# Start button keeps failing



## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

I've recently had windows 10 installed, but unfortunately the start button keeps failing to operate. I am unable to put my PC into sleep mode or even switch off when this happens. So far it has always come back after a short while.
Could anyone please advise me on the nature of the problem.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

Please post your system specs, To include the EXACT Make and model System if Big Box, or same info for the following if custom or home built, Mother Board (including Revision number), Processor (Exact Model Number), Ram, Video Card, Hdd(s), Optical Drive(s), Power Supply Manufacturer Model, Wattage and Amperage on the +12V Rails, OS, and any other peripherals installed on the motherboard


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

The model is a Dell Inspiron 531. It is about 7 to 8 years old. As far as I can see, it has 2GB of ram, 232GB of hard drive space, of which I have used about 18GB. As for the other info you requested I'm afraid I haven't a clue, other than to say that nothing else has been installed on it.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

I think that your problem lies in the fact that the latest OS that is supported by you computer is Windows Vista according to dell. While you may have been able install a later OS there is no assurance of it working. What OS did you have on the computer before installing Win 10?


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

I did indeed have VISTA as an OS before I had Win 10 installed.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

How was Win 10 Installed? Being as Vista is not a qualifying OS for a free upgrade to Win 10, was this done using a retail copy of Win 10?

As I said installing an unsupported OS on a computer can leave you with a computer that is unstable at best. Do you have a way of restoring the computer back to the original OS?


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

It was installed by a computer shop on the high street who told me it was ok to have win 10 installed.
I was told I couldn't have a free upgrade so I paid for it to be installed.
It was installed on the premises and an activation key number was emailed to me later.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

You should have also been provided with a copy of the media that was used to install win 10. Either on DVD or Flash Drive. Did the shop provide you with a Certificate Of Authenticity that the copy of windows ten was indeed authentic?

Either way your problems could very well be related to the Unsupported Windows 10 installed on your computer.


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

This is beginning to sound a bit concerning. The only info I received was an emailed activation key number a couple of days after picking up my PC.
Pardon my ignorance on this, but what does "unsupported" mean? Is the installation legitimate or is it a fake.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

Unsupported means there is no support from the Manufacturer of the Computer or the Motherboard for the OS. I have not heard of any reported Pirated copies of Windows 10 yet. But the Tech at the shop should have warned you that your computer may not work properly with Windows 10 at the very least. It does concern me also that they did not provide you with an Activation Key and a Copy of the media they used to install Windows 10. Do you have a set of the Windows Vista discs that may have been provided with your computer when new?


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

Unfortunately I no longer have any discs or anything I received when I bought it.
Does being unsupported mean I will not receive any security downloads, and am I more vulnerable to virus attacks.
Everything seems to be working fine at the moment apart from obviously the start button.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

No that isn't what it means. You have anti virus protection as part of Windows 10.You will continue to receive Windows updates. You may also receive Driver Updates through windows if any are made available. It is the Driver Support that is not available from Dell that you will not have.


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

It sounds maybe I can live with it for a few months. I intend to get a new PC within the next 6 months anyway. As long as I'm not using anything that might be counterfeit in the mean time. Is there any means of checking to see if it is indeed genuine or not?
One other thing. You mentioned Windows 10 has a built in anti virus, as I already use Avast anti virus, will they not conflict with each other as I've read that it's not advisable to have more than one anti virus working.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

If you have Avast installed and active Windows Defender will be deactivated and there won't be any conflict. so as long as you keep avast definitions up to date you should be good.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

If your Windows is listed as Activated it is Genuine.


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

This is the email with activation key number I received from the shop who installed the product. I can't tell if everything looks genuine with all the correct procedures followed or not.

[email protected]>
To
[email protected]
Feb 4 at 4:41 PM
*This message contains blocked images.*

Hide original message
On 4 Feb 2016 2:45 pm, [email protected] wrote:
Hi this is your window 10 licence key please keep in save place. Thank you from advance technology.

On 3 Feb 2016 2:11 pm, <xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Congratulations, on the purchase of your Microsoft Windows product

Experience a whole new kind of Windows.

Thank you for purchasing Windows, your activate key

Code may be used once. NOT FOR RESALE.

Copyright © 2015 Advance Technologies.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

That looks like a valid code. Now you want to delete the code from your post before someone tries to use to activate a non genuine copy of windows with it.


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## Cookiegal (Aug 27, 2003)

I've removed the key plus the email addresses neither of which should ever be posted in public.

Please open an Elevated Command Prompt window (on the Start screen, type "Command" - a Command Prompt icon will appear, right-click on it and select Run as Administrator) then at the prompt, type the following (be sure to include the spaces) or better yet, copy and paste it:

*Licensingdiag.exe -report %userprofile%\desktop\report.txt -log %userprofile%\desktop\repfiles.cab*

After running the command, two files will appear on your desktop, report.txt and repfiles.cab. Please open the report.txt file in Notepad and copy and paste the contents here. The repfiles.cab is only a backup file and can be ignored for the time being.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

Thanks for you assist Cookiegal


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## Cookiegal (Aug 27, 2003)

No problem Jay.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

I hope the License comes back valid for the OP


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

I do apologise for that it was very stupid of me. I shall do what's been recommended later.


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## texasbullet (Jun 11, 2014)

abstracts said:


> The model is a Dell Inspiron 531. It is about 7 to 8 years old. As far as I can see, it has 2GB of ram, 232GB of hard drive space, of which I have used about 18GB. As for the other info you requested I'm afraid I haven't a clue, other than to say that nothing else has been installed on it.


I think you are missing a number for your model number. The closest one I found was Dell Inspiron 3531.
Check your Bios version. I think you may need to install version A03 if not done so.

"This file format consists of a BIOS executable file. The Universal (Windows/MS DOS) format can be used to install from Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows 2000, NT, Windows 9X, Windows ME or a MS DOS environment."


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

The Inspiron 531 and 531s were desktop models


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## texasbullet (Jun 11, 2014)

dustyjay said:


> The Inspiron 531 and 531s were desktop models


I am sorry. I think I could not see it the first time on the list but now I found it. As per the Inspiron 531 and 531s, there is a message which says:

"Dell is not testing or developing Windows 10 drivers for this product. If you choose to upgrade, some features, applications, and connected devices may not work as expected."

This means that you can install Windows 10 on your computer, but you will end up having problems with this OS during performance.
(as Jay explained in post #4)

Here is the list of the Computers which can be upgraded to Windwos 10:
http://www.dell.com/support/article/us/en/19/SLN297954?dgc=IR&cid=290600&lid=5589154#Inspiron-DT


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

Is this what you need?
<DiagReport>
<LicensingData>
<ToolVersion>10.0.10586.0</ToolVersion>
<LicensingStatus>SL_LICENSING_STATUS_LICENSED</LicensingStatus>
<LicensingStatusReason>0x00000000</LicensingStatusReason>
<LocalGenuineState>SL_GEN_STATE_IS_GENUINE</LocalGenuineState>
<LocalGenuineResultP>1</LocalGenuineResultP>
<LastOnlineGenuineResult>0x00000000</LastOnlineGenuineResult>
<GraceTimeMinutes>0</GraceTimeMinutes>
<TotalGraceDays>0</TotalGraceDays>
<ValidityExpiration></ValidityExpiration>
<ActivePartialProductKey>V6DDV</ActivePartialProductKey>
<ActiveProductKeyPid2>00326-10102-10973-AA456</ActiveProductKeyPid2>
<OSVersion>10.0.10586.2.00010300.0.0.101</OSVersion>
<ProductName>Windows 10 Home</ProductName>
<ProcessorArchitecture>x86</ProcessorArchitecture>
<EditionId>Core</EditionId>
<BuildLab>10586.th2_release.160126-1819</BuildLab>
<TimeZone>GMT Standard Time(GMT)</TimeZone>
<ActiveSkuId>2b1f36bb-c1cd-4306-bf5c-a0367c2d97d8</ActiveSkuId>
<ActiveSkuDescription>Windows(R) Operating System, RETAIL channel</ActiveSkuDescription>
<ProductUniquenessGroups>55c92734-d682-4d71-983e-d6ec3f16059f</ProductUniquenessGroups>
<ActiveProductKeyPKeyId>34a219b0-95c4-fd27-3459-60fb0e2c2d5c</ActiveProductKeyPKeyId>
<ActiveProductKeyPidEx>03612-03261-010-210973-00-2057-10586.0000-0342016</ActiveProductKeyPidEx>
<ActiveProductKeyChannel>Retail</ActiveProductKeyChannel>
<ActiveVolumeCustomerPid></ActiveVolumeCustomerPid>
<OfflineInstallationId>292111646868431968283082871112233021531933265138501187636764326</OfflineInstallationId>
<DomainJoined>false</DomainJoined>
<ComputerSid>S-1-5-21-666260159-977209751-3107930347</ComputerSid>
<ProductLCID>2057</ProductLCID>
<UserLCID>2057</UserLCID>
<SystemLCID>2057</SystemLCID>
<CodeSigning>SIGNED_INFO_PRS_SIGNED</CodeSigning>
<ServiceAvailable>true</ServiceAvailable>
<OemMarkerVersion>0x00020000</OemMarkerVersion>
<OemId>DELL </OemId>
<OemTableId>AS09 </OemTableId>
<Manufacturer>Dell Inc.</Manufacturer>
<Model>Inspiron 531</Model>
<InstallDate>20160201103538.000000+000</InstallDate>
</LicensingData>
<HealthCheck>
<Result>PASS</Result>
<TamperedItems></TamperedItems>
</HealthCheck>
<GenuineAuthz>
<ServerProps>GenuineId=55c92734-d682-4d71-983e-d6ec3f16059f;OemId=;OptionalInfoId=;Pid=0nKJsv0ElC36dRjR0hdnrREryzsnqF2mr3aPyokTZn4=;SkuId=2b1f36bb-c1cd-4306-bf5c-a0367c2d97d8;TimeStampServer=2016-02-03T14:56:41Z;</ServerProps>
</GenuineAuthz>
</DiagReport>


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## Cookiegal (Aug 27, 2003)

Yes, it does indeed look to be a genuine license.


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## abstracts (Nov 19, 2011)

Thanks for that. I'll put up with any shortcomings it might have for the next few months until I buy a new pc.


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