[SOLVED] Computer Won't Boot

[James.Williams7261]

Hi, I have an issue that's a little frustrating and something I haven't dealt with before. My computer, which has been working great since 2016, failed to boot one day. I reseated all the ram, no luck, and then I reseated the M2 drive and it booted. It did fine for a while going to sleep and waking up, then we ended up shutting it off again and the problem came back. I reseated the drive it booted, power failure causing the computer to go off and problem came back. This time though, reseating isn't working. I even tried putting in a new M2 drive and it failed.

When it fails it goes through the start up lights on the vga, ram, cpu, and hangs at boot device. It'll typically flash up a 99, A2, some random numbers, back to a 99, and then hang on a 55 before turning off.

The components in use right now are a Z170 Deluxe Motherboard and a Samsung M2 Drive. I also Have a normal drive for photo storage.

Asus says 55 means memory, but it jumps through the Ram start up no problem. The red LED is clearly on the boot device when it hangs up. Is there a reason reseating the M2 drive would somehow cure a Ram issue since that's the only thing that made it work again?

I've also read something about someone having an issue with the computer not putting the M2 into the boot priority. I've seen how it fails when it has nothing there and it fails much faster than when the drive is in, so I doubt this is the issue. Just wanted to ask in case it could be related.

Also, I don't think this is the CPU getting hot as others had an issue with. Reseating the M2 drive shouldn't have fixed a heat issue.

 

[punkncat]

Please list complete system specs including power supply.

Do you have another computer available and a spare USB that you could put an installer on?

I would (first) try Windows OS installer and see if the PC will see and begin the boot/install process from it. A Linux Live installer would be a good secondary way to check this.

If the installer comes up, if you go to the advanced install options, it should show you all of the drives the system is seeing as available to install on.

Aside from that aspect, if you can boot it to BIOS you should also be able to see drives (and set boot order) there.
It is within possibility that something has happened to the mobo, perhaps even the CPU. Optional items to try would be to utilize a "regular" SSD or HDD to see if the system will see that as an available install location.

If the issue persists would breadboard the system, check all connections, check the CPU socket, cooler, and try to boot system in it's most base form and see if you get splash/BIOS and then add components back until it won't.

I have had a system which would "remove" the M.2 from the boot order for some unknown reason. I went into BIOS and set it as the only boot option and it helped with that system. YMMV

 

[James.Williams7261]

Build (Major Components, please let me know if something else is needed):
Motherboard: Z170-Deluxe ATX w/Wi-fi 802.11 AC, USB 3.1, 3 PCIe x16, 4 PCIe x1, 6 SATA3, 1 Ultra M.2 & Hyper M.2 x4 Mini Card
CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.00GHZ 8MB Intel Smart Cache LGA1151 (Skylake)
RAM: 32GB (8GBx4) DDR4/2800MHz Dual Channel Memory
GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti Hybrid 6GB GDDR5 PCIe 3.0 x16 (Maxwell)
Power Supply: 1,000 Watts - Corsair RMi Series RM1000i 80 Plus Gold
HD_M2SATA: 512GB Samsung 950 Pro Series PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD - 2500 MB/s
HDD: 2TB (2TBx1) SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 64MB Cache 7200 RPM HDD (Single Drive)

I've since removed the sound card (didn't use it) and USB expansion I had attached. My computer was recently throwing issues with the voltage demand from a mouse connected to it and what it could supply. I don't think this was the issue because it booted multiple times with that issue and I removed it from the build.

When you say installer, would a usb I made a windows backup on work? I've never done that initial step.

I do have an external NVMe drive that I got so I could duplicate my current drive onto a larger M2 drive. Could I try booting using that as the connection or would I need to get into settings to put it onto the boot priority?

 

[punkncat]

The comment you make about the "computer recently throwing issues with the voltage demand from a mouse connected to it and what it could supply"

Can you please expound on that a bit? A mouse takes nearly nothing to run. I am not familar with such error. What did it show and how?

 

[James.Williams7261]

That's why I figured it was damaged. Basically it was a windows notification saying a device connected to a usb is trying to draw more power than the port can supply. I read its probably not a power surge issue like the notification was titled, but rather a settings issue. Given my current problems I didn't pursue this yet and just removed it.

After typing this... i did have to reload windows after I corrupted a previous version while doing a restore. This issue turned up after that (not sure if it was immediate, we moved just about that time), and now my computer is having issues booting from a power off config, but waking up just fine if you only select sleep. Could something in the settings be messed up?

 

[punkncat]

Have you attempted to do a clean install with a current an up to date installer?

IE, go to Microsoft website and download the newest day 1 version of the W10 USB installer. I would presume you will need to do this from another PC, so be sure to select that option for the installer, if so. IIRC you need an 8GB USB and the installer pretty much takes care of the rest.

On the machine this is going to be on, disconnect every drive except the one you are planning for OS to be on. As it loads in it will give you an option for advanced options, pick that. It will show you the current partition structure of that drive. Delete all of them until it says unallocated space and then hit next. The installer will create the partitions it needs and install the up to date OS.
It is advisable to be sure that this computer is showing/tied to your Microsoft account. Typically the key will also be tied to the hardware ID.

 

[James.Williams7261]

I haven't, I guess I was worried about losing data but I could do the clean install on my new drive.

Real fast, is there any significance to the 55 code it hangs on on boot device?

 

[punkncat]

Impossible to say. If it were straight forward it would be in relation specifically to an issue with RAM (or CPU as memory controller resides there). It might be worthwhile to remove the CMOS battery/reset such that everything goes back to stock settings for the mobo.

If you happen to have available other RAM or know someone that could load you a stick it could be worthwhile to check that way. The comment you make about voltage honestly has me wondering about your PSU, not that the one you have is a bad make, but perhaps damaged? This could also be a root motherboard issue and if it is truly the problem it could explain many of the errors.

In a case like this it's helpful if you happen to have other components you can use to test with an eliminate as part of the problem. If you happen to have a good PC shop in your area it might be worth checking with them on a troubleshoot rather than blindly replacing parts without knowing why.