Question I cannot get PC to boot, or enter Safe Mode ?

[i6pwr]

Try ...

dir x:\users\public /ad /s /b
dir x:\users\default /ad /s /b
dir /?

 

[i6pwr]

Sorry, forgot one.

 

[i6pwr]

Sorry, I should have specified drive X: rather than drive C:.

Copy, no worries, give me a few min.

 

[fzabkar]

Sorry, I was confused. IIUC, you are booting from drive X: which is a USB stick. If you can't see the root directory of your C: drive, then something is wrong with it.

The following command should list all the subdirectories in the root of C:.

dir c:\ /ad /b

$Recycle.Bin
$Windows.~WS
$WinREAgent
Boot
Config.Msi
Documents and Settings
MSOCache
PerfLogs
Program Files
Program Files (x86)
ProgramData
Recovery
RECYCLER
System Volume Information
temp
Users
Windows

 

[i6pwr]

Sorry, I should have specified drive X: rather than drive C:.

You did specify X. Unless I'm missing something.

Sorry.....NM.

 

[i6pwr]

Sorry, I was confused. IIUC, you are booting from drive X: which is a USB stick. If you can't see the root directory of your C: drive, then something is wrong with it.

I am not booting from the USB stick, this is only my C drive. USB stick is removed.

 

[i6pwr]

 

[fzabkar]

Type ...

C:\WINDOWS\system32>diskpart

Microsoft DiskPart version 10.0.19041.3636

Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation.
On computer: MYPC

DISKPART> list disk

  Disk ###  Status         Size     Free     Dyn  Gpt
  --------  -------------  -------  -------  ---  ---
  Disk 0    Online          931 GB    93 GB
  Disk 1    Online          931 GB    93 GB

DISKPART> list volume

  Volume ###  Ltr  Label        Fs     Type        Size     Status     Info
  ----------  ---  -----------  -----  ----------  -------  ---------  --------
  Volume 0     D   Boot_Disc    NTFS   Partition    838 GB  Healthy
  Volume 1     C   Boot_Disc    NTFS   Partition    838 GB  Healthy    System

DISKPART> exit

Leaving DiskPart...

C:\WINDOWS\system32>

 

[i6pwr]

 

[i6pwr]

If I just type diskpart...

 

[i6pwr]

 

[fzabkar]

When you boot into the recovery environment, the drive that normally takes the letter C: is assigned the letter X:.

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...-x-drive/422e5340-b6dd-4676-ac69-9e6a69a66a4a

But drive C: in the diskpart screenshot is too small. Instead it must be D: which is the boot drive. That's where your files must be located.

I think you should just experiment with the DIR command until you find the files you are looking for.

 

[i6pwr]

 

[i6pwr]

---

When you boot into the recovery environment, the drive that normally takes the letter C: is assigned the letter X:.

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...-x-drive/422e5340-b6dd-4676-ac69-9e6a69a66a4a

But drive C: in the diskpart screenshot is too small. Instead it must be D: which is the boot drive. That's where your files must be located.

I think you should just experiment with the DIR command until you find the files you are looking for.

Sorry, thought I refreshed the page. I will mess with it all little more tonight then have to run out. Thanks for thr help and will let you know what I find.

 

[i6pwr]

Getting warmer.

 

[i6pwr]

Ok, maybe we are close...lol....I'm currently at

d:\Users\username\Videos>(blinking cursor)

 

[fzabkar]

If you have some critical files that you need to save, perhaps you could attach an external drive of sufficient capacity and copy the video files to the other drive.

For example, the following commands create a Videos directory on external drive N: and then copy the AVI files from your D: drive to N:.

md N:\Videos
copy D:\Users\your_video_directory_path\*.avi N:\Videos

 

[i6pwr]

If you have some critical files that you need to save, perhaps you could attach an external drive of sufficient capacity and copy the video files to the other drive.

I just need to delete the videos under the "Radeon" folder. There's one huge file that likely caused all this.

In Videos, there's a sub folder called "Radeon" That's where the large screen record file is.

 

[fzabkar]

Navigate to that folder using CD, then use "DEL filename" to delete that particular file.

 

[i6pwr]

Thanks, I'll mess with it tomorrow. I appreciate the help, trying to learn as I go. Definitely cool to learn to interact with the PC at a little above my paygrade... , albeit carefully.

 

[fzabkar]

If you need to understand how to use a particular command, type ...

command_name /?

This will display the in-built help.

 

[steveb1976]

clearing "cmos" should kick start pc into "bios" and if you have a spare empty hard drive.. you could hook that to pc. and tell it to boot to that drive as main drive. then reboot and use "usb win installer." install windows (10 would be fastest and no have to install key or email.. ). then when it installs and boots into windows. your other drive will be there as "d or e drive" and you can retrieve the files you need. and then decide if you want to format that original drive and install in that again.. or try and recover to it once you have the files. ,... then reboot and take out new temp drive..

 

[i6pwr]

clearing "cmos" should kick start pc into "bios" and if you have a spare empty hard drive.. you could hook that to pc. and tell it to boot to that drive as main drive. then reboot and use "usb win installer." install windows (10 would be fastest and no have to install key or email.. ). then when it installs and boots into windows. your other drive will be there as "d or e drive" and you can retrieve the files you need. and then decide if you want to format that original drive and install in that again.. or try and recover to it once you have the files. ,... then reboot and take out new temp drive..

I did clear the CMOS, but I want to think I should be able to pull up the contents of my videos folder in short order, this is now into it's 6th day of figuring this out. I do have my hard drive backed up but it has been a few months, and I don't want those anything so I'm trying to exhaust all the possibilities before reinstalling windows.

I have already removed the drive and tried to view the files from a different PC as discussed earlier to no avail.

I can see more files when using:

cd D:\program files (x86)

However I cannot see my videos folder.

I think we are close and I'm learning as I go.

Edit to add: I can see the "Rockstar Games folder in the x86 directory, I'm fine with losing that as I can reload it. If I try to delete, I get the prompt "Are you sure Y or N" I select "Y" then enter......and when I list the directory again, it's still there.

 

[i6pwr]

What do you get if you type...

dir
at C:\>

Different result now, this is at the D: not C.

End of the list.

 

[i6pwr]

I can now see the files in my video folder. The one in question is "Radeon ReLive" if I try to delete, it gives me the "Y" or "N" prompt, but when I delete and press enter, the file is still there.