My HP Laptop keeps restarting itself

When I open the lid and press the start button, my laptop will run for about 20 seconds, then shut down and turn back on, it keeps repeating this over and over again and my screen stays black.

If I hit the escape button it will stop restarting itself but, noting else happens, the screen stays black and the laptop sits idle doing nothing.

Can someone please let me know if this is a type virus or has something gone wrong inside my laptop.

 

Maybe a problem with the video card or display.

 

I agree with 'nightmear321' ,probably a problem with a driver. I find this is usually the case when the the Video Driver has been changed. This can be intentional or Windows Update, or Update to a new Service Pack.

You didn't mention what OS you are using. Try booting with an OS disk in the optical drive and see if you can set a Restore Point to a Date/Time when your system was working correctly.

You might also try to boot into safe mode by hitting the F8 button several times during the initial boot cycle. If you can boot into safe mode then it is most likely a driver issue for sure. You can also set the registry Restore Point back in safe mode also.

 

What kind of laptop is it, and how much RAM do you have in it? I read about a problem similar to this in an HP notice. I dont know if this is your problem, but it reminded me of this:

DESCRIPTION

The notebook PC may continuously boot to a black screen with the notebook PC fan running at high speed.

This issue occurs if the notebook PC is using Intel Trusted Execution Technology (TXT) and is improperly shut down and has 4GB RAM installed.

SCOPE

The specific notebook PCs affected by this issue are listed in the Hardware Platforms Affected section at the bottom of this advisory.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, please perform the following:

1. Power off the notebook PC.
2. Remove the Memory Module from DIMM slot 1.
NOTE: For further instructions on removing/installing memory, please refer to the Memory module section of the Maintenance and Service guide for the notebook PC listed at the bottom of this document. The Maintenance and Service Guide can be found on the product support pages in the Business Support Center on www.hp.com .
WARNING: This product contains components that are easily damaged by Electrostatic Discharge (ESD).

To reduce the chance of ESD damage, work over a non-carpeted floor, use a static dissipative work surface like a conductive foam pad), and wear an ESD wrist strap that is connected to a grounded surface, like the metal frame of a PC.
3. After removing the memory module from DIMM slot 1, reboot the notebook PC. After the notebook PC has recovered, please power off the notebook PC and re-install the memory module in DIMM slot 1.

The notebook PC will boot as expected.

Hardware Platforms Affected: HP EliteBook 6930p Notebook PC, HP EliteBook 2530p Notebook PC, HP EliteBook 8530p Notebook PC, HP EliteBook 8730w Mobile Workstation, HP EliteBook 2730p Notebook PC, HP EliteBook 8530w Mobile Workstation

 

I had this behavior on a Dell for a while.

Does the laptop enter the windows boot process at all?
If so, it is a problem with a driver, try using F8 before windows starts, Safe Mode might get you somewhere.

If you see the various text screens and OEM logos and the computer reboots immediately afterwards, before any kind of "Microsoft" text or windows logos appear, then something strange has happened to your disk partitions. (This is the issue I had.) The boot sector of the disk contains data that makes the computer crash. (That, or the code the boot sector points to... not sure...)

I recommend trying the disk on another system using a drive enclosure. See if you can get your data off of the drive that way, before trying to fix it. It's possible the disk might be going bad. Also if you use HP for repairs (or any other repair shop for that matter), it's very likely they will wipe the drive. So get your files off right now if possible.

If you plug the drive in to another system and you can't read it, then you know it's the drive. Try NTFS recovery software in that case. Be aware that recovery on a large drive can take days of scanning, so plan for that.


Note: The memory module thing suggested by Bogusnj sounds like a good thing to try first. It's a quick little step, just pay extra attention to the ESD warning. Touch a large metal object immediately before touching the RAM sticks, EVERY TIME you pick them up, regardless what kind of floor you're on.