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Many times in your life, you come across a situation when you are not able to boot your PC. This could be sometimes due to some boot records failure, virus infections. A random hardware issue may also be the cause of such an issue. Well, it does not matter what the causes of the issues are, all that matter is that you have to do something to save your data from imminent system crash, which may anytime surprise you.
In a situation like this, what are the things you should to go for? Well, the very first step you can take is to boot your PC in Safe mode that many times comes out to be a fix for the issues. In case the issues persist or you fail to boot your PC in Safe Mode, you can go for restoring your system to its last healthy configuration, or boot sector repair with a system rescue disc in order for unbootable PC data recovery. Following are five top system rescue tools along with the steps to use them to fix unbootable PC issues:
Avira Rescue System
Avira is a well-known brand for its range of computer and data security tools, including ‘Antivirus Suite (both free and premium)’, ‘Internet Security’, ‘Secure Backup’, ‘Android Security’, and ‘Avira Rescue System’.
Avira Rescue System is a downloadable suite that is available as both an executable file (.exe) format and disc image (.iso) format. It is recommended to go for .iso download and burn it to a CD. Boot your PC with this rescue disc and proceed with the steps:
Choose ‘Start Avira Rescue System’ and proceed. On the Welcome to Avira Rescue System wizard, click Start Wizard that explains three functions of scan and repair process.
Step1: At the first step, select the partition to scan and repair and click Next.
Step2: This initiates the scanner to update virus definition file (VDF) and the relative scan engine, in case the Internet connectivity is available. Or else, it begins with the current virus database and scan engine found in the rescue disc.
During the scan process, it displays ‘Total files’, ‘Time elapsed’, ‘File scanned’, and ‘Detections’ with their current status.
Step3: Once ‘Scan and Repair’ process is finished, it displays the result. To see the complete detail, click the Report button.
Take an appropriate action among ‘New Scan’, ‘Shut Down’, and ‘Restart’.
AVG Rescue CD
AVG antivirus, you must have heard of or used this security tool to keep your data protected against malware, spyware, and other threats to your PC and data. AVG offers a wide range of security tools, including a rescue agent for your PC, namely AVG Rescue CD that helps you to repair your PC when it is unable to boot due to severe malware infections. The Rescue suite includes four key tools, which are ‘Midnight Commander’, ‘Windows Registry editor’, ‘Ping’, and ‘TestDisk’.
To create AVG Rescue CD, you have to download the package that is available in three different formats – ‘Rescue CD for CD in .iso file format’, ‘Rescue CD for USB in .rar file format’, and ‘Rescue CD in .zip file format’. I recommend downloading the .iso file and burn it to a CD.
Step1: To boot from AVG Rescue CD, insert the disc and restart your PC.
Step2: Press F8 for Boot Menu and choose CD-ROM Drive, and then hit the Enter key.
Step3: Now, you see the boot screen in Linux format.
Step4: Press F1 for additional options or hit the Enter key, or wait for 10 seconds.
Step5: Accept the License Agreement by hitting the Enter key.
Step6: Hit the Enter key to allow system update.
Step7: Choose ‘Update from the Internet’ and press any key after it finishes updating, and then choose Return.
Step8: Choose ‘Configure and run on-demand scan’ and hit the Enter key.
Step9: Choose ‘Scan selected directory only’ and press the Enter key.
Step10: Select the directory and hit the Enter key.
Step11: Press the Tab key to switch the focus into Directories window
Step12: Choose ‘User files’ and press the space bar to confirm its selection, and then hit the Enter key.
Step13: Proceed with ‘Scan inside archives’ and hit the Enter key two times to Run scan.
Step 14: It displays the running scan process
Step15: Once it is done scanning, press any key to continue. It displays the result; hit the Enter key to proceed.
Step16: Choose ‘Handle all infected files separately’ and hit the Enter key. Delete the file and continue.
Step17: Handle all infected files and return, and then Exit.
Norton Bootable Recovery Tool
Norton is one of the oldest and reliable computer security tools. It provides Norton Antivirus, Internet Security, Online Backup, and many more such tools. Besides, in case your PC fails to boot due to a random cause, or corruption in Boot.ini system file, download Norton Bootable Recovery Tool (NBRT) and fix them.
Step1: Once you download the .exe file, run it and create a rescue source (i.e. CD/DVD or a USB) for your PC. I recommend creating a CD/DVD.
Step2: Insert a CD/DVD and select drive, and then click Next. If required, you can add drivers to this disc.
Step3: Now, the wizard will download available updates and start creating the rescue disc for your PC.
After creating the rescue disc successfully, it displays the message Completed. You can use this disc to recover your unbootable PC.
Step5: Sign up for beta program for a Norton product and get a product key. Use this product key to begin repairing your unbootable PC.
Step6: Click ‘I Agree’ to start scanning your PC for malware infections and fix them.
You can use this rescue disc to fix any computer running Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7.
Paragon Rescue Kit Express
Paragon Rescue Kit Express is a key component of Paragon’s Rescue Kit, which you can use to create a bootable rescue CD/DVD and fix your unbootable PC. Apart from this, data protection, fix boot issues, data rescue, and undelete a partition are the key features of Paragon Rescue Kit Express. The major components of the tool are:
File Transfer Wizard
With this tool, you can copy your data (in bulk) from one directory to another in an efficient and protected way. The wizard has two windows – Clipboard and Source.
Boot Corrector
This module of the software scans and makes necessary repairs to the corrupt or damaged boot sectors of your PC, which makes your unbootable PC able to boot again.
Undelete Partition
With this module of Paragon Rescue Kit Express, you can undelete one or more deleted partitions of your PC.
Bitdefender Rescue CD
Bitdefender is an antivirus suite that protects your personal and professional data from virus and spyware. In fact, its series of security products includes antivirus, personal firewall, antispyware, user control and backup, and privacy control for home as well as corporate users. Besides, Bitdefender provides Rescue CD for unbootable computers, namely Bitdefender Rescue CD (current version 2013) as .iso file that you have to download and burn to a CD.
Step1: Insert Bitdefender Rescue CD and restart your PC.
Step2: In the window that appears, select a preferred language.
Step3: Accept license agreement to start scanning your PC.
Step4: You can make desired changes in file system if you want, which opens in Windows drive.
For unbootable PC data recovery, you can go for the one you think is efficient and reliable from the aforementioned tools that are able to make your unbootable PC working again.