How can I get my 10-year-old Dan PC to start up properly again?

Q I have a Dan PC that I bought in 2001. This originally had Windows 98 installed but I later upgraded to XP. Recently, I uninstalled a scanner program that I no longer needed – and this seemed to cause a problem.

Now, when I try to start it up, the computer gets part way through before resetting. In an attempt to beat the system I managed to get some control, but then tried unsuccessfully to start using the original Windows 98 floppy disk.

I also have a recovery CD supplied by Dan. I no longer have the Windows XP disc.

The computer is obviously still alive, as text appears on the screen. Is this a dead duck or is anything recoverable? Perhaps I need to build a new PC.
Alan Brooker

A We took a deep breath while considering our response to your plea. On the one hand, expending any effort trying to revive such an old computer seems silly. On the other, it is not our place to judge why you might want to recover this aged PC.

So, we are compelled to begin by saying that, if nothing else, you certainly shouldn’t spend much money trying to breathe life into this computer. However, we do have a couple of ideas.

First off, from the photo you sent we could see that the PC is reporting an 'Invalid system disk' error message. This points to problems with the hard disk – it has likely become corrupted in some way.

It is possible that this is in some way related to the removal of the scanner software but, as likely, the drive has simply broken down after 10 years of busy spinning.

You asked if anything is recoverable, which makes us think you might be more interested in rescuing personal files and folders stored on the hard disk than resurrecting a decade-old PC.

If this is the case, then one suggestion is to open up the computer, remove the hard disk and then buy a suitable caddy or housing to allow you to connect it to another computer to use as an external drive.

In this way – and assuming the disk itself isn’t dead – you will be able use Windows Explorer to view the drive’s contents and copy the personal files to another drive.

Alternatively, if the data isn’t important then you could attempt to revive the PC by using the manufacturer-supplied recovery CD. It is important to understand, though, that – even if it works – using this CD will almost certainly result in everything on the hard disk being wiped. If the data is important, then, try our first suggestion.

Otherwise, try this. First, remove the floppy disk from the drive, as the PC will probably try to start (or ‘boot’) from that. Now insert the recovery CD and reset the PC by cycling the power if necessary.

When the PC restarts, it will hopefully try to boot from the recovery CD. You may be prompted to press a key to allow this to happen, so do so. From here you will need to follow the instructions displayed by the recovery CD – and keep your fingers crossed.

If the PC doesn’t attempt to start from the recovery CD, then you may need to access the computer’s Bios to change something called the ‘boot order’ – the sequence in which drives are examined for usable operating systems.

On old PCs this order typically jumps straight from the floppy disk (drive A) to the hard disk (C), skipping the CD-Rom drive entirely (because operating systems such as Windows 98 were supplied on floppy disk, with only rudimentary multimedia programs distributed on CD-Rom).

To access your PC’s Bios, look for a message just after you switch on: it will probably tell you to tap the Delete (Del) key or F2, though on such an old PC it might be a different key, such as F1 or F10.

When the Bios appears, use the cursor (arrow) keys to navigate through the menus to look for an option called Boot Device Priority, Boot Sequence, Boot Order or similar. Set the CD-Rom drive as the first boot device (use Enter and the cursor keys to select and move the entries) and then save and exit from the Bios (this is usually done by pressing F10, but could be different).

Now try starting the PC again, with the recovery CD in the drive. As before, from here you will have to be guided by the instructions displayed by the manufacturer’s recovery CD. If it fails, we would suggest giving up at this point – it’s a 10-year-old PC from a defunct manufacturer. It’s had a good run.