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HELP! "Operating System Not Found" on Mini 9
I called tech support and my year was up last month so they need $50 to even talk to me!
My Mini 9 was shut down and not used for 2-3 days. I do have it set to auto install updates prior to shutdown. Anyway, I started it up and I 6 lines of text on a black screen and what caught my attention was "media test failure, check cable" (ironic since it isn't connected to anything, ever). Then it says "exiting PXE ROM" and the final line says "Operating System not found"
I have no CD drive on the mini and software was installed on it prior to purchase.
What is my first step (I am just a wanna-be-techie)?
I do have the Dell on-line backup but I think that is only for docs, pictures and other files.
Any help would be appreciated ~ I feel like after 9 computers, Dell has sorta left me hanging!
mjloves2teach
6 Posts
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October 25th, 2009 11:00
PS ~ it has McAfee Anti-virus on it so I was protected (I think!)
sawaddi
611 Posts
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October 25th, 2009 16:00
You get what you pay for. Dell does offer two and three year warranties.
Sounds like the hard drive is bad. Run diags and see what it says. If you have to replace your hard drive and reinstall the OS, you can use a USB DVD drive to reinstall.
mjloves2teach
6 Posts
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October 25th, 2009 16:00
I was a gift so I didn't "get what I paid for" necessarily.
I have no idea how to run diags so I guess I will Google it.
Thanks~
Adora2009
2 Posts
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November 2nd, 2009 12:00
Did you ever find out how to fix this? My mini did the same thing yesterday.
mjloves2teach
6 Posts
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November 2nd, 2009 13:00
Nope! And I haven't had time to research any further (work full time and taking 2 on-line classes)
I "ran config" like suggested and it just tells me the same thing.
Dell is no help ~ I'm a very-disappointed-long-term-dell-owner!
redmane44
1 Message
0
December 30th, 2009 16:00
I have a mini 9 too though there is nothing wrong with mine, I was just wondering how I would re install my OS if I needed to. On the bottom of your mini should be the ID numbers you need if you can get a copy of xp from a friend you can use their copy to reinstall but make sure you put your numbers in and not theirs. Of course you will need to put the xp onto usb first or run a usb optical drive.
laptop54
2 Posts
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January 4th, 2010 12:00
Has anyone found a fix, yet? My mini laprop did the exact same thing two weeks ago, and of course, my warranty was up four weeks ago.
laptop54
2 Posts
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January 4th, 2010 13:00
I can get into diagnostics, but all I get is a blank screen and the flashing cursor in the upper left corner.
ieee488
4 Operator
4 Operator
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11.1K Posts
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January 4th, 2010 13:00
Run Diagnostics.
Reboot and quickly hit F12. There should be choice to run diagnostics.
Adora2009
2 Posts
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January 4th, 2010 13:00
Here's what happened to me: I called customer service and was actually treated very well. The tech walked me through the diagnostics and concluded that the hard drive was shot. I still had a few weeks left on my warranty, so I got it replaced for free. I was extremely surprised at how easy it was to fix this. (I backed everything up, so I didn't really lose anything.)
e-claire
1 Message
0
December 6th, 2010 13:00
I have the exact same problem. I see no free solutions here. Another Dell computer down the toilet, I guess.
joemini9
1 Message
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July 16th, 2011 08:00
When I was on a trip I started getting the "Operating System Not Found" message, but sometimes I would try to turn on my Mini 9 and it would work. I figured out that my SSD was loose (it was not the factory one with locktite on the screws) and when I opened the bottom, I pushed it in and tightened the screws, then it worked fine...
...until now, when I'm getting the same error, but the SSD seems secure. It also says that System BIOS Shadowed, Video BIOS Shadowed. My preliminary searching has me worried that the motherboard might have gone bad.
cutekitty519
1 Message
0
May 19th, 2015 22:00
I have the same exact problem with mine! I ran diagnostics, and just a flashing cursor in the upper left-hand corner.
jimmnelon12345
1 Message
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November 20th, 2015 13:00
The Dell Mini 9 910 has no CD/DVD drive and it has no F11 or F12 keys. All the solutions for reinstalling the Operating System require those things. How can I possibly get back the original factory installation?
Philip_Yip
9 Legend
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16K Posts
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November 20th, 2015 19:00
You will need to press [0] when powering it up to access the boot menu.
You will need to install from Bootable USB. I guess you are after Windows XP Reinstallation which has reached end of life and is more difficult than newer Windows Editions to install via USB. This system also came with Ubuntu. Looks like some people have got Windows 10 32 Bit running on it but requires some determination:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG-uHKI5e04