Let’s review some of these most used solutions for when Windows does not boot.
Outside USB or memory cards
Sometimes Windows won’t start because it’s detecting a device and is unable to load the proper drivers for these external drives, either USB flash drives or memory cards. In this case, it is a good idea to disconnect these devices and try to start the PC again, to see if Windows is capable of starting without any problem.
Although less frequently, this can also apply to USB peripherals that we usually never disconnect before a boot, such as the keyboard or mouse. In optical, DVD or Bluray disc players, take out the disc to heal yourself.
Sometimes the conflict with external drives comes from the fact that the BIOS is set to try to boot and boot OS first from external storages and not the hard drive or SSD where Windows is actually hosted.
Windows recovery environment
If the computer tries to boot but fails, the third attempt will trigger the Windows recovery process. Once you get into this mode, you can select “Troubleshoot”, then “Advanced Options” and finally “Startup Repair”.
This mode is a first attempt for the system to detect what may be causing problems and fix them automatically. If it doesn’t work, or if you want to go straight to this step, you can select “Startup Settings” and launch Safe Mode from there.
In the event that you have a Windows image on a USB disk or pen drive, you can access recovery mode by starting the PC from said drive. In addition to the option to reinstall Windows (last option if there is no other choice), you can select the “Recovery Manager”, which will also detect problems and try to solve them.
Perform a system restore
If you recently made any system changes, it might have caused Windows not to boot. If you are not sure what changes could have caused these failures, you can make your system travel back in time to a point where it worked fine. System Restore, one of the most powerful recovery tools in Windows.
You can only use System Restore when your computer has created a restore point in the past. Fortunately, if System Restore is enabled on your PC, Windows will create a restore point every time you make a critical change, such as a driver installation or Windows update. So, it is very likely that you already have some restore points ready to go.
To use System Restore (or check if your system has a restore point), click Advanced Options > System Restore. At this point, you may need to choose and sign in to an administrator account that you want to restore if you have multiple administrator accounts.
These are just a few of the many solutions if Windows won’t boot. Has any worked for you?