Non-System Disk Error

Whenever I boot my 14x R1 I get a black screen that says non-system disk error press any key to continue. Once I click a key everything is normal. It is more or less just annoying. I haven't really tried to troubleshoot the problem yet I was just hoping someone had experienced this before and had a solution. It started when I replaced my optical bay with a regular HDD.

Thanks,
Illini

Update:

So, I tried to take matters in my own hands and try to figure it out. That was a terrible mistake unfortuantly.

I read where using the command "bcdboot C:\Windows" would possibly fix it. I did that and I went do Disk Management and made my primary SSD the active drive.

I restarted to see if it fixed it. The "non-system disk error" message still pops up but when I click enter it say that my BOOTMGR is missing and I can't get on my laptop anymore. It makes me click cnt+alt+delete to reset and then it just does it again. I should learn not to try to fix things. Any help would be much appreicated.

 

For me it sounds like a ram error. Try to put one ram into it only then if the error still occurs try the other ram only. Tell me how it worked.

 

You can put in your bootable Alienware Win 7 DVD to see if the auto-repair method will fix your problem. It's usually a quick fix. If you have too many problems you can always pull the drive, connect it to another computer to copy the important contents, then do a fresh install of Win7.

Fresh installs are pretty quick now a days, especially when compared to the past. If you have a good back-up system in order, it's not too bad.

 

RAM is not part of the OS and will not cause the bootloader to be missing.

 

Sorry to tell you but when the RAM is malfunctioning it cannot load the MBR which causes exactly the error message about the missing bootmanager he posted. Your solution on the other hand has nothing to do with the problem he has. Are you working for Dell or why are you telling someone first to reinstall windows lol?

 

I said as a back up he could do that. I ran into the same exact problem on an older desktop. Literally the same error. Using a bootable Windows 7 disk to repair the bootloader solved my issue and it never came back. Didn't touch the RAM either. He even stated that he messed around with a DOS command that switched the HD assignment, thus preventing the computer from booting up.

Didn't know a command could cause a stick of RAM to prevent an OS from booting. (sarcasm)

 

Googled:

Solution
Recent versions of Windows, such as Windows XP, Vista or 7, contain an MBR recovery tool. You can find this tool on your Windows installation CD or DVD-ROM. To access it, place the Windows disk in your CD or DVD-ROM drive, and reboot your PC. Make sure to tell your computer to boot from the CD or DVD drive by changing the boot order in the BIOS, if necessary. Then, at the prompt, press the R key on your keyboard to load the Windows Recovery Console. Once the console is loaded, type the following command: "fixmbr." This command will create a brand new master boot record, allowing your computer to now boot normally.



Read more: What Causes a Master Boot Record Error? | eHow.com What Causes a Master Boot Record Error? | eHow.com


Also: RAM can cause drive write errors which can lead to a corrupt OS and MBR. So yes, removing some other sticks could eliminate the cause of the problem, but not the problem itself. He will still need to fix the bootloader regardless if the RAM is replaced or not.

 

Thank you for the quick responses. I have seen where RAM can cause start-up issues but I haven't touched the RAM ever and it worked up to the point I used the DOS command. Unfortuantly, because I took out my optical bay I have to wait for my friend to bring me his flash drive so I can put Windows 7 on it. After reading a lot of stuff that seems like it fix it. However, I feel like I willl still have the non-system disk error after creating a new MBR.

Thanks,
Illini

 

Hopefully it gets fixed soon. If not, let us know.

 

The RAM hint would take like 3 min have you even tried it? What GIJoe wrote is all right and so on and it sounds also logical cause you typed this DOS command but maybe its just a broken RAM stick...

 

Hans...

Sorry if I came off defensive or anything... I know we're both trying to help and I don't have the best way of explaining things without sounding ticked off. I agree that what you suggested is an incredibly fast thing to try, and certainly worth a shot.

 

So I have good news and bad news...

Good News...
On start-up I no longer have the invaild system disk error!

Bad News...
Whenever I try to do system repair it works but then says it can't save the changes. I should note that I went to Disk Management and changed my SSD to the active partion. I don't why that would make it where it can't read my OS but I feel like that might be an issue.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Illini

 

I have never seen anything like this before. I used DISKPART to make sure my SDD was the only active partition and it was. I tried to rebuild my MBR using the command RebuildBcD. It says [1] available C:/Windows. Do you want to create it? I type in "Y" and then it says it can't find it? I really don't want to clean install my laptop again but I feel like I am probably going to have too. I honestly have no idea what could possibly be the problem!

Thanks,
Illini

 

id run a hdd/ssd test if i were you what ssd do you have>?

 

Here is what I think you should try;

Take the O.S Disc, boot to it, select repair, go to Command prompt and type:

bootrec /fixmbr (Hit enter)
bootrec /fixboot (Hit Enter)

If that does not work.

Try to go again to the Windows disc and select repair.
Try using the system restore to a date before the issue started.

If it does not work;

Try safe mode by pressing the F8 key at the startup. Once you are into safe mode try a system restore.

If that doesn't work try an AlienRespawn.

And finally if none of that works try reinstalling Windows from scratch.

About the RAM, I don't think that's the problem, it could easily be just a corruption in the O.S due to the command that was inputted. I hope this works just fine for you. Let us know!

 

I did all the command things. I can't system repair because the OS is messed up so much that it doesn't even read the OS anymore. I had to clean install and everything is fixed. I've never seen an OS get messed up that much.

I appreciate the help guys!

Thanks,
Illini

 

I have seen that quite a few times haha, I'm glad that everything is sorted out now. Enjoy your baby!