That means your hard drive is bad.  If the system is under warranty, call Dell with the error and they'll replace the drive.  If it's out of warranty, report the model number of the system and someone can recommend a replacement drive.

i got a error message 0142

F12 a few times at powerup - boot to the Dell diagnostics and run an extended - not just a quick - hard drive test.

thanks, this probable explains the random bdos's i've been getting recently.