770z boot error "inaccessible_boot_device"

[erin_a]

Win 2000 Pro begins loading the progress bar on my 770z and then it blue screens. I have tested the hard drive and it checked ok in the bios. The memory also passes on boot up.

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The error codes on the blue screen reads...

"STOP: 0x0000007B, (0X817F6690, 0xC0000032, 0X00000000, 0x00000000) INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE
If this is the first time you've seen this Stop error screen,...

[pkiff]

The error codes on the blue screen reads...
"STOP: 0x0000007B, (0X817F6690, 0xC0000032, 0X00000000, 0x00000000) INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE

I don't know how to decipher those error codes, and am not sure what the message means.

Is it possible that your Win 2000 CD is scratched or something?

Is it possible that your CD/DVD drive is too old/crappy and having trouble reading the disk? -- it will sometimes work better if you are using an original, silk-screened, professionally-imprinted disk rather than one you may have burned as a backup.

Phil.

[erin_a]

I just realized that my first post is rather unclear.

I'm not trying to boot from the Win 2000 CD--that's just the message the pops up on boot up when trying to load an already-installed version of Windows.

[pkiff]

OK. Was it booting up correctly before and then suddenly just stopped being able to boot up, or is this a machine that has been out of service for some time or is in unknown condition?

Can you check your boot device order in the BIOS/Easy-Setup? Try changing it so that there is nothing listed there except HDD1. If that doesn't work, then I would next try changing it to FDD1(Floppy) or CD1 and trying to boot up off of a known, good boot-up disk -- bypassing the hard drive entirely. At this point, I'm just trying to help figure out if the problem is the hard drive (and the OS on it) or some other part of your system.

Phil.

[erin_a]

Phil--

Thanks alot; I will be sure to try your suggestions and update with my results here.

How do I get to easy setup on bootup with Win 2000? When I push F5 it takes me to diagnostics.

The laptop blue screened in early July. Before that it was working fine with no issues. I've had it for about 4 years and have updated the CMOS, added RAM, and upgraded to a DVD drive w/ a Margie dvd-to-go card (all of this was done in '03-'04).

[pkiff]

How do I get to easy setup on bootup with Win 2000?

To get into Easy-Setup you press-and-hold F1 right after (or even while) you turn on the power switch. Keep holding until it goes into Easy-Setup. Easy-Setup occurs before you start to go into your Operating System so it doesn't matter which one you are running.

I have tested the hard drive and it checked ok in the bios.

You say you checked the hard drive. Can you double-check the testing from within Easy-Setup? There is a "Test" icon you can use that allows you to test each piece of hardware. In fact, you might as well run all the tests if you have an hour or two -- the memory test takes a LONG time, the rest of them are very quick - 1 min. or less each.

Phil.

[erin_a]

The memory test showed errors in the Easy-Setup--everything else checked OK, including the HD.


I opened the RAM door to see if the memory looks loose and everything is set fine. When I start up the memory passes (it recognizes 256 +) but I guess, perhaps, one of the 128 sticks or the onboard memory is bad?


UPDATE After I popped the memory out and put it back in, I decided to run the memory test once more. This time, it passed; however, Windows still boots with same error message...

[pkiff]

When I start up the memory passes (it recognizes 256 +) but I guess, perhaps, one of the 128 sticks or the onboard memory is bad?

Since it passed on your second try, maybe it was just a loose connection, but I would pull both sticks out and try to boot with no extra memory installed.

In fact, I would try pulling everything except your hard drive and battery out and seeing if you can boot up then: remove any PCMCIA cards, CD/DVD drive, memory.

I did a quick search on Microsoft support pages and came across:
How to troubleshoot "Stop 0x0000007B" error messages in Windows 2000
and
How to troubleshoot "Stop 0x0000007B" error messages that occur when you run Windows 2000 Setup

Maybe something there will point to a possible culprit?

I'm starting to run out of ideas. My guess at this point is that there is a config problem on your hard drive, but I don't know how to fix it or why it started. I have seen such STOP messages on my 770Z before but they always had to do with changing hard drives and/or hardware profiles/docking/undocking.

Phil.

[jon42689]

This error message is caused by the BIOS. It refuses to allow DMA access to cdrom drives after that point in the boot cycle. I fixed this problem personally by updating my BIOS to the most recent version. This problem is also documented by Lenovo/IBM.

jonathan.dewitt@gmail.com