Vista Start-Up Problem - What Is the "Spoon" Folder?

[skeezix]

Using Vista without any internet connection on an HP Pavilion computer stock from the factory.

Yesterday I powered my Vista system up and found that there was no mouse. Powered the system down, tried a different mouse, still no mouse. Powered down and back up, then the system came up and I worked on it all day. Then I put the computer to sleep.

This morning I pressed the Space bar to wake it up and Windows loaded but only to the point where the colored Windows circle displayed, then the computer went into a Power-Off state and restarted. The system then kept repeating the start-up from Power Off.

I went into the BIOS and checked everything. Everything appeared normal. While looking for the problem I noticed a folder named "Spoon" and when I double-clicked it the system again restarted from the Power-Off state three times before Windows came up.

What is the Spoon folder and can I delete it?

 

[wither 3]

This is quick and dirty because I don't have much time but where is the Spoon folder located? The primary computer related "Spoon" thing I could find is from Virtual Box.

 

[skeezix]

The "Spoon" folder is in my ...AppData\Local folder. It contains a Sandbox folder, the contents of which I dumped yesterday. Inside the Sandbox folder were some files from Philips. I think the Spoon foldert got into my computers when I ran some Philips medical DVDs that I received from the local hospital. The DVDs contain the results of some MRIs and such.

 

[wither 3]

So are we back to your original problem?

 

[skeezix]

Yes, I still have problems. Yesterday morning. I powered the computer up and the monitor displayed "Loading Windnw fdlbh..." (< exactly what was displayed). Then the screen went blank and the system was dead. It did this several times. Usually one of the characters in the initial message was wrong. Pressing F10 brought up the BIOS screen. I couldn't locate the spot where I could choose to start the system from the DVD, but other than that I couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. Nevertheless, I found and reset the BIOS to factory defaults. I continued to have the same problem.

Then while the system was off I put DVD #1 of my 3 DVD System Recovery disks in and pressed the Power button. Windows did not start, but the system presented several options to me, presumably from the DVD 'cause I recall seeing "HP" on the screen along with the options. So I ran some of the tests (disk and memory). No errors were detected. I can't remember what I did next, but I when quit the recovery process the computer rebooted itself and then Windows came up. The rest of the day it worked perfectly and last night I clicked the Start button to put the computer to sleep.

This morning I moved the mouse to wake the computer up and it came up without problems. It is as if the BIOS is causing the problem because once the system is up, it stays up until I shut it down. Now I'm afraid to use Shutdown.

I appreciate your interest. We'll see what happens.

 

[skeezix]

Follow-up:
Yesterday I started a log of allof my actions. After fiddling with the computer for an hour or so, Windows finally came up and the desktop appeared. I then ran SFC /SCANNOW and no problems were found. Then I ran CHKDSK /F and that found one problem which it was able to fix. When I shut the computer down and restarted it everything appeared normal. I repeated the power cycling several times throughout the day and each time everything worked normally. Also did the same thing using the Sleep mode with the same results. Last night I shut the computer down and when I turned it on this morning it was working fine.

Go figger. Again, we'll see what happens. If you are interested in seeing the log file, please let me know.

 

[wither 3]

Stranger things have happened. I had one with Win 7 a month ago.

Glad your problems are resolved.

 

[skeezix]

The problem is not solved. This morning the computer started normally. I left it alone and after 2 or 3 hours the desktop was still being displayed but the mouse and the keyboard were not responding. I pressed the Power button on the computer and immediately the monitor and the Power LED turned off without going through the usual shutdown process. When I pressed the Power button again the computer started normally.

 

[wither 3]

Well, pressing the power button on my three systems shuts the system down completely without going through the normal shutdown. That's what it's supposed to do based on the setting I have for it in the advanced power settings for my power plan. On this Vista system, I have to hold the power button for about 10 seconds to get the shutdown. If I remember correctly, my two Win 7 systems shut down almost immediately.

 

[skeezix]

So you don't get a "Windows is shutting down" message on your Vista computer?

I left the system on all night and just turned the monitor off. This morning I turned the monitor back on and everything was running nicely.

It appears that I have something wrong with either my memory (that passes every test I've been able to find for it), or my hard drive (which also passes all tests and, once the system is up, runs flawlessly). I'm starting to suspect something is wrong with the Z: drive (restore) or maybe with the boot-up process. I suppose it could be the BIOS but I don't think so.

Anyhow, I've taken this thread pretty much off-topic so this would be a pretty good place to end it. I'm going to start a new thread that deals with installing a new internal drive, putting a system on it, etc.

Thank you for your ideas and your help!

 

[wither 3]

You don't get a "shutting down" message when you use the power button to shut down. It should power off immediately, once the time on the button is met, as discussed above. I don't see why you think there's a memory or hard drive problem.

 

[skeezix]

I just checked the computer operation again. When my computer running right, the desktop is displayed. If I then press the power button down for less than a second, nothing happens. The computer remains running.

When I click on the Start button, then click the little arrow that's on the bottom right of the Start box, then click "Shut Down", within a second or two the desktop goes away leaving just whatever background color I've assigned to it. Next, the display turns black for a fraction of a second, then the display shows a light blue Windows design with a light yellow "swish" across it along with the words "Shutting Down" in the center and "Microsoft Vista" at the bottom center. Finally the HD spins down and the Power light goes out.

That's the way the computer has been functioning since Day One. When it functions right, that is

While the computer was running right, I gently pulled it out from under the desk and turned it on its side so that I could read the Windows Product Code. When I was finished, I gently turned it right-side up and slid it back under the desk. When I then moved the mouse I saw that the mouse and the keyboard were once again unresponsive.

Next, I pressed the Power button for half a second. The display went black, the HD spun down, and the Power light LED turned off.

That must be a clue that something is either physically loose inside the box (but I have not the foggiest idea what that could be) or the HD's heads must have shifted when I moved the computer. Don't see how though because I tapped the box several times while the system was up and afterwards the mouse and keyboards were responsive.

 

[wither 3]

As I mentioned depending on the settings, the time one has to hold down the power button to shut down varies.

In your second paragraph, there's nothing wrong with that behavior.

For the keyboard and mouse, you might check their cable connection to the PS/2 ports to see if they're tight. If they are, you should open the case and check that the PS/2 connectors are securely fastened to the mobo (just wiggle the wires to the mobo while using either device to see if it affected).

 

[wither 3]

I don't understand your comment. Doesn't matter if it's from the factory or not. If you're having a different problem, you should start a new thread.

 

[wither 3]

skeezix- any progress on this?

 

[skeezix]

No progress. I just leave the computer on all the time now. From my previous post:

>>While the computer was running right, I gently pulled it out from under the desk and turned it on its side so that I could read the Windows Product Code. When I was finished, I gently turned it right-side up and slid it back under the desk. When I then moved the mouse I saw that the mouse and the keyboard were once again unresponsive.

That must be a clue that something is either physically loose inside the box (but I have not the foggiest idea what that could be) or the HD's heads must have shifted when I moved the computer. Don't see how though because I tapped the box several times while the system was up and afterwards the mouse and keyboards were responsive.<<

It's still nagging me though. Must be some kind of problem that only occurs after the computer has been of and has cooled to the ambient room temperature. The next time it goes down I'll open it up and check for loose connectors. And I 'm still debating if the problem is due to the hard disk. I'd hate to go through the process of getting the parts, cloning the drive, and then find that the problem is still there.

Oh, thanks for asking. I appreciate it!

 

[wither 3]

Did you check the connections, as I suggested?

 

[skeezix]

Yes, yesterday I checked the connections inside the computer by wiggling them ever-so-slightly. When I wiggled the cable that feeds power to the hard drive, I could here the drive spinning down and back up. That power cable is the old white 4-pin (or is it 5-pin, IDK) connector. It's plugged into another cable that adapts to a thin 10- or 12-pin connector that plugs into the drive. The more I wiggled the cable, the more frequently the hard drive power became. I unplugged the large white connector from the adapter cable and plugged the adapter cable into a different 4-pin connector.

I turned the computer back on and wiggled the cable (actually all of them) several times but could not get the drive to spin down, so I shut the computer down and let it cool to room temperature. This morning I came in and powered the computer up. Everything came up without problems.

I want to say that the problem is fixed but each time I say that, the problem comes back. Must be a haunted computer LOL! So for now, I'll just say that the problem appears to be resolved.

 

[wither 3]

Excellent! Keep those fingers crossed.