Some thing strange happen on system startup today (CMOS Battery Suspected)

Started by Cyber-Angel, March 03, 2008, 06:23:01 PM

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Cyber-Angel

On starting up my system today (XP Home Edition) I went through the normal BIOS checks that you get at start up (those black screens with white text, for memory checks and so forth) then up came this screen I have never seen before asking me which operating system I would like to use, since my system is a single boot system I selected Windows XP and hit Return and every thing proceeded as normal. Could this be related to the CMOS Battery starting to go?

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel

Will

Maybe, I've never had a similar thing happen to me but that would make sense. Have you tried replacing it?
The world is round... so you have to use spherical projection.

Cyber-Angel

Quote from: Will on March 03, 2008, 07:30:13 PM
Maybe, I've never had a similar thing happen to me but that would make sense. Have you tried replacing it?

Not yet I have to find out what kind of battery type my system uses then I shall get a new one, where do I look inside the case to find out since this is the first time that I've done this and don't know where to look? Another thing apart form having to reset the date and time is there any thing else that would be affected by changing the CMOS Battery?

Thank you for any assistance and advice you can provide in this regard.

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel  ;D   

Oshyan

CMOS battery shouldn't affect that sort of thing. Most multi-boot systems are invoked *after* the BIOS, so it should have no effect there. Have you made *any* recent software or hardware changes, including installing any programs, etc?

- Oshyan

Cyber-Angel

Quote from: Oshyan on March 03, 2008, 09:09:23 PM
CMOS battery shouldn't affect that sort of thing. Most multi-boot systems are invoked *after* the BIOS, so it should have no effect there. Have you made *any* recent software or hardware changes, including installing any programs, etc?

- Oshyan

No major updates regarding software that I can think of and as to hardware, my system is the way I brought it some years ago. As I said my system is a single boot system yet this morning when I turned on I got this screen asking what operating system I'd like to use, this is some thing I have never seen before. In the past I have seen some thing similar saying some thing like "CMOS Cheek-Sum Error" and having to reload the default settings by pressing "F1" which would seem indicative of the CMOS battery beginning to fail.

The screen appeared after the first screens you see with the operating system version number, Memory cheek and so forth and the Windows XP Logo screen that you get before seeing the blue user accounts screen with your user name; if it helps.

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel  ;D   

rcallicotte

CA, did you check what the other options were?  What choices did you have?

If none of the choices made sense, perhaps your machine was hijacked and needs some bug chasing.
So this is Disney World.  Can we live here?

Cyber-Angel

To be honest I can't really remember now, but when I got the CMOS Check-Sum Error there was that screen with three options one of which was to do with loading the last good known configuration which is the one that made the most sense to use. With the anomaly seen this morning there was a black screen with white text which said some thing like "Windows requires to know which operating system you wish to use" or words to that effect any way, since I have only Window XP on system I chose that and hit return and startup continued per normal past the Windows XP logo with the battery and the on to the user account screen where you select your user name if your system has multiple users on it. I can understand been asked which operating system you wish to have on a dual boot system but as stated I am not running one. 

My version of XP is one of those that is rather flaky on shut down it should be noted, on some ocasions it closes with out incident and others it just reboots and you have to wait until it dose its thing then try again (And no I am not hitting restart instead of shut down) this cycle can go on in a loop taking three or more attempts before it shuts down (The most I've ever had is twelve) so that means its annoying when you need to go some where in a hurry, but this is just an aside.

As to the machine been Hijacked that seems unlikely as I keep my system tightly locked down including using the most recent release of Firefox with No-Script installed among other measures and up to date security up dates from Microsoft.

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel      ;D       

rcallicotte

Sounds like the OS needs to be installed again and I'd do it from scratch by formatting the hard-drive.  Of course, this advice would include the need to back everything up you hold dear beforehand.
So this is Disney World.  Can we live here?

Cyber-Angel

Quote from: calico on March 04, 2008, 10:15:14 AM
Sounds like the OS needs to be installed again and I'd do it from scratch by formatting the hard-drive.  Of course, this advice would include the need to back everything up you hold dear beforehand.

I'd love to install the OS Again the only thing is the company I brought my PC from (A company called TIME Computers in the UK, Now defunct I understand) had a policy of not supplying the install CD for the Operating System some thing to do with combating software piracy or some thing, so in that regard I'm stuck, also if I reformatted my hard drive that would take the drivers for my monitor and graphics card along with it, I have the drivers for the monitor but not the graphics card as the computer did not (for the same reason outlined above) come with the graphics card drivers so without these your not going to see any thing except a black screen.

I will replace the CMOS battery any way as my Anti-Virus software wouldn't like it to much if the time and date where not correct, and shall be buying a new system in the near future (I Hope) as the one I currently have just chocks with just basic TG2, its really time to join the modern age and buy a system that will by capable of multi-threading and ideally Quad rather than Dual Core, the specs for which are due to be posted in another thread.

Any way thanks for the help, it should be noted that this morning every thing started fine; I will put the whole thing down to one of the vagaries of owning a Windows Operating System.  ;D

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel               

Will

Quote from: Cyber-Angel on March 04, 2008, 06:56:53 PM
I will put the whole thing down to one of the vagaries of owning a Windows Operating System.             

vagary #5842 I believe
The world is round... so you have to use spherical projection.

Cyber-Angel

Quote from: Will on March 05, 2008, 08:16:53 PM
Quote from: Cyber-Angel on March 04, 2008, 06:56:53 PM
I will put the whole thing down to one of the vagaries of owning a Windows Operating System.             

vagary #5842 I believe

Sorry Will, would you care to elaborate as I don't understanding what you mean?  ???

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel 

Will

The world is round... so you have to use spherical projection.

Cyber-Angel

Quote from: Will on March 06, 2008, 06:10:41 AM
just a little joke on how many things can go wrong in windows.

Ah, now I understand thank you for the clarification as I was a little perturbed, some thing that doesn't happen often.  ;D

Regards to you.

Cyber-Angel     

JimB

Quote from: Cyber-Angel on March 04, 2008, 06:56:53 PMalso if I reformatted my hard drive that would take the drivers for my monitor and graphics card along with it, I have the drivers for the monitor but not the graphics card as the computer did not (for the same reason outlined above) come with the graphics card drivers so without these your not going to see any thing except a black screen.

CA, as a matter of course I usually backup my drivers to an external device as well as internally. Here are some apps that could help at least give some peace of mind:
http://www.freedownloadmanager.org/downloads/driver_backup_software/

Some other helpful info, given you didn't get a CD:
http://www.howtohaven.com/system/createwindowssetupdisk.shtml
http://www.thefreecountry.com/utilities/driverbackup.shtml
Some bits and bobs
The Galileo Fallacy, 'Argumentum ad Galileus':
"They laughed at Galileo. They're laughing at me. Therefore I am the next Galileo."

Nope. Galileo was right for the simpler reason that he was right.