[SOLVED] Cannot boot Win 10 USB or DVD

[EDC3]

I have a Dell Inspiron i5-3565 that will NOT boot from Win 10 Install/Repair DVD OR external USB. I have tried everything, to no avail.

System specs:

• CPU: AMD A6-9200 RADEON R4
• OS: Windows 10 Home x64, version 1909 (November 2019 Update) Build 18363.1440
• RAM: Micron 4GB DDR4 [DDR4-2401]
• BIOS: ver. 1.10.1 released 14 FEB 2019 (latest available)
• HDD: TOSHIBA MQ01ABF050 500GB 5400rpm 2.5” SATA-600

The internal 500GB Toshiba HDD is failing (Reallocated Sectors Count > 0, Current pending sector count > 0) as reported by CrystalDiskInfo and Topola’s SIW (Sys Info for Windows). Win 10 itself never warned that the HDD was failing (?).

I am replacing it with a Samsung 870 EVO 500GB SSD. But in order to do so, I need to be able to boot from the Win 10 Install/Repair media, either USB or DVD. The laptop will start to boot the USB or DVD, then abort and revert to the internal HDD. There are no error messages.

I used the Win 10 Media Creation Tool (latest 21H1) to create the Install/Repair media three ways:

• on a SanDisk Cruzer 16GB USB 2.0
• on a Crucial 32GB SSD mounted in an external Inatek USB 3.0 enclosure
• burned the ISO file to a DVD (it fit on a standard DVD with only 144MB left over!).

The USB devices were properly formatted as FAT32 by the Win Media Creation Tool.
All three boot properly on both my Dell Latitude E7480 laptop and on my Dell Optiplex 7010 desktop.

The laptop’s BIOS is the latest available (ver. 1.10.1 released 14 FEB 2019) – I even re-flashed it to make sure (after the initial USB/DVD boot failures).

I have set the Boot settings in the BIOS setup numerous different ways, and none work.

• Fast Boot Enabled and Disabled
• Secure Boot Enabled and Disabled
• Boot List Option both UEFI and Legacy
• Chosen the Boot device options from both the UEFI Options list and the Legacy Options list

In every case, the system starts to boot from the chosen media (USB or DVD), but then video “artifacts” appear on the screen (streaks), the 4-blue-squares Windows logo appears, then the screen goes black and the boot reverts back to the Windows boot manager on the internal HDD. (When I boot those media on my other machines, I get the video streaks and the 4-square Windows logo, then the machine boots properly from the chosen media.)

I have run full Diagnostics (including extended memory tests) – all passed.

I have run the gamut of disk analysis/repair tools – all passed.
% chkdsk c: /r (ran on reboot)
% DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
% sfc /scannow
(I know it’s risky running those on a failing drive, but I was desperate.)

Any ideas or suggestions?

 

[InvalidError]

I would start with swapping out the HDD and SSD. My guess is it could be an UEFI bug causing it to get confused between bootable devices. Removing the drive that has an existing bootable partition on it will hopefully prevent that.

Worst case, you may need to get the initial install image on the SSD using a different PC (disconnect all non-essential hardware besides the SSD and install source) and hope the install survives transplantation into the laptop without issues.

 

[TerryLaze]

The internal 500GB Toshiba HDD is failing (Reallocated Sectors Count > 0, Current pending sector count > 0) as reported by CrystalDiskInfo and Topola’s SIW (Sys Info for Windows). Win 10 itself never warned that the HDD was failing (?).

Why do you think that that means a failing drive?!
All disks have an allotted amount of sectors that are there just to cover bad sectors that might come up.
having more than 0 bad sectors does not turn your drive into a failing one.

About your issue, it could also be that your laptop needs some specific driver to boot which is not included in the normal boot media, you could download all available drivers for the system and slipstream them into the boot media.

How To Slipstream Drivers And Updates In A Custom Windows ISO | PCsteps.com

Do you want to create an unattended setup? Use NTLite to slipstream your updates and drivers on a custom Windows ISO.

www.pcsteps.com

 

[InvalidError]

Why do you think that that means a failing drive?!
All disks have an allotted amount of sectors that are there just to cover bad sectors that might come up.
having more than 0 bad sectors does not turn your drive into a failing one.

Blackblaze wrote a report 2-3 years ago about which of the SMART values is the most reliable failure predictor and their conclusion was that reallocated sector count ticking up is by far the most reliable indicator.

It makes logical sense since sectors go bad when they are no longer able to reliably store information and the main reason sectors go bad over time is because material is getting scraped off by the heads from occasional contact caused by internal and external vibrations. Once the surface and head have been sufficiently worn down, the bad sector count and the rate at which they appear goes up until the drive is no longer usable.

In my own experience, the escalation from first noticing performance degradation and total drive failure can be as short as a few hours - I had a 1TB WD Blue fail on me last year, only had time to save something like 50GB worth of stuff. Most of the stuff that was lost was either unimportant or a backup copy.

 

[TerryLaze]

Blackblaze wrote a report 2-3 years ago about which of the SMART values is the most reliable failure predictor and their conclusion was that reallocated sector count ticking up is by far the most reliable indicator.

Ticking up yes, but that's not what he said, he just says more than 0 and that's no indicator at all.

 

[InvalidError]

Ticking up yes, but that's not what he said, he just says more than 0 and that's no indicator at all.

"Pending sector count > 0"
If the reallocated sector count isn't ticking up yet, it is about to.