My computer is giving me:


Windows has encountered a problem communicating with a device connected to your computer.

This error can be caused by unplugging a removable storage device... while the device is in use, or by faulty hardware... Make sure any removable storage is properly connected...


It won't let windows vista load. The only usb devices are a remote mouse and a printer, and they've both been disconnected and reconnected. The DVD drive is empty.

Any ideas what's wrong and how to fix it?

Also, the pc seems to randomly shut down recently.

5/26/2009 3:05:17 PM

boot into safe mode by pressing the F8 key repeatedly after you power on the system

select "boot to safe mode" option

can you get to a desktop or login screen now?


If you can boot into safe mode, we can work from there.

5/26/2009 3:16:24 PM

After loading system files, I received:


A problem has been detected and windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer...

Check to make sure any new hardware or software is properly installed...

If problems continue, disable or remove any newly installed hardware or software. Disable BIOS memory options such as caching or shadowing.


I'm at work now. I'll check it out when I get home. Thanks.

5/26/2009 4:12:28 PM

Windows can fail to start for any of a thousand reasons. Unless you've got a specific error code or memory dump, we're gonna have to do a little process of elimination.

5/26/2009 4:25:51 PM

I don't know if I have the necessary error codes, but for:

^^^^
I received status 0xc00000e9
And for:

^^
I received stop 0x000000ed (0x85a56e10, 0zv000009c, 0x00000000, 0x00000000)

I hope that helps, but I have no idea if it will.

5/26/2009 10:52:09 PM

Uninstall your printer and any printer software in Safe Mode to fix the "unable to boot" issue. Check your specific model on the hardware vendor (HP, Canon, etc.) website to figure out if there are any known Vista compatibility issues.

The randomly shutting down create a new thread for once you fix the boot issues. Likely can fix via some changes to power settings.

5/26/2009 11:48:58 PM

I'm unable to load windows in safe mode.

When I load it normally, I receive the first message. When I use f8 and boot safe mode, I receive the second message.

Thanks though.

5/27/2009 1:12:46 AM

Quote :

"The randomly shutting down create a new thread for once you fix the boot issues. Likely can fix via some changes to power settings."

So my computer is back up, but it's started suspending itself again. It's probably an easy fix, but I figured I'll post here since a thread is already up - maybe I can find a quick solution. Thanks.

7/7/2009 5:11:34 PM