/fixboot access denied. Help picking disk and volume to fix this(with pictures)

[Vicaris]

Recently I got this
https://imgur.com/IgUWEBv

Some context:
Upgrade to 10 from 7.

Changed motherboard months ago, reinstalled windows 10 and failed to authenticate it.

Since motherboard change, I had a boot problem. Restart from sleep mode caused the PC to turn off, turn on after a few seconds and get stuck with no image. My fix was switching the power supply on and off quickly. That problem disappeared after an update a month or two ago.

After the most recent update a week ago, after doing what I described above when waking up from sleep mode, I got stuck on error 0xc000014c

So I used another windows 10 to create a boot usb.

Startup Repair didn't work.

https://imgur.com/2SKwSHI

I tried these steps:

Command Prompt
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot

But I get access denied on fixboot
https://imgur.com/kfkm99i

So I tried these steps

diskpart
sel disk X
sel vol X
assign letter=v:
exit
v:
md \efi\microsoft\boot\
cd /d: v:\efi\microsoft\boot\

I actually tried these things a number of times trying to get to a point where I'd be able to get access for fixboot, I got multiple different errors and even had to recreate a new recovery usb.

I think my problem was in trying to pick the correct disk and volume. So, I came here for help. This is what my disk and volume lists look like.

So, could someone help me walk through the steps to fixing my machine.

 

[Colif]

X drive is a ram disk set up when you boot off the USB, try changing the drive to C and then run the commands changing the X to c in each one

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-rebuild-the-bcd-in-windows-2624508

 

[Vicaris]

X drive is a ram disk set up when you boot off the USB, try changing the drive to C and then run the commands changing the X to c in each one

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-rebuild-the-bcd-in-windows-2624508

Following the steps in that page I got to this point (step 4 of the guide):

Scanning all disks for Windows installations.
Please wait, since this may take a while...
Successfully scanned Windows installations.
Total identified Windows installations: 1
[1] E:\Windows
Add installation to boot list? Yes/No/All:

Where it instructed me to choose yes. But when I chose yes this is what I got

The requested system device cannot be found.

I believe the problem is still related to picking the proper disk and volume.

 

[natx808]

use this command with the proper drive letter (the drive where \Windows folder is)

bcdboot.exe C:\Windows /s C:

Another thing to try: different USB port for your repair drive.... a USB 2 instead of USB 3.

or

Was it a UEFI install of windows?
to create a proper UEFI-bootable USB drive (http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/15458-uefi-bootable-usb-flash-drive-create-windows.html) and then
to switch the BIOS from "legacy" boot mode back to UEFI boot mode, followed by
booting from the USB drive


More ideas: https://www.storagecraft.com/support/Community/forums/t/1233.aspx

 

[Vicaris]

use this command with the proper drive letter (the drive where \Windows folder is)

bcdboot.exe C:\Windows /s C:

Another thing to try: different USB port for your repair drive.... a USB 2 instead of USB 3.

or

Was it a UEFI install of windows?
to create a proper UEFI-bootable USB drive (http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/15458-uefi-bootable-usb-flash-drive-create-windows.html) and then
to switch the BIOS from "legacy" boot mode back to UEFI boot mode, followed by
booting from the USB drive


More ideas: https://www.storagecraft.com/support/Community/forums/t/1233.aspx

I tried changing the USB port. Turned off the machine, removed the USB and placed it on a different port. Now windows no longer goes to the windows 10 install option. It just goes to the error screen. No matter where I put the USB on. I've also tried going into the BIOS menu for my motherboard and changing the boot order but whenever I check it I see that the USB port is set as the primary one. I've also checked the USB on another computer and the contents seem to be the same as they were before.

I also don't know what is a UEFI install.

The machine was running on Windows 7, I upgraded it during the upgrade period, had to change motherboard and reinstall windows. I reinstalled using the copy of windows 10 that was already installed on the HDD. That caused windows 10 to no longer be authentic.

Lastly, that link you sent me doesn't take me to a forum thread, it just takes me to the frontpage of StorageCraft Support, even after registering to the website.

Now I can't get to command prompt anymore because USB seems to no longer be recognized after trying a different port.

Any suggestions? My motherboard is an Intel DB85FL

 

[johnbl]

see
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-update/windows-10-bootrec-fixboot-access-is-denied/747c4180-7ff3-4bc2-b6cc-81e572d546df

one of the commands was changed for more current builds of win 10
bcdboot C:\windows /s V: /f UEFI

it also looks like your system reserved partition was assigned drive c:
(normally that would be incorrect )

Recently I got this
https://imgur.com/IgUWEBv

Some context:
Upgrade to 10 from 7.

Changed motherboard months ago, reinstalled windows 10 and failed to authenticate it.

Since motherboard change, I had a boot problem. Restart from sleep mode caused the PC to turn off, turn on after a few seconds and get stuck with no image. My fix was switching the power supply on and off quickly. That problem disappeared after an update a month or two ago.

After the most recent update a week ago, after doing what I described above when waking up from sleep mode, I got stuck on error 0xc000014c

So I used another windows 10 to create a boot usb.

Startup Repair didn't work.

https://imgur.com/2SKwSHI

I tried these steps:

Command Prompt
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot

But I get access denied on fixboot
https://imgur.com/kfkm99i

So I tried these steps

diskpart
sel disk X
sel vol X
assign letter=v:
exit
v:
md \efi\microsoft\boot\
cd /d: v:\efi\microsoft\boot\

I actually tried these things a number of times trying to get to a point where I'd be able to get access for fixboot, I got multiple different errors and even had to recreate a new recovery usb.

I think my problem was in trying to pick the correct disk and volume. So, I came here for help. This is what my disk and volume lists look like.

So, could someone help me walk through the steps to fixing my machine.

 

[natx808]

if that doesnt work, You are going to want to look in the bios for options pertaining to booting with other devices.

There should be a key to press to access the boot menu after the system posts.

here’s a link to the manual https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000021157/boards-and-kits/desktop-boards.html

If you’re able to get the device to boot to USB I would advise you to create a new repair disk. if you have access to windows 10 system you can do this under backup and recovery. or you can download the Windows 10 bootable media creator of Microsoft to set up a USB drive you can use this drive to attempt to repair your windows installation .

 

[Vicaris]

see
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-update/windows-10-bootrec-fixboot-access-is-denied/747c4180-7ff3-4bc2-b6cc-81e572d546df

one of the commands was changed for more current builds of win 10
bcdboot C:\windows /s V: /f UEFI

it also looks like your system reserved partition was assigned drive c:
(normally that would be incorrect )

Recently I got this
https://imgur.com/IgUWEBv

Some context:
Upgrade to 10 from 7.

Changed motherboard months ago, reinstalled windows 10 and failed to authenticate it.

Since motherboard change, I had a boot problem. Restart from sleep mode caused the PC to turn off, turn on after a few seconds and get stuck with no image. My fix was switching the power supply on and off quickly. That problem disappeared after an update a month or two ago.

After the most recent update a week ago, after doing what I described above when waking up from sleep mode, I got stuck on error 0xc000014c

So I used another windows 10 to create a boot usb.

Startup Repair didn't work.

https://imgur.com/2SKwSHI

I tried these steps:

Command Prompt
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot

But I get access denied on fixboot
https://imgur.com/kfkm99i

So I tried these steps

diskpart
sel disk X
sel vol X
assign letter=v:
exit
v:
md \efi\microsoft\boot\
cd /d: v:\efi\microsoft\boot\

I actually tried these things a number of times trying to get to a point where I'd be able to get access for fixboot, I got multiple different errors and even had to recreate a new recovery usb.

I think my problem was in trying to pick the correct disk and volume. So, I came here for help. This is what my disk and volume lists look like.

So, could someone help me walk through the steps to fixing my machine.

I've come across that page before, thanks for the suggestion.

The problem is that I need to pick the correct disk and volume when following those steps. I've actually tried that before creating this post but it failed. Main reason is because I don't think I picked the right volume and disk. So I need help for that.

 

[Vicaris]

if that doesnt work, You are going to want to look in the bios for options pertaining to booting with other devices.

There should be a key to press to access the boot menu after the system posts.

here’s a link to the manual https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000021157/boards-and-kits/desktop-boards.html

If you’re able to get the device to boot to USB I would advise you to create a new repair disk. if you have access to windows 10 system you can do this under backup and recovery. or you can download the Windows 10 bootable media creator of Microsoft to set up a USB drive you can use this drive to attempt to repair your windows installation .

As I've explained at the start of the thread, I'm already booting to USB and I've already attempted repair. But it doesn't work

 

[johnbl]

you should show the size field when you do the
list volume command in diskpart.exe

basically you will want to reassign you c partition to a new drive letter then assign your drive letter that has the windows install on it to the c: drive

your windows install will be on a volume that is in GB while your reserved volumes will be in MB

list volume
select volume 1
list volume (should now show a * next to the selected volume)
assign LETTER=h (this will assign a new drive letter to the selected volume)
list volume (should show the change)
select volume 2 (or what ever volume has your windows install on it)
list volume (should show that volume 2 is selected (*))
assign letter=c
list volume (just to confirm your windows volume is now drive c)
exit ( to quit diskpart)

after you get the drive c to be the windows volume a lot of the utilities will start to work correctly.

I think bootrec.exe /ScanOs will look for the partitions that windows is on and can be used to fix the problem but I have not used it in years.

I just tell people to try all 4 commands for a first fix attempt
bootrec.exe /FixMbr
bootrec.exe /Fixboot
bootrec.exe /ScanOS
fbootrec.exe /RebuildBcd

 

[Vicaris]

you should show the size field when you do the
list volume command in diskpart.exe

basically you will want to reassign you c partition to a new drive letter then assign your drive letter that has the windows install on it to the c: drive

your windows install will be on a volume that is in GB while your reserved volumes will be in MB

list volume
select volume 1
list volume (should now show a * next to the selected volume)
assign LETTER=h (this will assign a new drive letter to the selected volume)
list volume (should show the change)
select volume 2 (or what ever volume has your windows install on it)
list volume (should show that volume 2 is selected (*))
assign letter=c
list volume (just to confirm your windows volume is now drive c)
exit ( to quit diskpart)

after you get the drive c to be the windows volume a lot of the utilities will start to work correctly.

I think bootrec.exe /ScanOs will look for the partitions that windows is on and can be used to fix the problem but I have not used it in years.

I just tell people to try all 4 commands for a first fix attempt
bootrec.exe /FixMbr
bootrec.exe /Fixboot
bootrec.exe /ScanOS
fbootrec.exe /RebuildBcd

Thanks for the reply.
I've figured out that Disk 0 is the one I want

Sorry for not including the size information on the pictures.

Here's a transcript

Volume## -Ltr - Label - FS - Type - Size - Status - Info

Volume 0 - C - System Rese - NTFS - Partition - 100MB - Healthy -
Volume 1 - E - - NTFS - Partition - 930GB - Healthy -
Volume 2 - F - - NTFS - Partition - 450MB - Healthy - Hidden
Volume 3 - D - ESD USB -FAT32 - Partition - 29GB - Healthy -

So I understood that I should choose the volume with windows on it ( Volume 1 - E) and reassign it to a new letter (you said I should use C). However I did not understand which partition I should reassign to H. Would it be the one that's currently assign to C?

Update:
I decided that indeed what you instructed me to do was to reassign the volume with windows to C, and just reassigned another volume to H so I could free up the letter C. Using bootrec /scanos I could confirm that windows was indeed on C:

However, bootrec /fixboot still gives me access denied

 

[johnbl]

also, I think the link I provided earlier said the bootrec.exe /fixboot command got the access error and they had to use bcdboot C:\windows /s V: /f UEFI instead.
or boot with a older image of windows and run the command.

I would expect this is going to be a design change rather than a bug.
I don't think the old bootrec command would get updated for the new UEFI interfaces.
so I would try the bcdboot.exe utility
here is docs on the utility and its command line switches
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/bcdboot-command-line-options-techref-di
looks like this utility can update the bios firmware entries in non volatile ram without having to go into UEFI and finding the legacy mode. IE it knows the UEFI interface while the old bootrec.exe does not (which is why you have to find the legacy mode in your UEFI bios to get that command to work (just my guess))
these utilities are more likely to work after your c: is correctly assigned to your windows partition.
just because it is most likely to be a default source to get the files from C:\windows directory

but you could also use the source switch to get the files from another source, like your usb thumb drive


check the bios, some bios with Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) will have protections and you have to go into bios and set the bios to legacy mode for some updates. I think the bios does a checksum on the master boot record and blocks changes until you change the bios setting. It does this to prevent hacking. after the update you change the bios setting back. (just not sure, it will depend on the machine, last time I hit this was on a old dell laptop)


generally, I would make sure you also started cmd.exe in elevated (admin) mode then the diskpart.exe would inherit the permissions. if you started cmd.exe in user mode it might not have the rights to do certain commands.

you should show the size field when you do the
list volume command in diskpart.exe

basically you will want to reassign you c partition to a new drive letter then assign your drive letter that has the windows install on it to the c: drive

your windows install will be on a volume that is in GB while your reserved volumes will be in MB

list volume
select volume 1
list volume (should now show a * next to the selected volume)
assign LETTER=h (this will assign a new drive letter to the selected volume)
list volume (should show the change)
select volume 2 (or what ever volume has your windows install on it)
list volume (should show that volume 2 is selected (*))
assign letter=c
list volume (just to confirm your windows volume is now drive c)
exit ( to quit diskpart)

after you get the drive c to be the windows volume a lot of the utilities will start to work correctly.

I think bootrec.exe /ScanOs will look for the partitions that windows is on and can be used to fix the problem but I have not used it in years.

I just tell people to try all 4 commands for a first fix attempt
bootrec.exe /FixMbr
bootrec.exe /Fixboot
bootrec.exe /ScanOS
fbootrec.exe /RebuildBcd

Thanks for the reply.
I've figured out that Disk 0 is the one I want

Sorry for not including the size information on the pictures.

Here's a transcript

Volume## -Ltr - Label - FS - Type - Size - Status - Info

Volume 0 - C - System Rese - NTFS - Partition - 100MB - Healthy -
Volume 1 - E - - NTFS - Partition - 930GB - Healthy -
Volume 2 - F - - NTFS - Partition - 450MB - Healthy - Hidden
Volume 3 - D - ESD USB -FAT32 - Partition - 29GB - Healthy -

So I understood that I should choose the volume with windows on it ( Volume 1 - E) and reassign it to a new letter (you said I should use C). However I did not understand which partition I should reassign to H. Would it be the one that's currently assign to C?

Update:
I decided that indeed what you instructed me to do was to reassign the volume with windows to C, and just reassigned another volume to H so I could free up the letter C. Using bootrec /scanos I could confirm that windows was indeed on C:

However, bootrec /fixboot still gives me access denied

 

[vorhis]

Good God! John...thank you!

C:\windows /s V: /f UEFI

It's amazing how the different versions and boot USBs from MS can jack a system. Thanks, if I could I would reach out and kiss you, I would!