0

I have a HP 430 laptop. I described it's problem before on this site. Here it is: https://superuser.com/questions/859524/screen-broken-cannot-see-repair-instructions

The problem is this:

Prologue

My laptop screen has a crack and so I have attached it to an external screen.

Main Problem

Now, once what happened is that I switched off my laptop when Windows was installing updates which I have done several times before without any problem but this time when I started it, there was a Windows logo and it said "Repairing C drive".

This process went on for an hour. Then it said, "Launching startup repair" before which there was a brief period when the external screen started and displayed blankness. Now, here's the problem: I can only see the lower-right half of my screen(the screen is broken) and so I am unable to see most of the written part and so can't fix anything though startup repair.

Plus the external monitor starts only when Windows starts(I don't know why but it has been this way since the day I attached it). It is off while booting and I don't know how to set it to start at boot. So, how do I then fix my laptop?

Model: HP 430 OS : Windows 8

One solution I can think of is that if I get my hard disk out, fix the OS and put it back or replace it with a new hard disk altogether. But I am not sure if it would work.

I have already abandoned this laptop and removed the hard drive. But now I feel maybe I can restore it. What would be the best way to restore it? Will it start without any hard drive?

Improve this question
2
  • Superuser probably isn't a good fit for your question, because its very specific to your Laptop.
    – Frank Thomas
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:34
  • Without a working monitor you can't do much, though a live linux cd could work and let you remotely connect to it and set up the external monitor through that.
    – ojs
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:37

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
0

Technically, the computer will 'start' without a hard drive, however you won't have an operating system and you'll find little use for it without one. If you've recovered the data you need to keep from the removed hard drive, plug the drive back in and re-install windows from scratch. If you feel like learning something, give linux a try.

Improve this answer
8
  • Okay. That seems reasonable. I tried this once some time ago. The laptop started but I get nothing on the laptop screen as it is broken. And it won't show anything on an external monitor until it boots. So, how do I tell it to boot from USB or some other source?
    – Yashbhatt
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:39
  • That would have to be done in the BIOS or you could use a linux live CD and add entries to GRUB manually. Windows, as far as I know, doesn't allow on-the-fly boot config changes. As another option, you may be able to find a button on the laptop keyboard that switches output to the other screen.
    – smokes2345
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:41
  • The only switch it has is the power switch. Could Windows or Linux be installed on a hard drive and then the hard drive be put back. Would that work?
    – Yashbhatt
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:48
  • Well, I connected the laptop to a monitor. All the LED's light up but nothing at all shows up on any of the screens.
    – Yashbhatt
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 17:58
  • Most of the time they are not individual buttons, but function keys (mine is F7) that can be used in conjunction with a modifier key to perform some specific function. There should be a "Fn" key in the bottom left corner of the keyboard. Try holding it while pressing the F4 key. Try this at least three times, pausing for at least 5 seconds to see if the video switches screens.
    – smokes2345
    Commented Sep 27, 2015 at 18:10

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .