Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller Preventing my Ethernet from Working?

[Ross_McD]

I turn my PC on today and have no access to the Internet because of the driver described in the title. In Device Manager status says Code 39, possible missing or corrupt files.

I've tried rebooting, I've tried disconnecting the power source for a couple minutes, and I've also uninstalled it from device manager, clicked "Scan changes to hard drive" (something similar) and it was all to no avail. When I manually download the Realtek drive I get another error mid download that prevents me from completing this process. The only other solutions I've seen have been to "refresh PC" which I tried doing, but that's never worked for as long as I've had Windows 10 installed, and it certainly did not work on this occasion.

I absolutely will not reinstall Windows 10 again, either. After about four months of having Windows 10 I had to reinstall it due to a critical update failure. This happened again a couple months later. Recently, I have a problem with Windows 10 failing to perform one action or another and it always get worse each time. Every time it results in deleting partitions from the PC and reinstalling everything, OS, drivers, personal files, audio, and other desk top apps. It is the most stressful thing I've had to deal with, and reinstalling windows again would make for about the 10th time in less than a year. I'm wondering if Windows 10 is actually a virus and not an operating system.

Can anyone assist me with my first issue, and if so give suggestions as to why Windows 10 is routinely failing to function properly on my PC? If not, I will at the very least delete Windows 10 permanently and try Windows 8.1 or 7, and I might throw out everything altogether and buy a brand new PC with OS already installed and ready to work.

UPDATE: I just had my PC off for a few hours and when I turned it on it probably took windows about 15 minutes to boot. It's almost as if Windows 10 has a lifespan of about two weeks and slowly starts decaying and gets worse and worse as it falls apart bit by bit.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Hello Ross_McD

Can you please try Running the CHKDSK C: /F /R Command and see if your hard drive has any inconsistencies?

You may also want to try the SFC /SCANNOW Command and see if it shows and fixes any errors automatically.

If Windows is generating errors itself, i.e. without you doing anything, it is likely that the copy of your Windows is corrupt. Please confirm that you downloaded Windows from a Trusted Source and used the Correct Method to Install it on your PC. Of course this is not applicable if your earlier Windows automatically updated via Windows update.

Please report back with the results for further assistance.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

When attempting to run the chkdsk command I am greeted with "Chkdsk cannot run command because the volume is in use by another process. Would you like to schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)". If I select "y" or yes, then I can restart the computer and the process fails to complete anyway.

When attempting to run sfc /scannow command I am greeted with "Windows Resource Protection could not start the repair service."

Keep in mind this is new. The commands usually worked before, although I would still have to reinstall Windows 10. Like I said, this OS has been getting worse and worse and worse.

This is where I had downloaded Windows 10 on a USB drive for reinstallation on my PC --
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO

The method I used was go to BIOS, set up the boot to USB drive. After it booted to the drive I would click install windows I believe, or something similar, go through the processes of questions it asked, and eventually it would have a clean desktop ready to redownload all updates, drivers, and everything else. But, it would only work for a little while before something similar happened again.

 

[viveknayyar007]

When attempting to run the chkdsk command I am greeted with "Chkdsk cannot run command because the volume is in use by another process. Would you like to schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)". If I select "y" or yes, then I can restart the computer and the process fails to complete anyway.

When attempting to run sfc /scannow command I am greeted with "Windows Resource Protection could not start the repair service."

Keep in mind this is new. The commands usually worked before, although I would still have to reinstall Windows 10. Like I said, this OS has been getting worse and worse and worse.

This is where I had downloaded Windows 10 on a USB drive for reinstallation on my PC --
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO

The method I used was go to BIOS, set up the boot to USB drive. After it booted to the drive I would click install windows I believe, or something similar, go through the processes of questions it asked, and eventually it would have a clean desktop ready to redownload all updates, drivers, and everything else. But, it would only work for a little while before something similar happened again.

Hello again Ross_McD

If Windows works fine right after re-installation, and gradually decreases its performance, the latest updates could be the culprit.

I'd disable the automatic updates by going to the Services.msc snap-in from the Command Prompt, and stoping and then disabling the Windows Update service from there.

However, before going for Windows clean installation, please try Booting it in Command Prompt Externally, i.e. using the installation media, and then try running the CHKDSK and SFC commands from there.

Please note that while using the SFC command from the external Command Prompt, you must use the /OFFBOOTDIR=D:\ /OFFWINDIR=D:\WINDOWS parameters. The entire command would be something like:

SFC /SCANNOW /OFFBOOTDIR=D\ /OFFWINDIR=D:\WINDOWS

Cheers!!

Good Luck!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Alright, so I have booted to the installation media and clicked "repair computer" and tried running the sfc and chkdsk commands. Going to the D: directory I didn't have "PerfLogs" "Program Files" "Program Files (x86)" "Users" or "Windows". Instead I have "boot" "efi" "Sources" and "Support". Which I thought didn't make any sense, and I wondered if it was the right right drive. I ran the sfc command immediately anyway, said there was no issues and the chkdsk command repeated what it had said previously about the volume being in use by another process. After selecting "Y" to dismount that process it said it found no problems either. Although the last line was "Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log with status 50." But, I feel like thats not a big deal.

Trying the same thing I looked at the c: directory and that was my actual PC. Turns out d: was the USB with windows on it more than likely. This had 2 files and 8 <DIR> folders ""$windows.~BT" "AMD" "PerfLogs" "Program Files" "Program Files (x86)" "Users" "Windows" and "Windows10Upgrade". Anyway, I'm just stating the above because I had followed those instructions correctly, I'm trying to be helpful, and also it means there is nothing wrong with the Windows 10 installation media... Right? So, I went ahead and ran the same commands here too and the sfc command found nothing wrong, and after forcing another dismount of the chkdsk command (not sure why it does that) everything seemed fine as well, except for that last line again. Also, I don't believe there have been any automatic updates since I last reinstalled windows because I had updated everything manually that same day.

I hardly have anything on my PC to begin with because I have to keep reinstalling a clean OS so frequently, but I know beyond a reasonable doubt that this operating system will fail again within 2-4 weeks and I will have to repeat this process all over again. So, I'm at a complete loss. What could be preventing the Realtek PCIe GBE family controller from functioning? Without it my Ethernet will not work and I don't have access to anything. And what could be preventing Windows from booting smoothly and in a timely manner? Like I said, this particular issue is a frequently recurring problem which generally results in a failure to boot altogether after some time.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Alright, so I have booted to the installation media and clicked "repair computer" and tried running the sfc and chkdsk commands. Going to the D: directory I didn't have "PerfLogs" "Program Files" "Program Files (x86)" "Users" or "Windows". Instead I have "boot" "efi" "Sources" and "Support". Which I thought didn't make any sense, and I wondered if it was the right right drive. I ran the sfc command immediately anyway, said there was no issues and the chkdsk command repeated what it had said previously about the volume being in use by another process. After selecting "Y" to dismount that process it said it found no problems either. Although the last line was "Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log with status 50." But, I feel like thats not a big deal.

Trying the same thing I looked at the c: directory and that was my actual PC. Turns out d: was the USB with windows on it more than likely. This had 2 files and 8 <DIR> folders ""$windows.~BT" "AMD" "PerfLogs" "Program Files" "Program Files (x86)" "Users" "Windows" and "Windows10Upgrade". Anyway, I'm just stating the above because I had followed those instructions correctly, I'm trying to be helpful, and also it means there is nothing wrong with the Windows 10 installation media... Right? So, I went ahead and ran the same commands here too and the sfc command found nothing wrong, and after forcing another dismount of the chkdsk command (not sure why it does that) everything seemed fine as well, except for that last line again. Also, I don't believe there have been any automatic updates since I last reinstalled windows because I had updated everything manually that same day.

I hardly have anything on my PC to begin with because I have to keep reinstalling a clean OS so frequently, but I know beyond a reasonable doubt that this operating system will fail again within 2-4 weeks and I will have to repeat this process all over again. So, I'm at a complete loss. What could be preventing the Realtek PCIe GBE family controller from functioning? Without it my Ethernet will not work and I don't have access to anything. And what could be preventing Windows from booting smoothly and in a timely manner? Like I said, this particular issue is a frequently recurring problem which generally results in a failure to boot altogether after some time.

Hello again Ross_McD

By automatic updates I meant the Windows Updates in general. Usually the updates are performed automatically, and that's what I thought was the case with your PC. The idea is to avoid any Windows Updates, i.e. neither automatically nor manually.

My apologies about the correct drive in command prompt. Generally, when you boot your PC to command line using installation media, the C: is the temporary drive that holds the booting files, and it is the D: drive that has all your Windows and system files.

By the way, can you please check if you updated the BIOS as well? Sometime the obsolete version of BIOS keeps the devices from running properly. However, before updating the BIOS, please make sure to back up the current one to be at the safe side.

Hope this helps.

Good Luck!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Okay, I have never updated my BIOS before and I'm not certain on how to do so. I very much appreciate the help by the way.
On my PC it says BIOS Version/Date - American Megatrends Inc. F4, 3/11/2016
Motherboard is made by Gigabyte.
When I go to Gigabyte.com I can search for my particular motherboard (B150M-DS3H) and sure enough information about my motherboard shows up. When I select "Support" and scroll down to "BIOS" it has version F22a with the date 04/07/2017. So it seems like I should be able to update my BIOS.
So, I will have to download it to my USB drive, but I don't know what to do from there, nor am I sure how to back up my current BIOS.

EDIT: So I did download it to a clean USB drive and it downloaded as a zip file. Not sure if that matters or not for when I make an attempt to update it?

EDIT EDIT: (Sorry for constant updates) When I enter the BIOS and go to the "System Information" menu it says "BIOS Version - F4" which I can reference to the Gigabyte website. If I download and save that version can I uninstall the new version and replace it with the old one if it does not work?
Please help me with additional details on how to proceed.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay, I have never updated my BIOS before and I'm not certain on how to do so. I very much appreciate the help by the way.
On my PC it says BIOS Version/Date - American Megatrends Inc. F4, 3/11/2016
Motherboard is made by Gigabyte.
When I go to Gigabyte.com I can search for my particular motherboard (B150M-DS3H) and sure enough information about my motherboard shows up. When I select "Support" and scroll down to "BIOS" it has version F22a with the date 04/07/2017. So it seems like I should be able to update my BIOS.
So, I will have to download it to my USB drive, but I don't know what to do from there, nor am I sure how to back up my current BIOS.

EDIT: So I did download it to a clean USB drive and it downloaded as a zip file. Not sure if that matters or not for when I make an attempt to update it?

Hello again

Can you please check this thread from the Gigabyte forum and see if the given steps are easy to follow?

Good Luck!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Are these the steps to complete backing up my BIOS version currently installed, or to update my BIOS to the latest version?

I'm a bit confused unfortunately, sorry, I'm not very tech savvy.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Are these the steps to complete backing up my BIOS version currently installed, or to update my BIOS to the latest version?

I'm a bit confused unfortunately, sorry, I'm not very tech savvy.

Hello again

I would suggest to check YouTube for the videos demonstrating how to back and flash BIOS. A quick Google search would give you many links for them.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Okay, thank you so much! I have successfully updated my BIOS.

For anyone following along on this thread this is the video I watched to complete my BIOS backup and update.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1g6p6B-jMA

However cool updating the BIOS was though, it has not solved my Ethernet connection issue nor have I noticed any improvement whatsoever with Windows 10. In fact, every time I try to open the start menu it pauses periodically and inevitably crashes before it opens anything. Should I make an attempt at reinstalling Windows 10, again, with the updated BIOS, or do you think that will make any difference?

UPDATE: After nothing had been fixed I said screw it and cleanly reinstalled Windows 10. After I had reinstalled Windows 10 my PC says it had run into a problem and needs to restart. After restart I'm taken into the BIOS which says "ROM Image is not loaded" and "ROM Image update denied". I tried to revert back to my back-up BIOS, but it says that its outdated, so it seems as though that's not possible.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay, thank you so much! I have successfully updated my BIOS.

For anyone following along on this thread this is the video I watched to complete my BIOS backup and update.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1g6p6B-jMA

However cool updating the BIOS was though, it has not solved my Ethernet connection issue nor have I noticed any improvement whatsoever with Windows 10. In fact, every time I try to open the start menu it pauses periodically and inevitably crashes before it opens anything. Should I make an attempt at reinstalling Windows 10, again, with the updated BIOS, or do you think that will make any difference?

UPDATE: After nothing had been fixed I said screw it and cleanly reinstalled Windows 10. After I had reinstalled Windows 10 my PC says it had run into a problem and needs to restart. After restart I'm taken into the BIOS which says "ROM Image is not loaded" and "ROM Image update denied". I tried to revert back to my back-up BIOS, but it says that its outdated, so it seems as though that's not possible.

Hello again

Looks like with BIOS update, you need to make some changes to its settings.

Although from the different vendors, this thread and this thread can be of help.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Okay, I selected "Load Optimized Defaults" and powered down with the same results as last time.
I can find the SATA Mode Selection, but there is only one option "AHCI". I can't find anything that says "Boot Mode", but my boot priority is Windows Boot Manager, and I changed my Windows 8/10 features from "Other OS" to Windows 8/10 since I'm running on 10. LAN PXE Boot Option ROM is disabled. Storage boot option control is Legacy. The Other PCI devices is UEFI. So, other than those options I listed from the "BIOS" menu I'm not sure where else to go to affect Boot Mode. There is "M.I.T." menu, a "System" menu, "Peripherals" which is where SATA Mode selection was, and "Power", and "Save to Exit".

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay, I selected "Load Optimized Defaults" and powered down with the same results as last time.
I can find the SATA Mode Selection, but there is only one option "AHCI". I can't find anything that says "Boot Mode", but my boot priority is Windows Boot Manager, and I changed my Windows 8/10 features from "Other OS" to Windows 8/10 since I'm running on 10. LAN PXE Boot Option ROM is disabled. Storage boot option control is Legacy. The Other PCI devices is UEFI. So, other than those options I listed from the "BIOS" menu I'm not sure where else to go to affect Boot Mode. There is "M.I.T." menu, a "System" menu, "Peripherals" which is where SATA Mode selection was, and "Power", and "Save to Exit".

Hello again

Please check if 'Other PCI Devices' has something called BIOS or Legacy option as well. If so, please select that option and then try again.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

'Other PCI Devices' has the options 'Do Not Launch', 'Legacy', and of course 'UEFI'. When I selected 'Legacy' and saved and exited BIOS I still had the same result.

 

[viveknayyar007]

'Other PCI Devices' has the options 'Do Not Launch', 'Legacy', and of course 'UEFI'. When I selected 'Legacy' and saved and exited BIOS I still had the same result.

Hello again

Is there any option to deselect AHCI for SATA Mode? Usually there are two options namely AHCI and Legacy. If there's only the AHCI option, there should be a way to deselect or disable it, and it would automatically switch to Legacy Mode.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

To access SATA Mode Selection I click 'Peripherals' and then 'SATA And RST Configuration' which has options such as 'SATA Controller(s)' (Enabled) and 'Aggressive LPM Support' (Enabled) but 'SATA Mode Selection' (AHCI) has no other options. I'm not sure how I can disable it. Clicking on it simply has a little selection pop-up that say 'AHCI' only as an option.

 

[viveknayyar007]

To access SATA Mode Selection I click 'Peripherals' and then 'SATA And RST Configuration' which has options such as 'SATA Controller(s)' (Enabled) and 'Aggressive LPM Support' (Enabled) but 'SATA Mode Selection' (AHCI) has no other options. I'm not sure how I can disable it. Clicking on it simply has a little selection pop-up that say 'AHCI' only as an option.

At this point are able to pass through the BIOS screen when you restart your PC, or you are redirected back to BIOS?

Also, if possible, please try reinstalling Windows but don't connect it to the Internet this time. That is, please let Windows install in offline mode and see how it behaves.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

When I turn on my PC, or when I restart it, or save and exit out of BIOS I get to the "PC ran into a problem. We'll restart for you." Then it restarts and puts me into the BIOS.

I just tried to reinstall windows again, and it seems like it works except I have the same errors. I'm not sure how to access offline or online modes. I downloaded windows from here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO?
Put it on a USB drive and boot to the USB drive instead of Windows. From there my options are to Install windows or repair PC.

 

[viveknayyar007]

When I turn on my PC, or when I restart it, or save and exit out of BIOS I get to the "PC ran into a problem. We'll restart for you." Then it restarts and puts me into the BIOS.

I just tried to reinstall windows again, and it seems like it works except I have the same errors. I'm not sure how to access offline or online modes. I downloaded windows from here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO?
Put it on a USB drive and boot to the USB drive instead of Windows. From there my options are to Install windows or repair PC.

Yes. Please install Windows and when it asks for your Internet Wi-Fi password, click Skip. If you have a cable connected to your PC for the Internet, please disconnect the cable and then install.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Okay, this time I disconnected my Ethernet Cable from my PC. I proceeded to Installed windows, delete all partitions for clean install, and the rest of it.

However, the same results have occurred. The blue screen, back to BIOS, ROM Image not loaded/update denied.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay, this time I disconnected my Ethernet Cable from my PC. I proceeded to Installed windows, delete all partitions for clean install, and the rest of it.

However, the same results have occurred. The blue screen, back to BIOS, ROM Image not loaded/update denied.

OK

Please try clearing the CMOS by pulling out its CMOS battery and leaving it for 45-60 minutes (if it is a desktop computer). In case of laptop, please pull out its battery, disconnect it from the power supply, and press down hold the Power button for 30 seconds.

Try booting your Windows again after this.

Cheers!!

 

[Ross_McD]

Okay I took out the CMOS battery for roughly 60 minutes (maybe a bit longer) and when turned on the PC it sent me back to the BIOS and I have an announcement saying "Clear CMOS Information -- BIOS has been reset. Please re-config your BIOS setup items if needed." Once I click 'Okay' screen goes black brings up BIOS again with the same errors "ROM Image is not loaded/ROM Image update denied"

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay I took out the CMOS battery for roughly 60 minutes (maybe a bit longer) and when turned on the PC it sent me back to the BIOS and I have an announcement saying "Clear CMOS Information -- BIOS has been reset. Please re-config your BIOS setup items if needed." Once I click 'Okay' screen goes black brings up BIOS again with the same errors "ROM Image is not loaded/ROM Image update denied"

According to this thread, one of your RAM sticks might be incompatible or faulty.

 

[viveknayyar007]

Okay I took out the CMOS battery for roughly 60 minutes (maybe a bit longer) and when turned on the PC it sent me back to the BIOS and I have an announcement saying "Clear CMOS Information -- BIOS has been reset. Please re-config your BIOS setup items if needed." Once I click 'Okay' screen goes black brings up BIOS again with the same errors "ROM Image is not loaded/ROM Image update denied"

Even this thread indicates some issue with the RAM.