Hey Unplggd,
It goes like this: my Vista system occasionally boots up to a black screen with a mouse cursor. That's it, no rest of the user interface, no nothing to do. It also does this sometimes when I'm just browsing Firefox and then it locks up. I press CTRL+ALT+DEL and boom - same thing. This has been showing up sporadically since about early November. Thank you so very much...
-James I.
Good Questions: Vista - A Mysterious Black Hanging Screen of Death?
Hey James,
Fortunately, we got some IT guys on the Unplggd boat and we've seen this issue pop up once in a while as well. So don't worry - you're not freaking out for no obvious reasons. It's been a pretty unclear issue that we've been frantically looking for a fix for the past 6 months.
And luckily for us, we recently stumbled upon MVP Susan Bradley's blog, who has also run into this issue and seems to have come up with a few solutions that seem to have worked for quite a few people. You can grab those fixes via the links below:
- How to fix the Vista KSOD (blacK Screen Of Death)
- SBSC - Windows Vista Black Screen with Mouse Cursor Only Issue
The bad news is that no one - even Microsoft - does not seem to have a solid answer to the cause of the KSOD. Their answer is to simply reinstall the entire operating system, which we find ludicrous given the fairly commonality of the issue. Otherwise, good luck and if all else fails (we're pretty sure you know the drill by now), just go with another OS altogether.
Have you run into this issue as well? Find a better fix? Let us know in the comments!
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this actually happened to me at one point. however, mine loaded the My Documents folder and from there i was able to access all my programs and files one folder at a time. and the only way i was able to fix it is by using the OS install/repair disc.
view Mr. Programmer's profile
Happens to me quite alot when I lock my machine. I just hit ctrl alt del and blindly enter my password and hit enter. Normally fixes the issue.
The more annoying problem is when IE goes all black and blocky and the tool bars jump about. Normally I have to close all IE windows to fix it. This happens on both my work machine and my home machine. Odd.
view jimwild's profile
Anyone have any idea why this happens?
view ekoshyun's profile
Just had this happen on a friends less-than-year-old Gateway laptop. Searched far and wide for an answer, but found my own. After thinking my only option was to install my copy of Windows 7 RC, I pressed F8 during log-in which brought me to several prompts, one being reverting to day one factory settings on the computer. All is well now, and Vista is back working. Hope this helps.
view JayNY1's profile
i haven't experienced this one (yet) but have ya ever had about 100 internet explorer windows open nonstop?? that happens to me ALL THE TIME.
sometimes i have to shut it down and lose whatever i lose because in task manager i'm not always able to close the original open IE window (which is the only way to stop the other 99 windows)
i despise vista.
majorly sux.
view kdkaboom's profile