[SOLVED] Added new ram that wouldn’t boot with XMP enabled, now it won’t boot at all

[Fwun]

Ryzen 7 5800x
RTX 2060
X470 MSI GAMING PLUS MAX
4x16g Corsair vengeance Pro 3200mhz

I had just bought another 2 sticks of ram to upgrade my pc to 64 gigs. I noticed that my PC would boot fine until I enabled XMP, then my PC would only make it to a black screen and stay there.

Im pretty new to this stuff, but I found online that I might need to clear my CMOS. My motherboard has a clear CMOS button that I used (according to the manual.) Now my pc automatically goes into bios when I turn it on, and returns to the bios when I exit the bios.

I have a windows USB that I tried to do a startup recovery from, but it couldn’t for some reason.

Like I said I’m pretty new, so if anyone has any advice or can point me in the right direction I would be grateful.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

remove the new set of RAM.
keep only the original known functioning set in DIMM slots A_2 & B_2.
enter BIOS and Load Optimized Defaults.

exit and see if it will boot normally again.
if so; return the new set.

if for some reason you actually need 32GB of RAM,
purchase an actual 32GB set.
and do not mix & match packaged sets even if they are the exact same make & model.

 

[Fwun]

remove the new set of RAM.
keep only the original known functioning set in DIMM slots A_2 & B_2.
enter BIOS and Load Optimized Defaults.

exit and see if it will boot normally again.
if so; return the new set.

if for some reason you actually need 32GB of RAM,
purchase an actual 32GB set.
and do not mix & match packaged sets even if they are the exact same make & model.

It still won’t boot/automatically opens bios with the old RAM. I feel like it has to do with my CMOS clear because I could still boot to windows before that.

before I cleared my CMOS, I tested each set of RAM sticks on their own so I know they work.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

It still won’t boot/automatically opens bios with the old RAM.

this is after you entered the BIOS and chose to "Load Optimized Defaults"?

 

[Fwun]

Yes, when I exit the bios it just automatically returns to the bios without me hitting the delete key. Is it possible I somehow messed up the CMOS clear?

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

Is it possible I somehow messed up the CMOS clear?

i don't see how you could.
all this does is reset BIOS settings to factory defaults.
maybe if you were fiddling with power buttons as it was resetting but i doubt that would happen.

try a hard shutdown and power dispersal.
with the system turned off,
switch the power supply on/off switch to "off" position,
hold down the case power button for a few seconds.

power back on and spam the F8 key the second you do.
see if you can get into the Boot Manager this way.

 

[Fwun]

i don't see how you could.
all this does is reset BIOS settings to factory defaults.
maybe if you were fiddling with power buttons as it was resetting but i doubt that would happen.

try a hard shutdown and power dispersal.
with the system turned off,
switch the power supply on/off switch to "off" position,
hold down the case power button for a few seconds.

power back on and spam the F8 key the second you do.
see if you can get into the Boot Manager this way.

Alright I think I’m starting to see the problem. The only option I have in boot manager is Enter Setup. I have my OS on an m.2, but I haven’t physically touched it since I installed it a year ago. The m.2 still shows up in bios

why wouldn’t my boot device be showing? When I put in my windows USB it gives me the option to boot to that.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

i've seen it happen many times with every iteration of Windows since 95.
Windows Boot Manager or other data on other system partitions become corrupted and it leads to this type of hassle.
usually it is only corrected, in my experience anyway, by performing a fresh install of the OS.

but getting drives detected can sometimes also be an issue.
i would try disconnecting all drives but the main OS drive.
then try going through:

How To - Windows 10 clean install tutorial

If you are looking for the Windows 11 Clean install tutorial, you can find that here: Windows 11 Clean install tutorial (Click here) Otherwise, welcome to the Windows 10 Clean install tutorial This tutorial is intended to help you, step by step, to perform a clean install of Windows...

forums.tomshardware.com

if your fresh install goes through and is booting;
connect any other drives and then delete all other system partitions that may still be located on those other drives.
this will usually lead to issues later if there are old system partitions left on those other devices.

 

[Fwun]

Thank you for your help! I’m back in windows. I really appreciate it, and now I feel more confident dealing with these issues in the future. Great name by the way