BIOS or/and Windows 7 not working properly after total discharge

Dahi · 13 Mar 2018

Hello !

I have an Acer Aspire V3-772 which has natively Windows 8 integrated. I successfully downgraded it to Windows 7, for personal preferences, and everything worked perfectly for months.

But after an unwanted full discharge of the battery, the computer turned off and at its restart, everything was messed up : BIOS reinitialized (I guess, because I had to set it back to "legacy mode") and Windows 7 started but with multiple malfunctions : Windows explorer crashing, the calendar date showing the year 10012, multiple starting programs not launching, networks and internet not working properly, ...)

So I first tried to reinitialize the BIOS by taking off the CMOS battery for long minutes, but nothing changed. And after messing with BIOS settings and Windows 7 repairs (nothing worked, even the "Upgrade option" with Windows 7 CD wouldn't work properly) with no success, I just did a clean Windows 7 installation. Which solved Windows issues, it seems. But not BIOS issues : the date still shows the year 10012...

I think I will try to reinitialize the BIOS one more time and if that doesn't work try to reinstall BIOS drivers. But I don't want this issue to happen again, anyone knows why do the complete discharge of my battery caused all that ? Why Windows 7 was completely broke ? Installing Windows 7 on a Windows 8 native computer is a problem ?

Thank you for your time and even more if you know something about this issue!

Dahi

samuria · 13 Mar 2018

BIOS doesn't have driver's it's firmware you need to check your BIOS version and see if the makers have an update version

Dahi · 13 Mar 2018

I have the last version installed but maybe my BIOS firmware is corrupt in a way and reinstalling it will fixe this issue. I don't know i'm not used to update the BIOS.

Dahi · 14 Mar 2018

Ok, I tried to reinitialize the BIOS once again, it did reinitialize correctly but that doesn't solved the issue. The calendar still shows insane numbers (year 10012 in windows even though BIOS is set to 2012).

I'll buy a new CMOS battery and if that's not it, I think I'll try to reinstall the BIOS firmware... still don't know what is happening.

Snick · 14 Mar 2018

Hi Dahi,
Did you try to manually change date and time?

Start type date and time
Click on date and time
Click on change date and time
Reset calendar with left right arrows and click in hr min sec on in the time box.

In the date and time settings popup click change calendar settings
This is what those setting should look like:

BIOS or/and Windows 7 not working properly after total discharge-date-time.png

If that doesn't work try:
Remove and reinstall Realtime clock by starting the system in Safe mode. Use the following steps to perform this task:

Turn on the computer.
Turn on the computer and immediately begin pressing the F8 (may be different key on your machine, can't advise you as you didn't state the make in your system specs) key repeatedly until a Windows Start-up Menu appears.
Select Safe Mode and then press the Enter key.
Click Start , and then click Control Panel.
Click System and Security, and then click System.
Under Tasks, click Device Manager.
Click the Plus Sign (+) next to System devices.
Right-click System CMOS/real time clock, click Uninstall, and then click OK.
When the System Settings Change window appears, click Yes to restart the computer. The real-time clock reinstalls automatically.

I'd reserve flashing/updating the BIOS as the very last resort! A mistake during the process basically BRICKS your computer!

Dahi · 15 Mar 2018

Nice, that was more simple than I thought. Thank you, it worked for the time & date.

But I still don't understand why everything was messed up after the complete discharge. I would like to understand to avoid this issue in the future.

Before considering solved I will wait to install the new CMOS battery and see if everything works normal.

Snick · 15 Mar 2018

Windows shutdown goes through a process of shutting down running applications before power off. When you abruptly terminate Windows, that process is circumvented. The result can be nothing noticeable, open program(s) such as Office applications, games, Windows system, may drop data or become corrupt, Windows will fail to boot, etc. What I believe happened, is when the battery reached a predetermined level of discharge, your computer didn't complete the power down and abruptly terminated. It's similar to loosing power on a desktop (power failure) or pressing the power button. The application that provides your time and date, within windows, not the BIOS, was corrupted by the shutdown. It is my understanding that the BIOS is not affected by an incorrect shutdown, that is, except for when a BIOS flash (updating BIOS) is occurring, which ultimately results in Bricking your computer.

Here's a forum to peruse: What will happen if I switch off computer without properly shutting it down?

You may want to check your power settings for battery and see if the shutdown warning at a predetermined power level is enabled, by your description of your issue it doesn't appear to be.

How to Set Low Battery Warnings on a Windows 7 or Vista Laptop

Dahi · 15 Mar 2018

Thank you for the explanations.
I thought it happened because I installed Windows 7 on a Windows 8 native system and the hardware (motherboard and by extension the BIOS) didn't liked that when the battery got fully discharged. But like you explained that might be a simple improper switch off that caused everything.

The thing that made me think the BIOS was corrupt is that even after a clean Windows 7 install, the time & date was still completely off, so the only option left was the BIOS. But I don't know much about links between the BIOS and the OS so I might have overthink.

Anyway, thank you for the explanations and help, my system seems to work correctly after reinstalling everything, im just waiting to install a new CMOS battery and everything should be good.

Don't get asleep with your PC turned on and unplugged !