you can switch the boot drives in the bios.

Only if you hold my hand while I do!!

I'd have to get your motherboard maker & model number and get the manual to really be able to help like that.

OK, I'll enlist some local help. Thank you!  

You could:

- Swap the hard drive cable ends that go onto the mother board (EASY for your son to do this)

*OR*

- You could change the drive letters from Administrative Tools / Computer Management (another one for your son because this option might still be hidden)

*OR*

- You could change the boot drive in the BIOS as Reece suggested, except that anything that references "C" won't find your files if they are now on a different drive (and vice versa).

craigb


You could:

- Swap the hard drive cable ends that go onto the mother board (EASY for your son to do this)

*OR*

- You could change the drive letters from Administrative Tools / Computer Management (another one for your son because this option might still be hidden)

*OR*

- You could change the boot drive in the BIOS as Reece suggested, except that anything that references "C" won't find your files if they are now on a different drive (and vice versa).

that shouldn't be a problem since the drive she wants to be C USED to be C but when her son fixed her computer they got switched around. 

craigb


You could:

- Swap the hard drive cable ends that go onto the mother board (EASY for your son to do this)

*OR*

- You could change the drive letters from Administrative Tools / Computer Management (another one for your son because this option might still be hidden)

*OR*

- You could change the boot drive in the BIOS as Reece suggested, except that anything that references "C" won't find your files if they are now on a different drive (and vice versa).

Craig is fully on it. All of these are the things to be looking at.

My bet is that the BIOS got reset during the repair and the previous boot order got messed up.

I think so too (I Googled it).  I was able to get into the BIOS, but couldn't see how to change the boot order.  (both drives are in brackets, and according to the notes on the right, that means they're not there or I can't change them or something...can't remember right off hand.  But nothing I tried worked.)  

if the "2nd" drive is booting up to windows (which is what it sounds like you're saying) but your programs aren't there that you've been running for the past year, then it's possible she has a RAID 1 system which was disabled at some time.

or she had a data drive which had windows installed to it as well but set up by the person who built the system (her son) to boot on the primary drive.  not sure why he would have done that on purpose, but it's a possibility.

I am not even sure this forum works correctly either. Good luck there on your computer because write down or memorize what steps have been taken. The computer is a stupid machine and you or someone has to allow for that when working on a computer. It's not even a baby, it is a electronic gizmo made to give headaches!