Windows Xp gets past loop but screen and system shuts off

i have Sony Vaio with Windows Xp and i turn the system on, and it gets past the windows logo loop and tries to start Windows but the screen, before anything can happen, turns off. the power button is on but the hard drive is not working at all. what is wrong? virus? Trojan? this happened right after a windows update. could it be that? will a recovery disc work?

It feels bad when people unknowingly install patches which are not either meant for their systems or needs some prerequisite.

here's an article from tech republic- you can read , which will help you rectify this problem

http://articles.techrepublic.com.com...1-6031733.html

I hate giving links but cannot repeat the same thing again and again...