HP laptop help

[EJSchreck]

I Turn on the computer, message says  “Preparing To Repair” never goes anywhere and screen stays black afterwards.

[Hawks_Eye]

Hi @EJSchreck 

Welcome to the HP Support Community! We're here to help you get back up and running.

I understand the situation you are facing where the computer shows “Preparing to Repair” and then remains on a black screen. Let’s go through recommended steps to address this:

Power Reset

• Disconnect the power adapter and remove the battery if removable.
• Hold the power button for 15 seconds.
• Reconnect the power adapter (leave the battery out for now if removable) and turn the computer on.

Access BIOS Settings

• Turn the computer off completely.
• Press the power button, and immediately start pressing the F10 key repeatedly until the BIOS menu opens.
• In BIOS, press F9 to load defaults, then press F10 to save and exit.
• Restart the computer.

Run HP Hardware Diagnostics

• Turn off the computer.
• Press the power button, and immediately start pressing the Esc key repeatedly until the Startup Menu opens.
• Press F2 to open HP PC Hardware Diagnostics.
• Run the System Test (including memory and hard drive tests).
• If any test fails, note the error code.

Use HP Cloud Recovery Tool

• On another working computer, download and install the HP Cloud Recovery Tool.
• Create a USB recovery drive using this tool.
• Insert the USB into the affected computer, power it on, and press Esc repeatedly, then select F9 Boot Device Options.
• Choose the USB drive to start recovery.

System Recovery Options

• If the recovery media loads, select Troubleshoot > Recovery Manager.
• Choose System Recovery to reinstall Windows while preserving or removing files, depending on your preference.

Reference:
Detailed instructions are available on HP’s official support page: HP PCs – Using the HP Cloud Recovery Tool

These steps are designed to bring the system back to a working state. If diagnostics confirm hardware issues, the recovery process will not proceed until the hardware is addressed. 

Take care, and have an amazing day!

Regards, 

Hawks_Eye