Question Dell Pre-Boot Performance Check ?

[HarmfulDesign]

Hello everyone! This is my very first post! I own a Dell Inspiron 3505 running Windows 10 Home. I bought it brand new about 1.5 years ago and have never had any problems with it. However, starting about a month ago, the Dell Pre-Boot Performance Check will occasionally run a hardware scan upon powering up.

My PC always passes this check without any issues (code 4400 20). I even ran a full scan manually and it didn't find any problems. They always finish immediately, but the loud beep is jarring and has startled me a few times. Can anyone tell me why these scans are happening at seemingly rnadom times? Also, how can I stop them? Thanks in advance.

 

[hedwar2011]

Hello everyone! This is my very first post! I own a Dell Inspiron 3505 running Windows 10 Home. I bought it brand new about 1.5 years ago and have never had any problems with it. However, starting about a month ago, the Dell Pre-Boot Performance Check will occasionally run a hardware scan upon powering up. My PC always passes this check without any issues (code 4400 20). I even ran a full scan manually and it didn't find any problems. They always finish immediately, but the loud beep is jarring and has startled me a few times. Can anyone tell me why these scans are happening at seemingly rnadom times? Also, how can I stop them? Thanks in advance.

Those scans are designed to prevent damage from your PC so you don't want them to stop. They typically are triggered by a system event like a hard shutdown (power outtage, etc.) or something that could potentially damage your hardware and it initiates the scan as a result of that to ensure the PC is healthy.

How to avoid them:
Make certain that you are shutting down your PC properly. Ensure you have your PC plugged into a good surge protector/power strip to avoid as many hard shutdowns as possible (this is especially important if you are in an area prone to brown/black outs). Make sure all the fans are nice and clean on the PC and remove any debris. Make sure that none of the vents are blocked or obstructed.

 

[HarmfulDesign]

Those scans are designed to prevent damage from your PC so you don't want them to stop. They typically are triggered by a system event like a hard shutdown (power outtage, etc.) or something that could potentially damage your hardware and it initiates the scan as a result of that to ensure the PC is healthy.

How to avoid them:
Make certain that you are shutting down your PC properly. Ensure you have your PC plugged into a good surge protector/power strip to avoid as many hard shutdowns as possible (this is especially important if you are in an area prone to brown/black outs). Make sure all the fans are nice and clean on the PC and remove any debris. Make sure that none of the vents are blocked or obstructed.

I do always make sure to shut down my computer properly. My laptop wasn't particularly dirty, but I went ahead and cleaned it. The vents are all on the bottom, so I propped up the back of the laptop slightly in order to increase airflow underneath. The power grid in my area (or at least my building) has always been a little finicky (occasionally lights will dim when there is a power drop). I don't hink a power outage would cause a hard shutdown since my laptop would just switch to it's battery. My primary concern is that these scans only started occuring recently (maybe 3-4 times within the last 8 weeks). I was thinking my peripherals may be a factor since they are getting on in age (nearly 10 years now), so I'll likely be replacing them soon. One last question, though: If/when another scan triggers, is there some way to see just what kind of event has caused it? I'll let you know if it happens. Thanks.

 

[HarmfulDesign]

Welp, I was up early in the morning and wanted to do a bit of web browsing and my laptop did another scan when I started it. I was browsing the Dell website and saw a newer BIOS version listed as "critical" so I went ahead and updated it. Maybe it will help. I'll keep you updated.

 

[hedwar2011]

Unfortunately DELL is really hush hush about their diagnostic codes (or they used to be, former employee here for 5+ years) so there is really no idea what codes it is throwing. It makes me wonder if something on the PC itself could be triggering it.

If you know how, go into Settings in Windows and make sure that Automatically Reboot After Stop Errors is disabled so that if it does BSOD or otherwise, it won't reboot within a nano-second. That could be helpful in determining the cause.

 

[HarmfulDesign]

I haven't seen any stop errors/BSODS at all, but I disabled the automatic restarts anyway. I'll keep you posted going forward, if you don't mind.