Startup failure on W10 computer (SOLVED)

[as1953-2]

Hello all, all I am getting on the monitor is a small square that looks like a face upon booting up the computer. It was working pefectly yesterday. See screen grab. I bought the computer new, 2 months ago. Thanks.

[Boggin]

I'd take it back and let them sort it out.

[Xas1953NC]

Hello Boggin, I posted the query under my wife's handle but am now reverting back to mine. I have contacted Cyberforce who made the computer and they said to use the Windows 10 Recovery disc that came with it. Ininitially I did not remember I had a disc but found it a little while ago. Should I during a bootup keep pressing f11 to select cd as the bootup source as doing a normal bootup does not link to the cd so I end up still with the black screen. I wonder if I would also lose my own files. I have never had to uses a recovery disc before so this is new ground for me. Sorry for using a different handle and reverting back to my own. Thanks.

[Boggin]

Is this a Win 10 bootable ISO disk that you have ?

I assume they want you to boot up with it to navigate to the Recovery Environment to select Startup Repair - but it would be worth clarifying as a clean boot would lose all of your stuff - a bit like a factory reset - but I can't see how you are going to able to do this.

I already had my Win 7 laptop set to boot from DVD and USB before HDD prior to the Win 10 upgrade, but I've also changed the bootmenupolicy to legacy, so when it boots up you get the old press F2 for Setup etc. - but if your machine isn't set for this then given all that you get on the screen is what you have posted, then you won't be able to get in to change any settings.

When you get to the only screen you have, does CTRL+ALT+DEL get you anything like the Task Manager ?

If you can't do anything with the disk then I'd get back to them.

[Xas1953NC]

Hi Boggin, I got the Recovery disc to be read ok but instead of selecting a straight factory reset I went to Repair and clicked on save my files and then do a Reset. At the moment it is at 10%. I expect I could have, before using the disc, taken out the HDD, put into the docking caddy and copied off my files onto another HDD, put the drive back and carry out what it is doing now.

[Boggin]

I've done a repair install on my Win 10 to see that the Win 10 bootable disk I'd created worked, but that was from inside Windows - not sure how you managed for to get the disk to read.

Anyway, hope that does it for you.

[Xas1953NC]

Hello Boggin, The Recovery disc came with the computer. I first tried to do a repair but that failed. I then tried to retain my own files and then do a Recovery. that also failed so I had to a straight recovery and that worked but I lost all my own files. I read earlier today that the Anniversary W10 update came out yesterday. I wonder if that was being downloaded although I did not see any notification saying this was so and I wonder if I may have turned off the computer whilst it was doing so. The computer came with W10 installed.

[Boggin]

Sorry to hear that you've lost all of your files.

I think you'd know about it if the Autumn Update was in progress.

While I used the manual download button for it, it's been installing on my upgraded laptop for the last two hours with a couple of restarts.

Not sure what it's doing now as normally I'd have had a blue screen with it counting off the % but it's been on just a black screen with a twirling busy for the last half hour - wondering if it has stuck, but I suppose as long as something is moving then something is working - just hope it hasn't gotten stuck in trying to install some part of it.

[Xas1953NC]

Hello Boggin, I discovered the reason for the failure. I had pulled down ClassicShell as I do not like W10's Start Menu. On Tuesday I went to the website and saw an update this being 4.3.0 so downloaded it. Instead of installing a panel flashed up and disappeared quickly so tried again with the same result. I continued to use the desktop as normal and powered down as normal. Yesterday morning it could not boot up and the rest you know. Today I went to the website and in red text is a paragraph saying that on Tue, for a few hours, a hacker had accessed the program which resulted in anyone endeavoring to install it would find their computer unable to boot up........ Version 4.3.0 is still the latest version but will now install ok.

[Boggin]

Who'd have thought that was the problem.

I'm not sure what that recovery disk is that you have as you can create a system repair disk as well as a Win 10 bootable disk with which you can boot into the recovery options or do a repair install so that you don't lose your files.

I'm not sure if this would work on a machine that came with Win 10 preinstalled but you can change the bootmenupolicy so that you get the F2 and F12 prompt as you switch on - this also gives you the F8 or equivalent for the make & model of computer.

It's possible the F8 could have helped by giving you the option to restore to an earlier point.

While this increases the boot time to that of a Win 7 machine, it's handy should you not be able to get into Windows.

To do this, open a Command Prompt (Admin) and enter bcdedit

That should pop up a window where you need to check if it displays current or default next to Default - that is the Identifier.

Mine is current so I'll use that as an example.

Enter bcdedit /set {current} bootmenupolicy legacy

That should return as successful.

Enter exit to close the cmd window then go to Power Options - click on Choose what closing the lid does then on Change settings that are currently unavailable and uncheck the box for fast start up.

Shutdown and then switch back on and you'll see the keys as they were in Win 7.

To revert, redo the bcdedit command again changing legacy for standard and re-check the fast startup box.

You can use the F2 key to boot into the Bios (Setup) to change the boot order so that it permanently reads the DVD and USB drives before the HDD so that you can boot up with either of those disks should you have problems in the future.

You may have different options with an EUFI boot as I don't have an EUFI machine to compare with.

You can create the latest version of Win 10 which includes the Autumn update by using the Media Creation Tool (MCT).

Download that lower down the page at https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10 and use the second option for installing on another PC and use the ISO option - clicking on Save on the download.

This is a 3.37GB download.

You can use Windows USB/DVD Burner Tool to create bootable media of your choice.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool

It would be prudent to create external full system images as you add to your files.

There's a couple of ways that you can do this, All Control Panel Items - File history and click on System image and backup in the bottom left corner or Control Panel - System and Security/backup and restore (Windows 7).

Insert/plug in the external media then click on Create a system image.

You'll also see the option to create a System Repair disk.

Tapping F8 as you switch on or booting up with the system repair disk will lead you to restoring with your system image.

BTW - I don't mind the Win 10 default start menu as it is, although I don't know what it will look like after the Autumn update - still haven't managed to update to that

[Xas1953NC]

Hello Boggin, The disc I used came with the computer and I could only do a factory recovery. I was contemplating using the easeUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro software I bought recently which enabled the claiming back of all the files from a Raw State 2 TB external HDD but it appears that would not work as the lost data is on the system HDD but they do sell software that would be feasible but it cost $99 or so.

[Boggin]

A system image is a hell of a lot cheaper.

A factory reset formats the HDD and overwrites so the likes of Recuva probably wouldn't have worked either.

[Xas1953NC]

How true! I recently bought the easeUS backup software to use but have been busy installing stuff on the desktop from the laptop and did not think that an image file would have been due as I had not finished the task. Both machines are sitting on the dining room temporarily ( have got used to the wife's nagging) and aim to place the desktop upstairs where I am lucky enough to have my own computer/ den/junk room. It is so full that to get to the back of the desktop I would have to move some large plastic storage containers from the room to access it hence using the table. I had the laptop bought for my 80th birthday last December when my then Acer desktop died and I had installed some paid software on the laptop and was transferring some of the said software to the latest desktop as the laptop is not now the main machine.