I had an old tower running Windows 10 - by old I mean, I bought the box in Jan 2007. I had to drop a different video card for Win 10 to work - but hey, it was a free upgrade.

Today that machine decided not to boot any kind of windows, even XP or Win 8.1 - weird but true. So I wondered, could I breath life into this old box with Linux (Slackware). I drop the Slackware 14.1 disk in, and it booted! So I continued installing, and it works - did a scan of the hard drive to make sure it was healthy, thumbs up!

So....I'm just finishing up Slackware 14.1 updates, and I will run this as a server in my office until it dies. This machine was the last of Windows in my business, I only had it to run some Win apps - I don't really need them, but I had extra machines : )

The only Windows machine in the house is my wife's Netbook, and it too is laboring and will be replaced soon.

I'm sharing this because I'm like a kid on Christmas, my office will be 100% Linux (Slackware) - I'm curious though, why Linux will run on this box, but windows suffers and doesn't boot most of the time - just old equipment? I'm not sure, but curious. The hair on my neck tells me there may be an issue with the BIOS on this old MB, if so, it won't be long before this Linux will start to reveal something. Until then, I'll keep an eye on it.

Slack on Gang!

<smirk>

Just a shot in the dark, but did you check the RAM with memtest?

A lot of "Windows wont boot on this PC" is because of faulty RAM.

RAM is good, I checked the RAM & HD to make sure : )

You could have had a corruption with the bootloader ntldr. Glad you got it working though.

If it was a ntldr problem the thing would boot but display an error I believe. Something like "ntldr is missing".

But yea, it's good that it's running, and better that it's Slackware!

1 members found this post helpful.

I got no errors - just a black screen with a blinking cursor - I couldn't even bootup from the CDROM, which tells me the MB is probably going, or I have a bad BIOS acting intermittently. It matters not, I can always run Windows in a Virtual Box if absolutely have to run Windows, and it doesn't need to be Windows 10 : )

I'm much happier in Slackware, it's what I know. I also run a webhosting biz that runs Centos w/ cPanel - Linux is my home : )

3 members found this post helpful.

I know I'm kicking a dead horse here, but could it be the MB battery?
(I have a thing with figuring out actual hardware errors, sorry)

Ya, I actually thought of that, so I replaced it before I went all Slack on it : )

Hi,
With older hardware, sometimes it can be due to lack of maintenance. Make sure all internal drives are mounted securely since the mounts will be used to mechanical mount and allow good heat transfer from the drives to the chassis mounts.

Check all cables and connectors. Be sure to clean the connectors & edges. Do not fall into the eraser technique since that will only insure more problems. Learn to use a good cleaner or use a denatured alcohol but use care since that could affect the MB mask if used to generously. You can get good electronic cleaners that would not affect the MB. Re-seating does not always help.

Check your PSU voltage rails and be sure that all fans are running at speed. Over time as you add peripheral equipment, you could exceed the load requirements for the PSU, so check that out to prevent issues. Clean the case interior of any dust or vents that could get plugged.

Over time the CPU compound can harden or if you use a PAD then that may need replaced. I have found more problems with PADS, so I remove the PAD and clean the surface for the CPU and heat sink. I then use a good compound spread evenly across the CPU surface with a plastic razor blade. Do not place too much compound on surface since that could leak and create other issues.

You can find some good videos on how to spread compound for a CPU.

Make sure to re-seat the power cables and peripheral connections.

All motherboard external switch connections should be checked for a secure mount. Sometimes one can be loose and tighten using small needle nose pliers. Not too much pressure to squash the connector, just enough to tighten any loose ones.

Look at some of the links at; PC Build along with Tools, Recovery, Diagnostic, Emergency to hopefully help you diagnose any issues.

Hope this helps.
Have fun & enjoy!

1 members found this post helpful.

Did Windows work afterwards?