Switched BIOS from FAIL SAFE DEFAULTS to OPTOMIZED DEFAULTS – Now Windows won’t load

[Herkulese]

OK, the other shoe finally dropped. I was recently reminded that it is best have the BIOS set to optimized defaults. I had mine set to fail safe defaults, back when I couldn’t figure out why the SSD/SATA/HD drives weren’t showing up properly in windows. I finally got that solved, thru SATA/AHCI/Tim etc… settings, but never went back to optimized defaults.

My System:
Mobo: Gigabyte 970A-UD3
CPU: Phenom II X4 965
System Drive: Crucial M500 SSD 240GB
Data Drive: WD Blue 1TB
Ram: G.Skill Aries Orange 8GB (2x4GB Kit)
Graphics: MSI Radeon 6450 (Newest Drivers)

Last night I decided to switch to optimized defaults, but then when the boot up process came to the point of loading the operating system, Windows began to load, but then stopped, a blue screen was displayed for about a second, and then it rebooted, and came up with a screen that said windows was unable to load due to files being corrupted, and asking to either run the repair utility, or start windows normally, neither of which works. The repair utility can’t fix the issue, and windows still will not load.

I tried going back to fail safe defaults, but with the same results, as the windows files are more than likely corrupted.

As an experiment, I set back to optimized defaults, and reimaged the computer with a fresh windows install image, and still no go, again, becaues the windows files are probably corrupted.

The images were all made with FAIL SAFE settings, so the next thing I plan to do is to switch back to fail safe defaults, where the images were all made, reimag the clean windows install image again. My logical mind says that should work, but I won’t be able to try it until tonight.

QUESTIONS:

1) What exactly is the difference between FAIL SAFE DEFAULTS, and OPTIMIZED DEFAULTS, and is it normal for switching between them to mess up windows files?

2) I did have that Prime 95 error on core 4 after 8.5 hours, could that be showing a weak CPU, motherboard, ram, etc…. or some other issue that could cause errors under optimized defaults?

NOTE: I never got an opportunity to run Memtest to check the RAM, re-run Prime 95, or anything else. I will have to do these tests on Saturday.

Thanks for any and all thoughts and comments,
Roger

 

[Ketchup]

Most likely it changed your AHCI settings are changing between the two. Could have also changed your RAM settings, but that would be much less likely.

 

[Herkulese]

Most likely it changed your AHCI settings are changing between the two. Could have also changed your RAM settings, but that would be much less likely.

In what way might it have changed the AHCI settings, and what would be the result that would cause a windows load failure?

 

[Ketchup]

Windows has to know what drivers to use to access the hard drive. So if you installed Windows in Native IDE (which is default) and the optimized changed them to AHCI, it won't boot.

I don't know for sure that is what happened, since we don't know what all the Optimized Defaults for your particular board are, but a probable guess.

Usually the best way is to load fail-safe, save an reboot, then load optimized, save and reboot, and see what has changed.

 

[Herkulese]

Windows has to know what drivers to use to access the hard drive. So if you installed Windows in Native IDE (which is default) and the optimized changed them to AHCI, it won't boot.

I don't know for sure that is what happened, since we don't know what all the Optimized Defaults for your particular board are, but a probable guess.

Usually the best way is to load fail-safe, save an reboot, then load optimized, save and reboot, and see what has changed.

OK I had AHCI set in BIOS, and windows had already set trim, and disabled defragg. I will check the AHCI settings to see if it set them back to IDE OR SOMETHING else.

I am mostly trying to determin if I have a hardware issue or if it is a settings and software problem. If I need to reinstall windows, with optimum defaults, that is not a huge issue.
Thanks,

 

[Ketchup]

I always set things manually my own, referring to the manual when necessarily, so I really couldn't tell you which default setting would be best.

 

[Herkulese]

I always set things manually my own, referring to the manual when necessarily, so I really couldn't tell you which default setting would be best.

Understood, but where do you start from?
Fail Safe or Optimized?

 

[Ketchup]

Understood, but where do you start from?
Fail Safe or Optimized?

Neither. I go through each one from the beginning. Really, I don't adjust too much anymore. The man things are:
Boot order:
USB options:
SATA options
Fan control
CPU Power states
Virtualization (if not already on)

Pretty much everything else I leave at default unless I am overclocking, which in the rig below only took one adjustment.

 

[Herkulese]

Neither. I go through each one from the beginning. Really, I don't adjust too much anymore. The man things are:
Boot order:
USB options:
SATA options
Fan control
CPU Power states
Virtualization (if not already on)

Pretty much everything else I leave at default unless I am overclocking, which in the rig below only took one adjustment.

I hate to be a bit of a sticky wicket, but you say you leave most things at default.
Which default?

Oh I get it. I am a bit thick sometimes.
I should just set back to factory defaults, then make the few settings that I need.

Thanks

 

[Ichinisan]

Definitely the mode of the drive controller (SATA/AHCI versus legacy/IDE). I've helped lots of people I know personally with this very issue.

You can boot again by switching the ATA controller back to legacy/IDE mode as it was when Windows was installed. Personally, I'd want the SATA features (like NCQ) to be enabled for better performance, so I would reinstall Windows with AHCI/SATA mode enabled.

 

[Herkulese]

Definitely the mode of the drive controller (SATA/AHCI versus legacy/IDE). I've helped lots of people I know personally with this very issue.

You can boot again by switching the ATA controller back to legacy/IDE mode as it was when Windows was installed. Personally, I'd want the SATA features (like NCQ) to be enabled for better performance, so I would reinstall Windows with AHCI/SATA mode enabled.

That was the issue, but in reverse. I had SATA, and AHCI enabled when windows was installed, and when I selected optimized defaults they were set back to Native IDE. This evidently would not let windows load, even though it got to the point of starting to load, so that I believed the message that windows files had been corrupted.

Last night, when I got home I checked, and after setting BIOS back to SATA, and AHCI, it booted up and loaded windows just fine. Then I went back into BIOS, and set it to Optimized Defaults, just to make sure, because I had gone back and forth between Fail Safe and Optimized, which of course set it back to IDE, but I now knew to go reset back to SATA and AHCI, and all is well.

I ran MemTest86 from a Boot disk, from 8:30 last night untill 6:00 this morning. It made 5 passes with no errors, so I am reasonably sure that my G.Skill Ares Orange memory sticks good and stable.

 

[Ichinisan]

Very cool.

Lame that legacy / IDE mode is set when you selected "OPTIMAL defaults."

 

[Herkulese]

Very cool.

Lame that legacy / IDE mode is set when you selected "OPTIMAL defaults."

Lame is right.
Especially on a board that has not IDE ports at all.
I guess you could use an adaptor from IDE drive to SATA port with IDE setting.
Only reason I can come up with.

 

[Ichinisan]

Lame is right.
Especially on a board that has not IDE ports at all.
I guess you could use an adaptor from IDE drive to SATA port with IDE setting.
Only reason I can come up with.

That, and a couple of the earlier SATA drives were really IDE with a SATA interface tacked-on.

...but that's what safe defaults should go to. Not "performance" / "optimal" defaults. I've seen board manufacturers do this. That was 5-7 years ago. I didn't realize it's still a problem with boards today.