How to Resolve A Hard Drive Freeze Problem

If you have been using computers for a long time or if your computer is getting old, you may be familiar with the problem of start-up freezes. The fact remains, a hard drive freeze can happen without any warning and may leave you wondering about the reason for the problem. Unfortunately, most people don’t really have a clue about what to do when this occurs and they try and reboot the system to see if the problem disappears. If rebooting doesn’t help, you have several options available. You can call a computer expert and follow his or her instructions over the telephone or you can take your PC to a computer shop for analysis and repair. Both methods, however, likely mean a loss of time, as well as, a financial cost and there are no guarantees that the "freezes at start-up" problem will not occur again.

Another option is to try and resolve the hard drive freeze problem yourself before calling in the experts. This will not only save you time and money but it will provide you an insight about the problem and help you find a more durable, long-term solution. So what should you do if you encounter a problem such as computer freezes at start-up?

The first thing you need to do is try to remain calm. Don’t get too worked up and frustrated about the problem you have encountered if your pc freezes at start up. Computer errors are a fact of life. They happen to everybody and no matter how careful you are, these errors are sometimes unavoidable. Also, if you are relaxed and maintain your composure, you are more likely to find a solution to the problem.

The next step is to start your computer in the Safe mode in order to look for a resolution to the problem. After your computer starts in the Safe mode you need to look into following potential reasons for the problem and try to resolve them.

Here is a summary of the main reasons for a hard drive freeze and some methods of resolution:

1)    Too many Start-up Programs: There is tendency of many users to have too many programs start during computer start-up. This puts a lot of burden on computer resources and can lead to system freezes. To rectify this problem, you can launch System Configuration utility by running the MSConfig command at Start >> Run. You can then look for the programs you do need to run during start-up on the Startup tab, and disable them.

2)    Malware infection: A lot of computer viruses are known to cause start-up problems like errors, slow start-up, and freezes. Try and perform a complete scan of your computer to locate any virus that may be hiding and causing the start-up problem. Before you perform a complete scan and clean up latest version of viruses with the help of a reliable anti-virus program,, please make sure that the virus definitions of the software are updated.

3)    Windows Registry Problem: The registry is a critical component of your computer system and it is used extensively, when your computer is operational. Since Windows registry governs the normal functioning of all your software, hardware, as well as, operating system, any problem with it can have serious repercussions, such as various application errors, slow computer processing and start-up freezes. In order to eliminate your computer registry, as the reason for a hard drive freeze, you need to clean-up and maintain your registry with the help of registry cleaner software.

4)    Inadequate RAM: After you have checked the above software issues and you discover that neither of these are the cause of your hard drive freezes issue, you must also check to see if this problem is occurring due to inadequate memory (RAM). If that is the case, you should upgrade it.

There is no doubt that when your computer won't start and you experience what some call a "freezes at startup", it can cause a lot of grief. I hope this article has helped you discover a few ways to overcome the problem. To take a free scan of your computer clickon the blue icon below.