Computer taking too long to boot before loading windows

[zenonithus]

Hey guys,

I've had this problem for a while, basically when I startup or reboot the computer it takes around 5-10 minutes just to get to the windows loading screen. It seems like everything shows up really slow starting with the mobo splashscreen which just hangs there for ages. once it gets to the windows loading screen it resumes normal speed and everything seems fine from there.

There are times when it will boot normaly when doing a software restart, but most of the time it does the slow thing.

This is definately a hardware problem as everything runs fine going into windows. My question is does this sound like a failing psu? or is it something faulty in the mobo? though would the mobo still be working if it had a fault etc.

any help would be appreciated

my computer specs:

mobo: asus a8n32-sli deluxe socket 939

cpu: AMD Athlon 64 fx-60 dual core 2.60ghz

ram: 4 gig ddr (I think its ddr1)

psu: OCZ-GXS700 100-240 vac 10-5a 50 - 60hz

 

[WR2]

You didn't mention which version of windows you're using.

It actually sounds like a software problem.
How long does it take to boot up in Windows Safe Mode? Start the computer in safe mode

 

[shovenose]

hi!
well, first of all, what psu model.
2nd, socket 989 doesnt exist.i assume you mean 939. and yes it uses ddr (aka ddr1).
go into the mobo's bios and set it to show the diagnostics/post screen, so you see a bunch of white text and numbers instead of staring at the ASUS logo. see what it says. also, it may be a low / dead cmos battery, so its having to redetect all the hard drives and such

 

[dokk2]

If I may,, If it was the Cmos battery he would have to reset everything each boot time, it is definitely and most probably [??] a software problem, there is no mention of a BSOD..
2 Things come to mind from a similar experience,, 1,,clean up the registry,
2,defrag the primary partition/hdd....
AND if you feel up to it REINSTALL right over existing setup, may be some windoze files are slightly corrupt....

 

[icehawk940]

Check all sata connections i had a problem where my hard drive sata cable was bad and causing a huge delay in my windows load up.

 

[ko888]

It seems like everything shows up really slow starting with the mobo splashscreen which just hangs there for ages.

This is an indication that it is not a software problem because Windows has not started loading yet. The motherboard is still undergoing its POST (Power On Self Test).

I tend to agree with icehawk940. I would suspect a possible failing HDD or a faulty SATA cable connection since the problem appears to happen only during a cold boot.

Try a different SATA cable first. Use a SATA cable that has a locking clip on each end since this will eliminate a loose SATA cable as being the problem.

 

[truromeo4juliet]

I'm coming out of my Posting Retirement to advise you to unplug all your peripherals (printer, scanner, fax, camera, HUBs, etc)... Turn your computer on and see how it goes. I've seen this issue dozens of times, where a peripheral goes bad, or has something plugged into it that has gone bad. If your PC boots fine without anything plugged into the exterior, start plugging things in one by one and check to see which device is the culprit, then leave it unplugged until it's needed, or replace the device.

 

[zenonithus]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the replys. Yeah this definately isn't a software problem as once it gets to the windows loading bar everything seems fine.

Ahh I was thinking the csmos battery, but thats a good point about it reseting on every reboot.

shovenose: yep, sorry i meant socket 939 Getting into the bios alone is extremely slow and I havent managed to do that yet, though I'll try to check the diagnostics if I can get into it.

ok so from what I gather this could be hdd or sata cable related, so the next thing to try is replace the sata cable for the main drive and possibly defragment the main drive. Are there any bios settings I should be making sure of also in regards to sata?

part of me still thinks its psu related (model info updated) my brother has the same psu and it no longer works. could this be a sign of mine failing also? or if it did have something wrong with it would it just not work at all? please let me know what you guys think.

once again really appreciate the help

 

[zenonithus]

truromeo4juliet: cheers, the only exterior hardware plugged in is my FORMAC disk mini hdd via firewire. I thought this might be a case also, though I unplugged and restart and the problem still persists

 

[WR2]

A problem with the PSU should continue to cause problems at all times, especially when you're running windows programs under a fairly heavy load - like gaming.

 

[zenonithus]

ok folks, still having this problem

like I said, everything runs nicely once windows is up and running, so I'm baffled.

if the psu or HDD were failing wouldn't there be some sort of indication to this once inside windows?

I tried a new sata cable but that doesnt seem to change anything. I might try swaping my HD for another as it's too small for windows vista.

does anyone think updating the bios would help? never done this before.

 

[ko888]

When you're watching the Power On Self Test do you see it pause when it is scanning each SATA port?

In the CMOS Setup have you tried disabling the SATA ports that aren't being used? I remember a few years back when I had a motherboard with this same chipset and running into the same problem. Disabling the SATA ports that didn't have a SATA device attached to it sped up the boot process.

If you're not running with the latest BIOS version flashing it to the latest version might solve your problem.

 

[zenonithus]

think I might have fixed this.

I did a schedualed scan on c, fixing bad sectors etc. so far the computer boots at fast speed, no hangups.. touchwood

 

[joyandah]

think I might have fixed this.

I did a schedualed scan on c, fixing bad sectors etc. so far the computer boots at fast speed, no hangups.. touchwood

How did you do the "schedualed scan on C"?? cuz i have the same problem!! please help!! :-(((

 

[zenonithus]

right click properties on c > tools > error checking

should start the scan when you restart.

 

[baciotenero]

having same issue with x2 phenon 545 on asus mobo m4a78. cmos battery is 3+ V remaining. swapped 3 sata cables. bad sector shouldn't be issue as it's new drive reimaged from backup of win7 x64 ultimate.

any idea? just blinking cursor.....

 

[zenonithus]

It was actually my floppy drive set as 1st boot device slowing down startup. check this in bios.

 

[baciotenero]

hard drive as primary 1st boot. still not solved yet.

 

[airdeano]

once windows is loaded and running for a minute or two - right click on the taskbar, left click task manager, at the bottom of the window, it'll say how many proceeses are running, how much memory is used and cpu load.
if windows hangs after the windows splash screen, its loading drivers, start-up programs and anti-virus and what all is installed (including malware, fluff appz, and idle crap).
when the system was built and the OS was a fresh install, were you having the same issues?

airdeano

 

[baciotenero]

once windows is loaded and running for a minute or two - right click on the taskbar, left click task manager, at the bottom of the window, it'll say how many proceeses are running, how much memory is used and cpu load.
if windows hangs after the windows splash screen, its loading drivers, start-up programs and anti-virus and what all is installed (including malware, fluff appz, and idle crap).
when the system was built and the OS was a fresh install, were you having the same issues?

airdeano

it tends to have this issue before i sent in HDD for RMA but back then it was still able to load to windows. now with new hdd i tried to restore images to it or start new win7 installation it isnt detected by them hence no joy to recover. so i've put it in NAS and use it as XFS on GPT, no issue at all. it is such a waste that i recently replaced gfx in desktop.

tested with mbr, pre-partitioned and ntfs format with hdd dock. not detected too. cmos battery checked. now down to psu or mobo or sata interface.

 

[airdeano]

in the BIOS, is the protocol is IDE, AHCI, or RAID. if it is IDE (default on older boards) this can be the issue as IDE is maxed out at 100mb as AHCI (SATA) is drive specific SATA I 1.5mb, SATA II 3.0mb. SATA III 6.0mb. and since the "BIOS settings" have changed...

airdeano

 

[baciotenero]

i set ide and ahci alternatively on all 5 available sata port and even swapped cables too

 

[davidpf100]

Hey guys,JustThanks for the replys. Yeah this definately isn't a software problem as once it gets to the windows loading bar everything seems fine.

Ahh I was thinking the csmos battery, but thats a good point about it reseting on every reboot.

shovenose: yep, sorry i meant socket 939 Getting into the bios alone is extremely slow and I havent managed to do that yet, though I'll try to check the diagnostics if I can get into it.

ok so from what I gather this could be hdd or sata cable related, so the next thing to try is replace the sata cable for the main drive and possibly defragment the main drive. Are there any bios settings I should be making sure of also in regards to sata?

part of me still thinks its psu related (model info updated) my brother has the same psu and it no longer works. could this be a sign of mine failing also? or if it did have something wrong with it would it just not work at all? please let me know what you guys think.

once again really appreciate the help

I am having the same problem with my windowsxp computer,after the electric went out my computer stays on that black boot up screen for exactly 7 minutes and then it starts to boot into windows and everything loads up fast.I have tried everything all these other guys have been telling you to do ,and nothing worked.I think you need to make a copy of your boot up options from a boot disk and copy it to your windows directory.sounds like you have a corrupt boot up file.I have done this once before and fixed the problem.Now I have a battery backup for my computer so when the electric goes out my comp. stays running for 10 minutes allowing me to safely shut it down before the battery dies

 

[davidpf100]

Have you tried doing the above last thing.This should work

 

[drdjworks]

I had the same problem and I fixed it by reinserting RAM.