'Preparing Automatic Repair' in a continuous circuit

[jimg06]

My wife's HP Pavilion is showing 'Preparing Automatic Repair' in a continuous circuit

[VikramTheGreat]

Hi @jimg06,

Welcome to the HP Support Community.
 

Thank you for posting your query. I will be glad to help you.

Thanks for reaching out. The “Preparing Automatic Repair” loop on your wife's HP Pavilion laptop issue in Windows 10/11, and it usually means the system is having trouble booting properly. Let’s walk through a step-by-step:

Step 1: Perform a Hard Reset

1. Power off the laptop completely.
2. Unplug the charger and remove any USB devices.
3. Press and hold the power button for 15 seconds.
4. Plug the charger back in and try powering on.

Step 2: Boot into Recovery Mode

If the loop continues:

1. Power off the laptop.
2. Turn it on and immediately press Esc repeatedly, then press F11 to enter HP Recovery Environment.
3. If successful, choose:
   • Troubleshoot → Advanced Options → Startup Repair

Step 3: Use System Restore (If Available)

In the same Advanced Options menu:

• Select System Restore.
• Choose a restore point before the issue began.

Step 4: Run CHKDSK and SFC (Advanced Users)

If you're comfortable:

1. Go to Command Prompt from Advanced Options.
2. Type: chkdsk /f /r C:

Then:

sfc /scannow
 

These commands check for and repair disk and system file errors.

Step 5: Back Up and Reset (If Needed)

If nothing works:

• In Troubleshoot, choose Reset this PC.
• Select Keep my files (if you want to preserve data) or Remove everything for a clean start.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, as it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

VikramTheGreat

HP Support

[jimg06]

Hi ViKram,

Thanks for your detailed information.  I'd watched a few videos and have tried your suggestions but nothing seemed to work.  I called in the 'cavalry' but, so far, the engineer has been unable to fix the laptop.  He's going to work on it over the weekend and will get back to me on Monday.  Here's hoping!

Regards,

Jim

[VikramTheGreat]

Hi @jimg06,

Thank you for your response,

Is there anything else that I can help you with today?

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue; it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Take care and have a great day ahead!

VikramTheGreat

HP Support