Boot Issue: Realtek PCIe FE Family Controller

Hi banks5,

Welcome to the Community,

Disconnect all external peripherals(such as USB devices) from the system and trying running the hardware diagnostics by tapping F12  on start up (Dell Logo),select Diagnostics.

Post back error code/message if any.

Also try booting system to Safe Mode (tap F8 on start up,select safe mode).Does the system boot to Windows in safe mode?

Thank You

Hello,

Thank you for the reply.

1. Disconnect all external peripherals(such as USB devices) from the system and trying running the hardware diagnostics by tapping F12  on start up (Dell Logo),select Diagnostics.

Post back error code/message if any.

>> I did this, not peripherals....its passed all the test. I will say, this surprised me.

Also try booting system to Safe Mode (tap F8 on start up,select safe mode).Does the system boot to Windows in safe mode?

>> No go. It would not boot when tapping F8. I could tap F2 and look at boot priority (hd, cd, usb, diskette, network respectively)

I also removed the hard drive and re-seated it, but again, no difference. I bought the laptop in Feb, and its used, but not what I would consider heavily. My kids use it for home work.

Do you feel the HD is dead? Prior to this happening, it kept doing a disk scan, thru system diagnostics, not from a third party tool.....Othertimes it would boot normally and most times I would boot in normal mode without issue.....

Any other guidance? If you feel its a hard drive failure, what would be my next steps? Any chance I could get data off the drive? My daughter has pictured and college apps on the drive.

Thanks.

banks5

Hi banks5,

If the hardware diagnostics passed without any error,it could be an issue with Windows.Since the system is not booting to Advanced boot options menu(F8 screen) you will have to try a Manual reinstall of Windows.

For steps for Manual Reinstall refer to this link : support.dell.com/.../document

Note:If you reinstall the Windows on the same HDD partition(without formatting), where the current operating system is installed,than if the system is able to boot to Windows,you will see a folder call Windows.old  under C drive where all the current files on the systems will be stored.You may be able to retrieve old data (pictures,files etc) from this folder.But for the applications you will need to reinstall it.

Let me know if you need more help.

Thank You

A friend brought me his N5050 inspiron with the same issue.

IMO, a virus/trojan/power event has trashed your boot sector or your hard drive has died,  this means that the computer is looking

for other media to boot from. Since you can not remove the "network" boot from your startup sequence in the BIOS of this laptop, it then tries to boot from the realtek ethernet and subsequently dies.

(test that by disabling the ethernet adapter in the bios, then you will get the standard "insert bootable media" warning)

Knowing this - you can then use a linux LiveCD, LiveDVD or LiveUSB to boot from and save your data. (if the HD is still good that is)

(you could also move the drive to a 2.5" drive usb enclosure and plug it into another computer)

After your data is safe, either try the Windows Repair or Reinstall Windows (if the HD is good). If the hard drive is dead, it will need to be replaced.

Dont forget to re-enable the ethernet in bios if you tried that "test".

*for simplicity sake, many variations to the info above is left out

Note to Dell:

 Being able to disable a boot priority entry would be nice.

Give people REAL Windows bootable media.

Roshan,

I received the disks. When I try to follow the manual reinstall instructions, I get to where it asks me where I want to install windows. I select the largest partition which says OS. It does all the installing and progresses as expected. HOWEVER, once that is complete and it tries to reboot the first time, it reboots and hangs and leave a blinking cursor on the screen for hours. It won't reboot. Any suggestions??

I also tried the system recovery options on the disks sent. I selected 'Startup Repair' and it results with "Startup Repair could not detect a problem"

Suggestions?

Banks5

Oh, my partitions are as follows:

There are 3 partitions on the machine.

Disk 0 Partition 1  DELLUTILITY  99MB Free OEM Reserved

DISK 0 Partition 2 REcovery    6.3 GB free   SYSTEM

Disk0 Partition 3  OS      193.2GB Free Primary

Banks5

Hi bank5,

It does sound like an issue with the HDD.This time try running a Through test on the HDD.Tap F12 on start up(Dell Logo),select Diagnostics,this will automatically start the Quick test,press ESC to stop Quick test,towards the bottom of the screen,under Test mode,select Through Test,select HDD,run test.

If this test passes without any error try a clean reinstall of Windows.To perform clean reinstall you will need to delete the Partition 3 OS 193.2GB Free Primary and than try to install Windows.

To delete the partition,on the screen which shows the HDD partitions,click on More options,click delete,confirm delete  and this will delete the partion and you will see one partion which says "Unallocated space",select that and click next.

Note:Performing above steps will delete all the data on your system.

After the Windows installation is complete check if the system is able to boot to Windows.

Let me know how it goes.

Thank You

I'm having same problem on my INSPIRON N5110, did all the diagnostic test even thorough mode all systems pass, even bought a new hard drive,and still no go. Note new email address Email id removed per privacy policy>

I give up, now i cant even go to F2 or F12.

Hi  LWhite422,

Welcome to the Community,

Sorry for the delay in response.

If the system is not booting to Windows may I know the exact error message(if any) you get on the screen? Do you see the Dell logo come up on the screen?

Try to release flea power and see if you're able to get back to F2 and F12 screen.To release flea power disconnect AC adapter,disconnect all external peripherals(USB devices) and remove battery,press and hold down power button for 30 seconds,then reconnect AC adapter and battery.Check if you're able to access F2 and F12.

Thank You

i have the exact same Realtek message as the OP  and the computer is not functional at all (same laptop N5050). i am able to run diagnostics and it produces the following error "hardrive 0 - S/N WD-WXQ1CB191795 self test unsuccessful status=7".  i cannot boot using f8 either.

Hi  jkallen777,

Welcome to the Community,

Self test unsuccessful error message,suggests there is an issue with the HDD.

Did you also get any error code while  running the diagnostics? If you're not sure run the diagnostics again(tap F12 on start up,Dell logo,select Diagnostics) and post back the exact error code.Example 2000-0142.

I believe you have already checked boot order in BIOS(F2 on start up) under BOOT to make sure HDD is the first boot device (and not Network).

Is your system under warranty?

Thank You

Hello Roshan L, thanks for replying so quickly. I did check the boot order and it is set to HDD for first boot device. Also, the exact error code is exactly as you cite above, 2000-0142 (validation 6478).   my system went off warranty about a month ago?!  what would recommend?

Best,  Jkallen777

Hi  jkallen777,

The error code 2000-0142 confirms that the HDD has failed and you would need to replace it.

If you need help to order the replacement HDD,you may contact Dell Spare parts at 1-800-357-335(US region).

Let me know if you need any further assistance.

Hello again Roshan L: if i purchased a new hdd , would it come with all the software and stuff as what was on my original hard drive at time of purchase? yes, it is a bit of a daft question. thanks.