I have a laptop that wont boot
I want to backup some files from it before reformatting and reinstalling windows
the problem is nothing I have tried works
When windows boots the OEM logo appears with the spinning circle bellow it which eventually freezes.
Safe mode also has the same problem
The windows recovery tool does start ( after a failed boot ) but none of the tools in it ( repair, system restore ect ) have fixed the issue.
I have tried running the windows recovery tools from an installation USB - again does not fix it.
This next part is very important
I have tried booting ubuntu from a USB drive. When attempting to boot it fails in the exact same way as windows does! so I cant use ubuntu to copy any files.
I have reset the BIOS factory defaults - didnt work.
I have looked for any history of updates in the bios so i can try rolling back, but my bios does not support this feature.
I have tried booting into the ORM recovery software - it fails to boot in the exact same way as windows and ubuntu.
I have tried using easyTodo backup boot tool to copy the files i want but it says many of them cant be read due to permissions.
I have tried takeown and icacls to take ownership of the files on the CLI ( while using windows recovery ) so i can then copy them to a USB stick, but the CLI shows these folders as being empty ( even after taking ownership )
I have tried using easyTodo backup boot tool after changing the files permissions, made no difference.
I tried making a new partition on the spare space on the laptops drive ( from the CLI ) so i can install windows onto that and hopefully it will boot and allow me to access the files. but it always gives a minimum size error no matter how small I try to make the partition.
The laptop itself does not have a slot that can be opened to remove the drive so I cant just put it in a working computer.
The only remaining thing i can think of is to make a whole disk image using easyToDo but for that i will need to get a large enough USB.
Can anyone think of anything else i can try?