Boots windows but the mouse icon just spins and nothing loads

[MissSarahJ]

Hi.. My HP AIO touchscreen monitor will boot up and go to the WINDOWS password entry but after I put my log in pin in and WINDOWS starts to load, it is NOT fully loading correctly.. The mouse icon just spins, I cant click on ANYTHING and don't see any of my browsers or apps.. PLEASE help!! Thanks!!

[WAWood]

@MissSarahJ 

From your description, it sounds like the hard drive is failing when you have booted into Windows and are trying to load the desktop and shortcuts.

So, let's check that first, because if it is failing, it would need to be replaced and there is no point then in doing anything else until we confirm that.

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, to check the drive 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
3) Press the Function key for testing the hard drive (usually F2) and let it run.