Question New Dell Xps 8930boot issue
- Thread starter lenjack
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Steltek
Diamond Member
- Mar 29, 2001
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Is the BIOS running in UEFI mode? If so, you have to enable the option to boot using the optical drive before it will show in the F12 boot menu.
See the following webpage:
See the following webpage:
Steltek
Diamond Member
- Mar 29, 2001
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Before you return it, have you reseated the optical drive SATA cable into both the motherboard and the optical drive, and also reseated the optical drive SATA power connector into the drive? It is possible that something could have been missed at assembly, or that something shook loose during shipment.
Finally, you might also try plugging the SATA cable for the optical drive into a different port on the motherboard. If you happen to be using the onboard m.2 slot as a boot drive, some boards disable a SATA port in response. If this is the case, the system might be disabling the SATA port that your optical drive happens to be plugged into.
If you are not very familiar with this system, here is the XPS 8930 service manual.
Finally, you might also try plugging the SATA cable for the optical drive into a different port on the motherboard. If you happen to be using the onboard m.2 slot as a boot drive, some boards disable a SATA port in response. If this is the case, the system might be disabling the SATA port that your optical drive happens to be plugged into.
If you are not very familiar with this system, here is the XPS 8930 service manual.
UsandThem
Elite Member
- May 4, 2000
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Does the drive work while your within Windows (music CD, reading a CD-R, etc.)?
If not, it sounds like a cable came loose during shipping (like said above), or the drive could even be DOA. The last option would be unlikely, but possible.
If not, it sounds like a cable came loose during shipping (like said above), or the drive could even be DOA. The last option would be unlikely, but possible.
Thanks for your responses. Those are good points, but the drive works perfectly, even though the bios pretends it's not there.
Just got off the phone with Dell support...40 minutes. Took half of that to get him to understand what I wanted to do. He couldn't do it. We jumped around the bios, until he finally conceded that the cd was not there. He finally said the hardware was working properly as warranteed, and it was a software issue which was not covered, and I could be routed to another department for PAID support. I thanked him for wasting his and my time.
Just got off the phone with Dell support...40 minutes. Took half of that to get him to understand what I wanted to do. He couldn't do it. We jumped around the bios, until he finally conceded that the cd was not there. He finally said the hardware was working properly as warranteed, and it was a software issue which was not covered, and I could be routed to another department for PAID support. I thanked him for wasting his and my time.
UsandThem
Elite Member
- May 4, 2000
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In your OP, you said it doesn't give you the option to boot from CD. What do you have where you need to boot from CD? Dell keeps an ISO of the OS for your PC on their support site, or you can hit a key to boot into factory recovery mode to reset the PC.
Just curious as I finally got rid of my CD/DVD drive a couple years ago, and I can always boot from a USB thumb drive if needed.
Checked and updated to latest bios. No boot disk in drive.
Perhaps I should explain why I want to be able to do this. Weekly, I back up my system to an external hard drive. I use Aomei Backupper, which uses a rescue cd, to access the external hard drive, when needed. I have needed to do this several times in the past few years on my previous computers, and I want to be able to do this on this new Dell system, but I'm unable to do so, if I'm unable to boot from cd.
I did make a recovery flash drive.
Perhaps I should explain why I want to be able to do this. Weekly, I back up my system to an external hard drive. I use Aomei Backupper, which uses a rescue cd, to access the external hard drive, when needed. I have needed to do this several times in the past few years on my previous computers, and I want to be able to do this on this new Dell system, but I'm unable to do so, if I'm unable to boot from cd.
I did make a recovery flash drive.
Steltek
Diamond Member
- Mar 29, 2001
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Just to verify, in the instructions I linked above, you did select the correct option in the File System List (i.e. PciRoot (0x0)/Pci (0x1F, 0x2)/Sata(0x3,0x0,0x0)/CD as it is Dell-specific)?
If so, and if the drive is working in Windows but can't be used to boot, there is obviously some UEFI BIOS/Secureboot crap going on.
Based upon a Google search, you aren't the only person that has run into this before. And, I haven't seen any instances where a person who asked for help with this issue on this particular model Dell reported having successfully resolved it.
If Dell isn't going to help you to resolve it (which you indicate they won't, without charging for it on a new system to boot?) and you WANT this feature, I say return it to Dell and buy another brand. Let them take the financial hit for failure to properly provide support.
If so, and if the drive is working in Windows but can't be used to boot, there is obviously some UEFI BIOS/Secureboot crap going on.
Based upon a Google search, you aren't the only person that has run into this before. And, I haven't seen any instances where a person who asked for help with this issue on this particular model Dell reported having successfully resolved it.
If Dell isn't going to help you to resolve it (which you indicate they won't, without charging for it on a new system to boot?) and you WANT this feature, I say return it to Dell and buy another brand. Let them take the financial hit for failure to properly provide support.
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This is very comforting, as I did get to this point, but as I recall, there was a good deal more after selecting this option. I'll go back to it, and see if I can get any further I did see a file string, but I don't think there was a cd reference in it. Aside from that, this computer is as smooth as silk, running at it's stock speed of 3G, with a 256Gb ssd. I'll report back. Thanks so much, for trying.
Just tried again. There is no file string I can find, that is the same as the one you indicated, There is one, with a string that refers to a sata HD, and then there are a bunch of very confusing multi-option, that don't show a string.. Might I ask that you take me by the hand and lead me through this minefield?
On a suggestion from another forum, I booted with the rescue disk in place, BEFORE pressing F12 for the boot menu, and when the boot menu came up, the option to boot for cd WAS present. It worked. New problem. There was no mouse input. Cursor present, but frozen on screen. Can't tell if any keyboard input.
VirtualLarry
No Lifer
- Aug 25, 2001
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That makes some sense, BIOS tries to detect "disk present" before presenting the CD / DVD drive as a bootable option.
The problem with your boot disk, is because you have a newer system with XHCI controllers, and your boot disk is evidently still using a Win7-based WinPE environment, which only normally supports EHCI (USB2.0) controllers. You need to upgrade your program and thus your rescue boot disc, to either include USB3.0 / XHCI drivers for that OS, or get a Win10-based WinPE boot / rescue disc.
One workaround to get mouse/keyboard working, is if your BIOS allows for "PS/2 port emulation" or "Port 60/64 emulation". But that still won't allow a USB external HDD or flash drive to work in the rescue CD environment, unless it loads appropriate USB3.0 / XHCI drivers.
The problem with your boot disk, is because you have a newer system with XHCI controllers, and your boot disk is evidently still using a Win7-based WinPE environment, which only normally supports EHCI (USB2.0) controllers. You need to upgrade your program and thus your rescue boot disc, to either include USB3.0 / XHCI drivers for that OS, or get a Win10-based WinPE boot / rescue disc.
One workaround to get mouse/keyboard working, is if your BIOS allows for "PS/2 port emulation" or "Port 60/64 emulation". But that still won't allow a USB external HDD or flash drive to work in the rescue CD environment, unless it loads appropriate USB3.0 / XHCI drivers.
Steltek
Diamond Member
- Mar 29, 2001
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Think about it like this. If you pressed the F12 menu to boot and then inserted a flash drive, the flash drive wouldn't appear in the boot options menu. It has to be present when the BIOS enumerates the possible boot drives for it to be an offered option when you press F12. Same applies for the DVD drive. If you enter the BIOS with a bootable CD in the system, there will be an associated CD/DVD boot device shown in the BIOS. If it doesn't have a CD/DVD disc in the drive, the system knows it isn't a valid boot drive and won't present it as such.
The XPS 8930 does have two USB 2.0 ports - they are the two black USB ports at the back of the tower directly adjacent to the Ethernet LAN port. Make sure your mouse and keyboard are plugged into those ports and not into a USB3 port to increase the likelihood that your boot CD will recognize the mouse/keyboard.
If the mouse/keyboard still do not work when plugged into the USB2.0 ports, it is likely because they are emulated off the USB3 controller and actually require a USB3.0 XHCI driver as Larry explained above.
I do dimly recall that Aoemi has had some sort of "add drivers" functionality for years that you can use when building your rescue CD to add your computer drivers to it. You may also need to use an option to download the WinPE environment from the Internet when building your rescue CD to ensure the WinPE environment used to build the CD is Win10 compatible and not for an earlier Windows version (there are different versions of WinPE environments, and each has compatibility with a different version of Windows ranging from WinXP all the way up to Win10 - you want the one for Win10).
The XPS 8930 does have two USB 2.0 ports - they are the two black USB ports at the back of the tower directly adjacent to the Ethernet LAN port. Make sure your mouse and keyboard are plugged into those ports and not into a USB3 port to increase the likelihood that your boot CD will recognize the mouse/keyboard.
If the mouse/keyboard still do not work when plugged into the USB2.0 ports, it is likely because they are emulated off the USB3 controller and actually require a USB3.0 XHCI driver as Larry explained above.
I do dimly recall that Aoemi has had some sort of "add drivers" functionality for years that you can use when building your rescue CD to add your computer drivers to it. You may also need to use an option to download the WinPE environment from the Internet when building your rescue CD to ensure the WinPE environment used to build the CD is Win10 compatible and not for an earlier Windows version (there are different versions of WinPE environments, and each has compatibility with a different version of Windows ranging from WinXP all the way up to Win10 - you want the one for Win10).
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