Can't Boot to Safe Mode

[zeamju]

Hi all,

I read the instructions about posting but my problem is so bad, I can't download or install any of the tools needed to analyze my system. Here is a link showing the specifications for my laptop: Product Specifications HP Pavilion dv6-1355dx Entertainment Notebook PC | HP® Support

Recently started getting blue screen of death on my son's laptop. Error message is pretty cryptic and only stays on for a few seconds before the system attempts a reboot. I snapped a picture of the screen and here are a few details of what it says:

INTERRUPT_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED

Technical Information: STOP: 0x0000003D

KeyCrypt64.sys

There are some other binary numbers displayed; not sure if these would be helpful or not. I try to boot into safe mode but the error is still present and continuously tries to reboot. The laptop is an HP (can provide model/serial number if it helps) so you can press ESC while booting to access the system menu. I've done this and opened the system recovery tools. Several options that I've tried...

I've run CHKDSK from here but no errors after it completes. I can open a command prompt but not even sure what to run. I can also run System Restore but here's the big problem. System Restore fails with an error related to a Norton file. I have Norton Antivirus on the laptop and from my research, it includes some tamper proof settings that prevent system restores. Everything I've read so far says to turn this off within Norton and System Restore should run properly. Therein lies the problem. If I can't get the system to boot up properly, how can I possibly disable tampering within Norton? I've searched the Symantec site but haven't found anything useful so far.

After system restore fails, the machine attempts to boot up again and states that it didn't startup properly and prompts to run startup manager. I run that but it also fails for unknown reasons. I'm really at my wits-end...no idea what to do from here and I'm really hoping to avoid a completer recovery. I have almost everything backed up so it wouldn't be catostrophic but there are some recent videos, photos, and applications as well as application data that would be lost. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm more than happy to post additional system data, screen shots, etc. if anyone has any ideas. Thanks in advance!

 

[usasma]

Here's something to try (no guarantee it'll work) - and there's a chance of even more problems, so read the entire post before starting!

Use a bootable OS disk (such as the Ultimate Boot CD or a Live Linux distribution) to rename C:\Windows\System32\drivers\KeyCrypt64.sys to KeyCrypt64.BAD

DO NOT delete the file, as there's a chance that the system won't even boot to Windows (if the KeyCrypt64.BAD driver won't let it)
By renaming it you give yourself the option of changing it back to .sys so you can try other methods.

You can do this from within Startup Repair (the command prompt option) - but I cannot guarantee that you'll be able to get back into it either. So proceed with caution. If you have a bootable Windows DVD, you can use the Startup Repair off of that (as long as it matches your system - 32 vs 64 bit and Vista/7/8).

FWIW - this may require a reinstall of Windows, so use the utilities on the bootable disk to copy all your files/data to a removable device (so you don't lose anything important to you). If you haven't made the recovery disks for the system, then you'll have to contact HP for a set of recovery disks.

Good luck!