Boot loader missing or damaged

[Missy_writes]

My laptop has been used so seldom it is like new. One day I turned it on and got the 'Bootloader missing or Damaged' message. With the intention of setting it back to the factory version my son started the backup process. Almost all  of the files are photos. It showed the 5g of files and was ready to copy but it wouldn't recognize my phone as storage. I didn't have anything else on hand, so I left it at that, the Ready to Store saved files. Now I have a flash drive but it shows zero files saved or otherwise.

This has to do with the Bootloader question. If I can have it up and running my files should still be there. I hope.

How can I fix it with only an Android phone and storage devices (I also got disks and sd card) I have very little knowledge about it but I can follow clear instructions. The files are not replaceable so it's more than an inconvenience. 

• WHY does it show that many people have similar questions but there is no answer shown? Does  that mean dozens of people have asked but no one received an answer? Are a answers emailed only, or posted somewhere else?

[WAWood]

@Missy_writes 

You have three very different issues here, let me address each one individually.

First -- you can NOT fix your PC using and Android phone.  That simply will not work.

Second, boot problems -- sometimes the boot loader files get corrupted, and this happens most often when an older laptop (3+ years) has its hard drive start to fail.  I have several laptops, all over 5 years old and I have replaced the drives in ALL of them.

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.

Please report back the test results.

Third -- Android storage.  I have been using Android phones with Windows PCs for years now and Win7 was a LOT better at connecting my phone to my PC than is Win10.  With Win10, I have had to resort to using an Android app know as WiFileTransfer -- which allows you to transfer files over your home network when both the PC and the phone are connected to it.  You should look into using that, it works great.

Fourth -- repairing the boot loader.  If the drive shows as failing, it will need to be replaced and that presents a whole new set of problems.  But it if shows as OK, then with another PC for making a boot USB stick, you can follow these directions to load that stick with a utility that you can use to repair your PC ...

If your PC can not boot into Windows, a way around that is to follow the instructions below to create boot media from Macrium Reflect (MR) that can be used to rewrite/repair the boot media on your PC:
1) Download and install Macrium Reflect (MR) from this link on a working PC: http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx
2) Use the option to create a boot USB stick or CD

That will create MR bootable media. Then, you can boot your PC into WinPE using that media.

Have patience, as that can take a while to start and bring up the screen.

Once the screen is there, select the option to Fix Windows boot problems. It will then search for the OSs installed and list them, Select the one you want to repair and click Next.

It will now do the repairs, listing the things it has done.

When finished, select the option to Restart the PC.

If this worked, the boot repair succeeded and you will have your PC back.