Boot Device Failed

[Kay_Souza]

Hello! My HP laptop that I use for gaming has had a problem. When I turn on my laptop it goes to a black screen and at the top it says Boot Device Not Found and then it tells me to visit www.techcenter/startup page, however, that page has not helped me and it tells me to do things, however, I cannot do because my computer won't let me go into it. I have an old HP laptop I got it about a few years ago. Do I need to get a new laptop or can it be fixed?

[WAWood]

@Kay_Souza

Hello;

Allow me to welcome you to the HP forums!

That's a simple question -- but not a simple answer.

That problem can either be a corrupted file system or a failing/failed hard drive.

If your PC is new enough to support UEFI, you can use these steps to test the hard drive: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00439024

If not, you have to follow these steps:
1) Press Esc key repeatedly, several times a second, while rebooting the laptop. Do NOT hold the key down, just press it over and over.
2) Eventually, you will see an HP Startup Menu -- that will look similar to the image below ...

3) press the Function key for testing the hard drive (usually F2) and let it run.

Please report back the test results.

[Kay_Souza]

It says ~

     SMART Check : NOT INSTALLED

      Long DST : NOT INSTALLED

   What does that mean? Do I need to get another computer or can this be fixed?

[mdklassen · Accepted solution]

>  SMART Check : NOT INSTALLED

The electronics-board -- part of the disk-drive -- is not responding.

So, the disk-drive could be "dead", or it could be as simple as either of the "power" or "data" cables connecting the disk-drive to the motherboard are not properly connected, i.e., not transmitting/receiving anything.

> Do I need to get another computer or can this be fixed?

No.  Yes, by replacing the disk-drive, and re-installing Windows.

It's time to take your computer to a qualified computer technician, to do the trouble-shooting and the replacement of the disk-drive with a "compatible" one.

[WAWood]

@Kay_Souza

---------- Drive Replacement ----------
The drive will need to be replaced. When you remove it, you will see that it is a 2 1/5 inch laptop SATA drive.

You can replace this with any similar laptop drive of the same capacity or larger.
---------- Recovery Media ----------

Once you have the replacement drive, you will need to use something known as HP Recovery Media to restore your PC to working condition. This is a set of DVDs and a CD, or USB stick, that will erase the hard drive (removing all data, settings, and applications, reinstall the original OS, drivers, and some HP Utilities. In some cases, you may be able to order a USB stick instead of disks. You have to order these from HP; they can not be downloaded.

You can look online for Recovery Media starting with the linked paged: http://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers

Once there, input your Product name or number. On your Software and Drivers Download page, select your Operating System and and Version. Click "Update". If HP Recovery Media is available for your machine, down near the bottom of the page, you will see an entry for Order Recovery Media-CD/DVD/USB. Click the "+" symbol to expand that entry and click on Order Media for details.

Or, if you prefer, you can do the same by contacting HP Customer Service:

If you live in the US or Canada, contact information is on this page: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/contact-hp/phone-assist.html#section1

If you live elsewhere, contact information is on this page: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/contact-hp/ww-contact-us.html

NOTE: After you get through, stay on the line until you are finally able to talk to some one -- it can take a while!

If you have trouble finding a phone number, then try: 1 (800) 474-6836

If HP no longer provides Recovery Media for your model, a couple of other sites you can check are: http://www.computersurgeons.com/ and http://www.restoredisks.com/

---------- System Restoration ----------

While you are waiting for the media to arrive, read through this: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00006110

Good Luck