3TB capacity.

Create a CD from the CD Image with IMGBurn: http://www.filehippo.com/download_imgburn

Then boot your computer from the CD you just made.

I cannot assist you with anything RAID-related as it's not my area of expertise.

Huh, I ran the program, but when I did my computer didn't want to really respond to any inputs. It would sorta move, but then it stopped working afterwards.

It did say that my SMART wasn't tripped though, and it passed the short test if that helps.

EDIT: Never mind, one of my hard drives has failed, but it wasn't my main drive, it was the partitioned one. Since my computer follows RAID0, I think that failed hard drive is making my entire computer fail. TY for the diagnostic software, helped!

 

[Phillip Corcoran]

"but it wasn't my main drive, it was the partitioned one"

All hard drives must be partitioned before data can be written to them, so your statement above doesn't make sense.

Anyway, glad you found the cause of your problem.