AN515-57 Having problems with slow startup. Can anyone help?

Harry01

Not insanely slow just hangs much longer at start up on the Acer logo showing the circular loading icon. Normally from restart, unless it's updating it's barely more than a second on this logo. I've tried resetting, uninstalling bloatware after, checking that high resources startup programs are disabled. I thought I saw on windows defender that there was some malware it couldn't get rid of but when I then reset it, it comes preloaded with Norton which found nothing so I have no idea what it relates to.

I was just getting to a stage where I felt like I knew how to troubleshoot problems like graphic driver issues by uninstalling and reinstalling. Here I have no idea.

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

JackE

Search Windows start menu 'cmd'. Right click command prompt near top of menu to run as administrator. At the command prompt enter 'powercfg -h on'. Shutdown Windows normally. Turn it back on to check boot speed again.

Commodore_1995#

I also suggest disabling fast startup in power options.

Harry01

Thanks. I will try this.

If any of you know I would also like help doing a clean installation. I have been encountering some issues with the USB flash drive not being found. Says 'cant find signed drivers'.

Thank you for your help

JackE

First try the 'powercfg -h on' from the administrative command prompt. This enables, not disables, fast startup. Let's hold off on the USB flash drive issue for now till we try to fix the slow startup issue. We may want to update drivers or do a factory system reset from the hidden factory recovery partition rather than a clean install which sometimes blocks access to this partition.

Harry01

That makes sense. Thank you. I put in this command. It just takes me to a new line. I put in 'powercfg -h on'. Did I get that wrong?

Thank you

JackE

If no error message, you seem good to go to test the startup speed.

So just shutdown Windows normally. Wait a minute or so. Then turn it back on. See if it speeds up the boot process.

If not, we can try other stuff.

Harry01

I did that. It boots up a little bit quicker from shutdown. a few seconds and as normal but when you restart it hangs at the logo for 10 seconds. Does this happen to everyone else. I am sure this a recent thing.

Ready for the next step.

JackE

If you're 100% sure it's a recent thing, might suggest a boot drive starting to fail. Or a new program or update was added or enabled to startup.

Shut machine off. Turn it back on and IMMEDIATELY tap the F2 key until the BIOS menu appears. Please post phone photos of the BIOS INFORMATION & MAIN tabs if possible.

Then after it boots, please also post a screenshot of Task Manager Startup tab.

Harry01

'command prompt: diskpart, list disk, select disk 0, clean, create partition primary, format fs=ntfs quick' was something I put in when trying to boot from USB flash before but now recognises USB flash as a hardrive in the partitions and drive D. How do I change this back?

[Edited comment to delete personal information]

JackE

>>>'command prompt: diskpart, list disk, select disk 0, clean, create partition primary, format fs=ntfs quick' was something I put in when trying to boot from USB flash before but now recognises USB flash as a hardrive in the partitions and drive D. How do I change this back?>>>

1. Hold on! That's no longer how a flash drive is booted? When did you do this? Did you try to apply any of these diskpart commands to the internal boot drive?
2. What operating system is on the bootable flash drive.?
3. Also, post another phone photo of the BIOS MAIN tab after pressing Ctrl+S to reveal any hidden options
4. Also enable the F12 boot option in the MAIN tab. Then F10 to save F12 enable setting and exit

Commodore_1995#

I would also check the health of the ssd with the crystaldiskinfo program. Maybe it points to a failure in the ssd.

Harry01

@JackE 1. I just did that one command. I don't know. I know it changed the USB to being recognised as disk drive D rather than E.

2. Windows 11 or was. That command deleted its contents.

3. Will do.

4. Okay.

Maybe I'm just mad and restarting always has that 8-10 second load on the Acer logo.

JackE

Follow @egydiocoelho 's CrystalDiskInfo suggestion too.

If you make another Win11 bootable USB stick, you first insert the stick into a port. Then turn the machine on and IMMEDIATELY tap the F12 key. A usb boot option menu should appear if you enabled the F12 boot option in the BIOS MAIN tab.

billsey

Yeah, that diskpart command wiped everything from your drive, so there's no C: to mount. You are going to have to reinstall Windows from scratch because it will have also wiped the factory recovery image.

JackE

Follow @egydiocoelho 's CrystalDiskInfo suggestion too.

If you make another Win11 bootable USB stick, you first insert the stick into a port. Then turn the machine on and IMMEDIATELY tap the F12 key. A usb boot option menu should appear if you enabled the F12 boot option in the BIOS MAIN tab.

Harry01

Okay, done all that

Harry01

Do I need to then do a clean installation from the USB because of that command prompt? It seems now that the USB is set as the 'primary partition'? Um... Should I talk to Acer support?

JackE

Depends on what you want to do

1. Do you want to do a clean installation of Microsoft's generic Windows version? Then you use the USB stick --- or ---
2. Do you want to do a clean installation of Acer's factory Window version? Then you don't use the USB stick. You use a hidden factory recovery partition on the boot drive with the ALT+F10 cold boot method.

The generic Windows version and factory Windows version are NOT the same. Clean installing the factory version would return the machine to its original out of the box state when you first acquired the machine.

So what do you want to do?

Harry01

Could try the alt F10 method. But I get an error message when I try that. Get an error that it can't find signed drivers' from USB the other way.

What I found when I reset it was that a few programs have to be reinstalled. The visual cc+ thing (as it stops Firefox working), nitro sense stops working and it has to be reinstalled. I wondered if anything else needs to be?

It also reverts to the out of date graphics drivers. Interestingly it says the 'driver is up-to-date in device manager' but through GEforce it finds the latest drivers.

When you get your laptop I know windows update does a lot of the drivers but it seems that there are some that need to be manually updated? I'd also like to know what the use of this 'Killer control center' which seems to be replaced by Killed intelligence center. Do we need a lot of the pre-installed Acer stuff?

Commodore_1995#

Before performing a fresh install of windows, I advise checking the health of the ssd with the crystaldiskinfo program!