Nitro 5 Computer crashing and freezing on startup + after start up

susugirl · September 2022

Hi! i'm currently using my sisters laptop to write this because my laptop has gotten so bad I'm not even going to try to use it anymore until I find out a proper fix.

For starters I have a Nitro 5 Acer laptop. I've had this laptop for a year and nothing bad to this degree has ever happened to it.

It started yesterday when I was playing on my computer and suddenly it froze.

Now, my PC has been freezing randomly but not repeatedly like now. Usually the cause for the freezes would be when I plug in my charger or plug in a charger for my headphones

So I tried turning it on and.. it froze while trying to boot up. (like the little circle thingy.)

I didn't think much of it so I forcefully shut it down like I held down the power button.

I tried booting it up again and it worked but it froze immediately when I got to the password page.

I was confused?? My laptop has never acted like this before.

I forcefully shut it down again and It was booting up to the recovery page BUT IT FROZE HALFWAY THROUGH T__T

I once again forcefully shut it down but this time as I was holding the power button it was refusing to turn on.

Like the keyboard would light up but it would turn right back off.

At this point I'm panicking my computer is refusing to turn on and its crashing and freezing.

I don't know what to do I'm stumped, I can't even get past the login page without my computer freezing immediately.

TLDR: My computer is freezing repeatedly during start up, recovery page, ETC ETC. I can't even get it to boot up properly.

Please help me !

[Edited the thread to add model name]

StevenGen · September 2022

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/671493/computer-crashing-and-freezing-on-startup-after-start-up

Freezing, booting and power issues of a laptop from either operating system or hardware issue problems could come from many sources withi a laptop. The basic and first thing is to try and do a reset of your Nitro 5 laptop completely (that is if you are computer savvy and know how to disassemble a laptop?) if you don't and your laptop is under warranty, then take it to your Acer Support. as you need to firstly do a hard reset. As all those symptoms that you have written and described above, are because your Nitro 5 (which would also help, if you told us the exact model number?) laptops windows or its graphics and other drivers and even a bios update is needed or it could be from other issues or a hardware fault but mostly corrupted drivers etc etc that needs to be analyzed by Acer and/or an experienced technician.

Try doing a hard reset:

Remove the back case cover (undo the 11 screws) and from the top vents pry the back case open to wards you, as it should open.
Take the RAM out and disconnect the main battery and take it out of the laptop case.
Disconnect the RTC/BIOS battery (which is the little black round battery)
Clean the RAM pins and motherboard plug also, leave both of these batteries disconnected for 5 min to reset the laptop, as pressing the power button for 15 sec doesn't do a hard reset.
Reconnect the RAM first, then the RTC/BIOS battery and then the main battery, boot your laptop up (be patient as this could take up to 2min for your laptop to boot).

All the above steps should boot your laptop up without freezing but and if your OS is corrupted and has driver problems then you need to do a "Reset your PC-Keep my files" and then make sure that you update Windows to its latest updates (would help if you told us, which OS you are running?) update all the Intel integrated graphics, chipset and other drivers (best is to install the Intel® Driver & Support Assistant and scan your laptop) and also make sure that the NVidia graphics drivers are all up to date, as all this appropriately done should stop the software from freezing, otherwise there is a hardware problem that needs either Acer or an experienced technician to look at your Nitro 5 laptop and analyze and fix it. Good luck and hope this solves your problems

ragsak28 · September 2022

Hi @susugirl

You can try to do a factory reset to check if that makes any difference.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/recovery-options-in-windows-31ce2444-7de3-818c-d626-e3b5a3024da5#WindowsVersion=Windows_11

Check the above link to do a reset.

You can also try the below steps to do a reset.

How Factory Reset Your PC using Acer Reset key

Press the Power key for 5 seconds to power off Acer computer completely. Then restart the computer and press Alt + F10 when its logo shows up.
Select Troubleshoot > Reset your PC.
Click Next, then select Just remove my files.
Press Reset to begin the recovery.

NOTE: Make sure to backup all the data before the reset.

Hope it will help you in some way.

susugirl · September 2022

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1147579#Comment_1147579

Thank you for the reply! However one thing I should've mentioned is that my PC freezes everytime I try to do a hard reset.

susugirl · September 2022

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1147486#Comment_1147486

Thank you so much for the reply!

I've unscrewed my laptop before so I know what to do for that. One thing I noticed is that my inside is extremely dusty and dirty, do you think that could also be another thing causing my issues?

Also, my settings app on my computer isn't working properly I can't seem to get to go to the "about pc" section as everytime I do so the settings app closes immediately. Do you know another way where I can get my exact model number? Another question I have is.. how do I know if my laptop is under a warranty :') I didn't exactly buy it my dad did so..

One more thing what should I use to clean my ram pins and motherboard plug? I'm really cautious about this stuff because I don't want to potentionally break anything 🙁

billsey · September 2022

When they get really dirty inside often it blocks airflow from the cooling system. That causes overheating which can do all kinds of bad things. Use a vacuum to clean it out. We can get you more detailed info if you tell us which Nitro 5 you have, there have been a bunch of different models over the years...