Chkdsk on boot in a new Acer Extensa 5635ZG laptop.

[juandiego]

Hello everyone.

I have bought an Acer Extensa 5635ZG laptop a couple of weeks ago. It has a hard disk drive called WDC WD5000BEVT-22ZAT0 ATA Device. I did a hard disk partition when installing Win 7 Professional. Both parts are quite free of data so far.

For the first time yesterday night and a second time just an hour ago, when I've turned the PC on, it has started doing a chkdsk of the hard disk, has finished reporting no sector damages and kept booting normally. At first, it asks whether or not you want to skip the chkdsk process but I let it finish.

I'm worried because it has not done so previously and the laptop is almost brand new.

Should I be worried on a hard disk issue or is it some sort of Win 7 safeguard measure that I can skip easily and/or configure otherwise?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ickymay]

what antivirus are you running ?

 

[juandiego]

Hi ickymay. Thanks for your interest.
I'm running Free Avira Antivirus and now and then I run the also free version of Malwarebytes Antimalware. Thus far, I'm trusting on the firewall Win 7 provides. However, I have not made any change in the antivirus configuration since I installed it, neither in the firewall.

 

[ickymay]

Hi ickymay. Thanks for your interest.
I'm running Free Avira Antivirus and now and then I run the also free version of Malwarebytes Antimalware. Thus far, I'm trusting on the firewall Win 7 provides. However, I have not made any change in the antivirus configuration since I installed it, neither in the firewall.

there is a known issue with avira antivirus which could well be your problem , I suggest join the avira forum then post in the windows section describe your issue and message Alexandru Manea and ask him for the new quickfix they have just released for this issue on windows 7

please let us know if this works ?

N.B. my username there is "lacrid"

 

[juandiego]

Ok, I'll do that and keep you up to date, ickymay.

Besides, maybe it's important to know that the Reliability Monitor has issued almost on daily basis messages (the same) related to the hard disk driver. Oddly, the last two shortly before the mentioned chkdsks took place. That message reads as follows (translating from Spanish, sorry):

Generic volume snapshot.
Problem: Correct device driver installation.
Date: Every day except when it was switched off and more or less at the same time.
Description: Drivers administration finished the installation process of the device driver FileRepository\volsnap.inf_x86_neutral_42f862e05fcb0306\volsnap.inf for the device instance identifier STORAGE\VOLUMESNAPSHOT\HARDDISKVOLUMESNAPSHOT20 with the next state: 0x0.

Another thing I forgot to mention is that the laptop had Vista installed but I bought Win7 and did a clean installation from the start, therefore the original drivers provided by the manufacturer are no longer in the PC. Actually, thereafter I have installed most of them but the hard disk driver.

 

[ickymay]

Ok, I'll do that and keep you up to date, ickymay.

Besides, maybe it's important to know that the Reliability Monitor has issued almost on daily basis messages (the same) related to the hard disk driver. Oddly, the last two shortly before the mentioned chkdsks took place. That message reads as follows (translating from Spanish, sorry):

Generic volume snapshot.
Problem: Correct device driver installation.
Date: Every day except when it was switched off and more or less at the same time.
Description: Drivers administration finished the installation process of the device driver FileRepository\volsnap.inf_x86_neutral_42f862e05fcb0306\volsnap.inf for the device instance identifier STORAGE\VOLUMESNAPSHOT\HARDDISKVOLUMESNAPSHOT20 with the next state: 0x0.

Another thing I forgot to mention is that the laptop had Vista installed but I bought Win7 and did a clean installation from the start, therefore the original drivers provided by the manufacturer are no longer in the PC. Actually, thereafter I have installed most of them but the hard disk driver.

have you tried going to the acer driver support website and updating your sata drivers ??
Vista drivers are fine in the absence of win7 drivers just make sure they are 32 bit matching your system ?

also could you check your windows logs for errors ?

goto my computer right click select manage then windows logs and check for any errors, possibly a security audit failure ?

 

[juandiego]

The three tasks done, ickymay.

Waiting for the Avira forum answer.

Ok, there are some security 5038 error messages related to cpuz, avira and malwarebytes but at random times. Let me know if you are interested for further information of them.

New SATA Win7Pro 32bits driver for my HDD installed and now working. No chkdsk when restarting (twice) the PC so far.

By the way, do you think important to update the chipset driver as well? I have not done it thus far.

Many thanks for you collaboration.

 

[ickymay]

yes I would update your chipset drivers

regarding your 5038 error theres another couple of posters on the avira forum that supsect this error is something to do with avira causing a dirty bit to be written that then triggers a false chkdsk on boot, even though there isn't actually any repair needed and chkdsk completes with no error

have you stated this on your post on aviras support forum, I'm sure they would like to know ?

important thing is I think you have a handle on it and are close to a cure

 

[juandiego]

yes I would update your chipset drivers

Already done as well and now working. Again another two restarts with no chkdsk.

regarding your 5038 error theres another couple of posters on the avira forum that supsect this error is something to do with avira causing a dirty bit to be written that then triggers a false chkdsk on boot, even though there isn't actually any repair needed and chkdsk completes with no error

Considering how fast they update viruses libraries, I hope they will have a solution for this issue very soon if not already with the quickfix you mention. I also sent a PM to Alexandru Menea asking him to have a look at the thread.

have you stated this on your post on aviras support forum, I'm sure they would like to know ?

No, I haven't and it is no longer necessary. Some wise man has done it for me.

important thing is I think you have a handle on it and are close to a cure

Too soon to tell but I hope you are right.

 

[ickymay]

important thing is I think you have a handle on it and are close to a cure

Too soon to tell but I hope you are right.

well if you get bored with trying to cure it if the problem continues you can of course try unninstalling antivir and using another AV but apart from this issue i have found antivir to be pretty much the best one out there for years

 

[ickymay]

your post on avira forum has been answered and avira have also reproduced the problem and have posted here talking about the solution

 

[juandiego]

Good to know it's not only in my case and pundits are behind to fix it.

Interesting read, it has shed some light in my understanding of the issue. My main worry of a bad manufactured HDD is now out.

On the matter, do you think the Reliability monitor information messages I reported here some post above which seem to state, if I understand it correctly, that a hard disk driver has been successfully reinstalled, also has something to do with this issue?

I don't have the intention to change Avira AntiVir for another one. I'm now paying for a complete McAfee suit that I ruled out in my old laptop because it was quite slowed down by that antivirus. Well, probably with my new notebook it was not going to be that a problem but now I'm very happy with Avira and actually considering to pay for its complete suit instead of for McAfee's.

I didn't know Avira, neither heard of it before but I had the need to use an antivirus with a lesser memory impact and searching on the web I came across a poll about best free antivirus of the year and Avira was ahead of the standing (by then) along with Avast.

Many, many thanks, ickymay.

 

[ickymay]

On the matter, do you think the Reliability monitor information messages I reported here some post above which seem to state, if I understand it correctly, that a hard disk driver has been successfully reinstalled, also has something to do with this issue?

No , because you are still getting the 5038 error

 

[juandiego]

On the matter, do you think the Reliability monitor information messages I reported here some post above which seem to state, if I understand it correctly, that a hard disk driver has been successfully reinstalled, also has something to do with this issue?

No , because you are still getting the 5038 error

Well, I meant that those messages seemed to state that the same HDD-related driver was installed successfully EVERY day despite I did nothing; by itself. On the other hand, this issue seems to have stopped since I installed the proper HDD and chipset drivers for Win7Pro32bits, at least the message in question has not appeared yesterday nor today.

I've programmed the task -through its Windows security logs option- to warn me when a 5038 error takes place. They keep happening with avgntflt.sys and cpuz132_x32.sys when upon/right after booting (not at random times as I thought before), and with mbamswissarmy.sys when Malwarebytes is run.

However, I have not had an auto check disk process upon boot again since I made the proper HDD and Chipset drivers installation. Perhaps this has also helped.

I'm now confident that, as/because they say, must be a adaptation problem between the new Win.7 NTFS system and some programmes which will be gradually fixed by those programmes updates.

Cheers, ickymay.

 

[juandiego]

Hi again.

Just to report that I have had a new check disk upon boot. This time with no error detected by the event viewer/windows logs/security. I installed the hotfix Avira sent me which seems to work out because it's no longer causing security error messages. I uninstalled CPU_Z. And finally I have not run MBAM again.

Now I don't know how to track evidences or hints of its origin.

Any idea?

Thanks in advance.