Windows 10 OS Broken/Corrupted after BIOS Update - Unable to repair/reinstall windows

[rbrownlie91]

Wondering if anyone might be able to help - I have updated my ASUS X470-PLUS TUF Gaming to the latest BIOS version (v6024 from v5216) - after successfully booting into Windows for the first time after the update, I noticed MSI Afterburner hadn't kicked in with my desired profile (MSI RTX 2070 SUPER Gaming X is my GPU) and was unable to select any profiles or change any options in Afterburner, I restarted my machine, but upon reboot, I got a message stating that Windows needed to be repaired, I tried rebooting several times and it would appear it failed to boot each time because a different key file or driver was missing each time. My PC was running Windows 10 21H1.

Fortunately I have a basic laptop (also W10, 21H1) that I use from time to time, and decided to create the Windows 10 installation media creation tool using it, USB was made bootable, time to try the reinstall/repair. Upon plugging in the USB stick to my PC and going to boot menu to select it, I got the familiar black screen with 4 blue windows, before it displayed what I could only describe as a pattern of orange and white lines, with no options to proceed visible.

I decided to try again and this time downloaded the ISO so I could use rufus to create the bootable USB, that went smoothly, but once again I was unable to proceed, though this time, it was a blank blue screen that I received, I tried a couple more times, and even redid the bootable USB, but I'm unable to proceed with reinstalling or repairing Windows.

As for why I upgraded after sitting on such an old version of the BIOS that worked fine? I got a very lightly used 5800X from a friend (for a very reasonable price) after he decided to upgrade to a 5950X, and I knew I'd need to update BIOS version to get support of the 5000 series.

Any help that folks can give would be appreciated

 

[SpyderTracks]

Wondering if anyone might be able to help - I have updated my ASUS X470-PLUS TUF Gaming to the latest BIOS version (v6024 from v5216) - after successfully booting into Windows for the first time after the update, I noticed MSI Afterburner hadn't kicked in with my desired profile (MSI RTX 2070 SUPER Gaming X is my GPU) and was unable to select any profiles or change any options in Afterburner, I restarted my machine, but upon reboot, I got a message stating that Windows needed to be repaired, I tried rebooting several times and it would appear it failed to boot each time because a different key file or driver was missing each time. My PC was running Windows 10 21H1.

Fortunately I have a basic laptop (also W10, 21H1) that I use from time to time, and decided to create the Windows 10 installation media creation tool using it, USB was made bootable, time to try the reinstall/repair. Upon plugging in the USB stick to my PC and going to boot menu to select it, I got the familiar black screen with 4 blue windows, before it displayed what I could only describe as a pattern of orange and white lines, with no options to proceed visible.

I decided to try again and this time downloaded the ISO so I could use rufus to create the bootable USB, that went smoothly, but once again I was unable to proceed, though this time, it was a blank blue screen that I received, I tried a couple more times, and even redid the bootable USB, but I'm unable to proceed with reinstalling or repairing Windows.

As for why I upgraded after sitting on such an old version of the BIOS that worked fine? I got a very lightly used 5800X from a friend (for a very reasonable price) after he decided to upgrade to a 5950X, and I knew I'd need to update BIOS version to get support of the 5000 series.

Any help that folks can give would be appreciated

Hiya, is this a pcspecialist system? Could you post your full specs from the order page?

 

[rbrownlie91]

Hiya, is this a pcspecialist system? Could you post your full specs from the order page?

Yes, it is originally a PC Specialist System, Current Specs below

Case - CoolerMaster MasterCase H500 Gaming Case / CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 3600 / Motherboard - ASUS TUF X470-PLUS Gaming / RAM - 32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz / GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 2070 Super 8 GB Gaming X / Storage - 1TB Samsung 970 EVO PLUS M.2 NVMe, 500GB Seagate BARRACUDA 2.5" SATA SSD, 10TB Toshiba SATA HDD, 2TB Seagate BARRACUDA SATA HDD / PSU - Corsair 650W TXm / Cooling - Corsair H100x

Originally built as below

Case COOLERMASTER MASTERCASE H500 GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU) AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard ASUS® TUF X470-PLUS GAMING (DDR4, 6Gb/s, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM) 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
1st Storage Drive 500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 2.5" SSD, (upto 560MB/sR | 535MB/sW)
2nd Storage Drive 8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 5400RPM, 256MB CACHE
3rd Storage Drive 2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive 1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply CORSAIR 650W TXm SERIESTM SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling Corsair H100x Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options 2 PORT (2 x TYPE A) USB 3.0 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Operating System NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser Google ChromeTM
Warranty 3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

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EDIT - Worth noting that I have tried to flash the BIOS to older versions (in case the BIOS update worked but might be iffy), but I am prevented from doing so.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Yes, it is originally a PC Specialist System, Current Specs below

Case - CoolerMaster MasterCase H500 Gaming Case / CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 3600 / Motherboard - ASUS TUF X470-PLUS Gaming / RAM - 32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz / GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 2070 Super 8 GB Gaming X / Storage - 1TB Samsung 970 EVO PLUS M.2 NVMe, 500GB Seagate BARRACUDA 2.5" SATA SSD, 10TB Toshiba SATA HDD, 2TB Seagate BARRACUDA SATA HDD / PSU - Corsair 650W TXm / Cooling - Corsair H100x

Originally built as below

Case COOLERMASTER MASTERCASE H500 GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU) AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard ASUS® TUF X470-PLUS GAMING (DDR4, 6Gb/s, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM) 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
1st Storage Drive 500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 2.5" SSD, (upto 560MB/sR | 535MB/sW)
2nd Storage Drive 8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 5400RPM, 256MB CACHE
3rd Storage Drive 2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive 1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply CORSAIR 650W TXm SERIESTM SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling Corsair H100x Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options 2 PORT (2 x TYPE A) USB 3.0 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Operating System NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser Google ChromeTM
Warranty 3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

-----

EDIT - Worth noting that I have tried to flash the BIOS to older versions, but I am prevented from doing so.

Firstly, I wouldn't use Rufus to create bootable windows 10 drive, just use the microsoft tool:

Download Windows 10

What paste did you use on the CPU?

 

[rbrownlie91]

Firstly, I wouldn't use Rufus to create bootable windows 10 drive, just use the microsoft tool:

Download Windows 10

What paste did you use on the CPU?

I've never removed cooler on CPU since I got it, and I have yet to install the new CPU.

I used the Microsoft tool to begin with, it didn't work, as per my original post:

Upon plugging in the USB stick to my PC and going to boot menu to select it, I got the familiar black screen with 4 blue windows, before it displayed what I could only describe as a pattern of orange and white lines, with no options to proceed visible.

That's when I tried simply downloading the ISO to the hard drive of my laptop and using Rufus to make the USB bootable, but got the blank blue screen instead

 

[SpyderTracks]

I've never removed cooler on CPU since I got it, and I have yet to install the new CPU.

I used the Microsoft tool to begin with, it didn't work, as per my original post:



That's when I tried simply downloading the ISO to the hard drive of my laptop and using Rufus to make the USB bootable, but got the blank blue screen instead

And to confirm, are you deleting all OS drive partitions before installing windows?

 

[rbrownlie91]

And to confirm, are you deleting all OS drive partitions before installing windows?

I can't get anywhere near beginning to remove all partitions, I have a bootable USB but I'm completely unable to even begin trying a reinstall or repair.

It's either orange and white stripes or blank blue screen after a black screen with a blue Windows Logo

I have yet to try removing the boot drive, yet to try the new CPU or resetting CMOS (no idea if any of these would work, but figure worth a shot) and probably won't until Monday as I'm out of town from tomorrow until then

 

[Martinr36]

Follow these instructions to perform a clean install

Download a new copy of Windows using the Media Creation Tool to an 8GB (min) USB.
Boot that USB and choose a Custom Install.
Delete all UEFI partitions on the system drive (EFI System, Recovery, MSR Reserved, Primary).
Select the unallocated space that results and click the Next button. The installer will create the correct partitions and install Windows.
Run Windows Update repeatedly, even across reboots, until no more updates are found.
You may need/want to download and install the latest graphics driver from the Nvidia/AMD website (they change so regularly the latest version isn't always in the Windows libraries).

This is also worth a watch

 

[rbrownlie91]

Follow these instructions to perform a clean install

Download a new copy of Windows using the Media Creation Tool to an 8GB (min) USB.
Boot that USB and choose a Custom Install.
Delete all UEFI partitions on the system drive (EFI System, Recovery, MSR Reserved, Primary).
Select the unallocated space that results and click the Next button. The installer will create the correct partitions and install Windows.
Run Windows Update repeatedly, even across reboots, until no more updates are found.
You may need/want to download and install the latest graphics driver from the Nvidia/AMD website (they change so regularly the latest version isn't always in the Windows libraries).

This is also worth a watch

Thanks for this, but as stated in previous posts, I'm unable to even get to the point where a clean install can be done, I have bootable USB but I am not able to even get any Windows installation screens or prompts.

I'm starting to think I need to remove my nvme drive, stick it an external enclosure, format it via my laptop and then put it back in my machine.

Either that or I've bricked my MoBo

 

[David689]

When you say you "going to the boot menu" did you mean in the BIOS or in Windows? I apologise if you already know this but just making sure that you know you can enter the BIOS and alter the boot menu without getting as far as Windows.

 

[rbrownlie91]

When you say you "going to the boot menu" did you mean in the BIOS or in Windows? I apologise if you already know this but just making sure that you know you can enter the BIOS and alter the boot menu without getting as far as Windows.

Yes, Windows doesn't boot, so I'm entering BIOS and selecting the bootable USB from the boot menu in there, though like I said, no luck in getting to a point where I can even begin selecting my options for W10 install

 

[B4zookaw]

I would try clearing the CMOS. If I understood your first post in the thread, you were able to boot into windows after you flashed the BIOS. This would indicate to me that you didn't brick the MB after flashing. Without the Windows Install USB, does the PC post at all? Any error beeps?

 

[B4zookaw]

Random thought, what size is the USB stick you installed the windows install to?

 

[rbrownlie91]

I would try clearing the CMOS. If I understood your first post in the thread, you were able to boot into windows after you flashed the BIOS. This would indicate to me that you didn't brick the MB after flashing. Without the Windows Install USB, does the PC post at all? Any error beeps?

My PC appears to be able to POST, no beep codes, it tries to boot to Windows, but it tells me it needs to repair the installation of Windows

Random thought, what size is the USB stick you installed the windows install to?

32 GB, got a 2GB stick but no other USB drives

 

[B4zookaw]

IS Legacy Boot enabled in BIOS?

 

[rbrownlie91]

IS Legacy Boot enabled in BIOS?

Not sure, probably not as I've never really tinkered with bios before today. It's also 1230am and I'm tired and frustrated so I'm done for now

 

[B4zookaw]

Not sure, probably not as I've never really tinkered with bios before today. It's also 1230am and I'm tired and frustrated so I'm done for now

Understandable! I'm wondering if after the bios update legacy usb was disabled which might prevent the install media working.

 

[Scott]

I would start by making sure you have used the media creation tool to make the USB drive. Next I would clear the CMOS.

If that doesn't work, it's time to start unplugging things. I would remove everything that isn't absolutely necessary (all USB devices etc other than keyboard & mouse). Disconnect everything, including any internal drives that aren't the primary.

 

[rbrownlie91]

Managed to grab an external enclosure from Sabrent for an NVMe SSD off Amazon, so thinking once I'm back home I'll look into transferring important data to an external drive and then formatting the SSD from my laptop.

Friend of mine from work suggested trying a Ubuntu install first before reformatting again and then loading Windows, don't see any harm in trying that.

Will definitely follow your advice @Scott and clear CMOS and unplug all other drives before I attempt any reinstalls.

 

[rbrownlie91]

PC now back up and running, but was was completely unable to reinstall either Windows or Linux on the old Motherboard even after clearing CMOS and unplugging all devices apart from main SSD, seems like it may have been a failed BIOS update as was unable to flash to my previous (known good) BIOS version or indeed any other versions.

Ended up buying a refurbed MSI B550 Motherboard and proceeded to rebuild my PC from scratch, which was an interesting and rather fun experience, also gave me an appreciation for the staff at PC Specialist who built my PC originally, everything was cable managed perfectly in the original build, my cable management can best be described as "below average"

Thank you to everyone who offered suggestions, I'm sorry if I came across short or tetchy in previous posts.