/ Help! My Computer is Frozen

Help! My Computer is Frozen

My laptop has frozen. Susan Keenan

Okay, the good news here is that you should be able to get your laptop unfrozen with a few simple strategies. Read through the following suggestions.

Troubleshooting Frozen Computer: Use Last Good Configuration

Since booting up in Safe Mode uses the least amount of resources, drivers, and applications, let’s see if you can boot up using the following directions:

Turn on the power button to the laptop and immediately and continually begin to press the “F8″ key on the keyboard until you hear the laptop booting up. (You might need to press the “F2″, “F12,” or “F10″ key depending on the make and model of your laptop.)
Once you get into Safe Mode, select the following to boot the computer “Last Known Good Configuration.” This should allow your computer to revert to a condition when it did not freeze.

Troubleshooting Frozen Computer: Installation Disk

If you have the installation disk for your laptop handy, you can use it to boot up. Simply follow these directions:

Turn the power to the laptop on. Immediately insert the disk.
Immediately press the “ESC” key on the keyboard and the “F1″ key once the “Check System” phrase appears on the screen. This allows you to boot from the disk rather than the hard drive.
This should generate a menu choice for you. Select “Repair the Operating System.” You should hear activity as the computer boots up properly. All of your data should also be saved through this option.

Troubleshooting Frozen Computer: Additional Strategies

If you still have a stuck computer, try each of the following strategies to see if you can get it working:

Reseat the memory - If it is possible that the memory has been jostled loose, carefully reseat it.
Clean - It is possible that the laptop is overheating due to dust build up. Use a can of compressed air to clean around the fan.

If you get the laptop working but have concerns that all isn’t quite right, try these strategies:

Scan for Spyware/Virus - Since it is possible that your computer is infected with spyware or a virus, use a reliable, up-to-date anti-spyware/anti-virus scanner to check. If you don’t have such an application, I can recommend that you try Anti-Virus PLUS.
Update Drivers - If you haven’t checked in a while to see if you need to update your drivers, you should do so now.