tried "launch startup repair but it will search for hours and never finish.

Hi, Often StartUp Repair will work from a Windows 7 boot disk when it does not from Recovery. You can try some of these in Safe Mode - repeatedly tap F8 as you boot. If you do not have a Windows 7 disk you can borrow a friends as they are not copy protected. Your System maker will also sell the physical DVD cheap since you already own Windows. Also you can make a repair disk on another computer. Try Startup Repair - (If at ANY point you gain some but not full access to Windows come back and try Startup Repair again.) How to Boot to the System Recovery Options in Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/668-system-recovery-options.html What are the system recovery options in Windows 7? http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/What-are-the-system-recovery-options-in-Windows-7 Try StartUp Repair from Recovery Options or Windows 7 disk. How to Run a Startup Repair in Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/681-startup-repair.html Also from the COMMAND PROMPT of Recovery Console (if possible) or a Windows 7 disk Start - type in Search box - COMMAND find at top of list - RIGHT CLICK - RUN AS ADMIN sfc /scannow How to Repair Windows 7 System Files with System File Checker http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html Then run checkdisk (chkdsk). How to Run Disk Check in Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/433-disk-check.html Retry Startup Repair after Chkdsk. If needed after those you can try System Restore from Safe Mode or the Recovery or Windows 7 disk. How to Do a System Restore in Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/700-system-restore.html -------------------------------------------------------------------- If you need to make repair disks - these help repair Windows not re-install. Often a Repair Disk will help when the Recovery Disk does not - Use OPTION 2 to make the disk. How to Create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/2083-system-repair-disc-create.html ====================================== If needed : What to do if Windows won't start correctly http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/What-to-do-if-Windows-wont-start-correctly How to Boot to the System Recovery Options in Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/668-system-recovery-options.html What are the system recovery options in Windows 7? http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/What-are-the-system-recovery-options-in-Windows-7 How to Do a Repair Install to Fix Windows 7 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/3413-repair-install.html Hope this helps.Rob Brown - Microsoft MVP <- profile - Windows Expert - Consumer : Bicycle - Mark Twain said it right.

Hi, You may face the issue of Windows 7 not starting up even due to the corruption of Windows 7 source files. Windows 7 might have got corrupted due to several issues. The files may have been deleted accidently. The malware can cause corruption of Windows 7 source file by adding or deleting some contents. However you can overcome this issue by reinstalling Windows 7 Operating System after uninstalling the corrupted OS. Get more information to fix windows 7 not startup error : http://supportformicrosoft.iyogi.com/windows-7/windows-7-wont-start-up.html Hope this information helps you.