Fresh Windows 7 install takes forever to start booting after POST

[biglilsteve]

I had Windows 7 installed for years and then, opposite of my intention, it was upgraded to 10 somehow. This was about a year ago.

I've been dealing with 10 just because I've been too lazy to wipe and downgrade. Suddenly yesterday, my PC refused to boot 10. It gave me the black and white screen saying that Windows failed to boot and told me to insert my disc to attempt a repair. Obviously my Windows 7 disc did not do anything to repair the somehow botched Windows 10 installation.

I figured this was a perfect opportunity to wipe my OS drive clean and reinstall Windows 7.

My issue is that my computer powers up and POSTs fine, but I am stuck with a black screen with a blinking underscore for several minutes before Windows 7 begins to boot. I tried resetting my BIOS to optimized defaults, but this did nothing to remedy the issue. I also tried disconnecting my non-OS drives to see if they were causing it...nothing changed.

I'm running a RAID0 of two Samsung 840 PROs. Never had an issue booting Win7 or 10 prior to this...

Once booted, Windows runs completely fast, smooth, and normal.

 

[RolandJS]

Which post: UEFI or BIOS? Fast Boot: on? off? Two internal hard-drives? The windows 7 install/repair came with this computer, correct?

 

[biglilsteve]

Which post: UEFI or BIOS? Fast Boot: on? off? Two internal hard-drives? The windows 7 install/repair came with this computer, correct?

Oh boy, now I don't know the difference between UEFI and BIOS. Here's what I see normally:
1. ASUS BIOS screen letting me press DEL or F2 to enter setup
2. Intel RAID screen showing me the drives that are connected to the RAID controller
3. The same ASUS BIOS screen from step one for just a second or two
4. Windows begins booting

The extremely long several minute pause happens between steps 3 and 4. Currently 1 through 3 still occur with normal timing.

I have a total of 5 internal hard drives:
2x Samsung 840 Pro 128gb in RAID0
WD Blue 500gb
WD Blue 320gb
WD Blue 160gb

Fast boot is enabled.

It's a custom build. I have a Windows 7 disc that I use for my builds.

EDIT:

And to clarify on what the pause looks like. I see the blinking underscore for a few minutes. Then the Starting Windows screen comes up, but with no logo animation above it, for a few minutes. All this happens with ZERO HDD activity. Then the HDD activity light starts flashing, the logo animation begins, and the Windows boots quickly.

 

[Megahertz07]

Did you checked BIOS settings?
Did you already installed win 7 on the RAID 0?
Did you detached the other disks before installing Win 7?
Did you installed as UEFI or Legacy?

This is how I would install (as UEFI)
Detach ALL other disks, leaving on only the two Samsung SSDs

On BIOS

Set SATA=RAID (make sure that the array is created)

Disable fast boot (you can enable it after installation)

Disable secure boot
OS type Windows UEFI = Secure boot, so if OS type = Other, secure boot is disabled.

for CSM, here are the settings (in bold)
Launch CSM.......................................(Auto, Enabled, Disabled)
Boot Device Control.............................(UEFI and Legacy OPROM, Legacy OPROM only, UEFI Only)
Boot from Network Devices...................(Ignore, Legacy Only)
Boot from Storage Devices....................(Ignore, Legacy Only, UEFI Driver first)
Boot from PCIe/PCI Expansion Devices....(Legacy Only, UEFI driver first)

Boot from the Win 7 installation disk ON UEFI MODE (important). If you are using a USB flash disk, make sure it has the \efi\boot folder or it wont boot as UEFI.
Go to Install - advanced - delete all partitions - Create new - Win 7 will create 3 partitions
- 100 M Fat 32 - UEFI
- 120 M RAW - MSR
- a large NTFS
Install on the large NTFS

For the updates MS releases SP2 for Windows 7

 

[biglilsteve]

Did you checked BIOS settings?
Did you already installed win 7 on the RAID 0?
Did you detached the other disks before installing Win 7?
Did you installed as UEFI or Legacy?

BIOS settings were checked...even set them back to "optimized defaults".

Yes, Win7 has been installed on the RAID0.

I did not try detaching other drives prior to the install.

I'm not sure how to answer the UEFI or Legacy question. What does that mean? I just put in the disc and followed the prompts.

Thanks for your response.

 

[Megahertz07]

I've edited my last post.
Are you sure Win7 has been installed on the RAID0? If you set BIOS to defaults you probably installed as AHCI not as RAID as the AHCI is the default.
You should ALWAYS detach other disks as Windows sometimes install the boot loader on these disks and the OS on the target disk.
Did you used a DVD or a USB flash disk?
UEFI is the new kind of BIOS to replace the old one (Legacy). It has many advantages on new hardware as yours.

If you want to have it done right, follow my instructions on the previous post.

 

[biglilsteve]

I've edited my last post.
Are you sure Win7 has been installed on the RAID0? If you set BIOS to defaults you probably installed as AHCI not as RAID as the AHCI is the default.
You should ALWAYS detach other disks as Windows sometimes install the boot loader on these disks and the OS on the target disk.
Did you used a DVD or a USB flash disk?
UEFI is the new kind of BIOS to replace the old one (Legacy). It has many advantages on new hardware as yours.

If you want to have it done right, follow my instructions on the previous post.

I'll give all of your steps a try. Thank you!

So I installed on the RAID before resetting the bios. Once I reset the bios, the system wouldn't boot because it got reset to AHCI. I had to reset to RAID to get the PC to boot back up, but still have the extremely long boot problem.

I'm installing using a DVD. I feel like your steps should make things right for me. We'll see!

 

[biglilsteve]

Go into the Bios and set the Sata mode to AHCI, you do not need to use Raid.

Really? As long as I create the array, will the SSDs still stay RAIDed even if I move the setting back to AHCI?

 

[AddRAM]

No, they won`t.

You don`t need Raid using a SSD.

 

[biglilsteve]

No, they won`t.

You don`t need Raid using a SSD.

Well I guess I screwed up a few years ago when I decided to purchase two smaller SSDs instead of one large one. There's no performance benefit like with HDDs?

 

[Megahertz07]

I've two HDD on a RAID 0 array. Once I've updated BIOS and it set the default (AHCI) and I let it boot. Lost all may data. Not a big problem as I have a backup.
Two SSD on a RAID 0 definitely runs faster than a single. You did an expensive but good choice.

After installation, for the updates: MS releases SP2 for Windows 7

 

[biglilsteve]

Did you checked BIOS settings?
Did you already installed win 7 on the RAID 0?
Did you detached the other disks before installing Win 7?
Did you installed as UEFI or Legacy?

This is how I would install (as UEFI)
Detach ALL other disks, leaving on only the two Samsung SSDs

On BIOS

Set SATA=RAID (make sure that the array is created)

Disable fast boot (you can enable it after installation)

Disable secure boot
OS type Windows UEFI = Secure boot, so if OS type = Other, secure boot is disabled.

for CSM, here are the settings (in bold)
Launch CSM.......................................(Auto, Enabled, Disabled)
Boot Device Control.............................(UEFI and Legacy OPROM, Legacy OPROM only, UEFI Only)
Boot from Network Devices...................(Ignore, Legacy Only)
Boot from Storage Devices....................(Ignore, Legacy Only, UEFI Driver first)
Boot from PCIe/PCI Expansion Devices....(Legacy Only, UEFI driver first)

Boot from the Win 7 installation disk ON UEFI MODE (important). If you are using a USB flash disk, make sure it has the \efi\boot folder or it wont boot as UEFI.
Go to Install - advanced - delete all partitions - Create new - Win 7 will create 3 partitions
- 100 M Fat 32 - UEFI
- 120 M RAW - MSR
- a large NTFS
Install on the large NTFS

For the updates MS releases SP2 for Windows 7

I just tried all your settings and got an error after the BIOS screen:

The current BIOS setting do not fully support the boot device. Press [F1] to enter the BIOS setup.

Go to Advanced > Boot > CSM Parameters, and adjust the CSM (Compatibility Support Module) settings to enable the boot device.

Additionally, i no longer have my raid array available as a boot option in bios.

 

[Megahertz07]

- You don't have the existing Raid 0 as a boot option as it has been installed as Legacy and now the boot is set to UEFI.
- The current BIOS setting do not fully support the boot device = You didn't boot the Win 7 installation disk as UEFI.
During POST, launch the Boot menu (F12?). There will be 2 options Legacy and UEFI. Choose CD/DVD UEFI

Edit. You have to use a Win 7 64 bits installation disk. Win 7 32 bits isn't compatible with UEFI

 

[biglilsteve]

- You don't have the existing Raid 0 as a boot option as it has been installed as Legacy and now the boot is set to UEFI.
- The current BIOS setting do not fully support the boot device = You didn't boot the Win 7 installation disk as UEFI.
During POST, launch the Boot menu (F12?). There will be 2 options Legacy and UEFI. Choose CD/DVD UEFI

Edit. You have to use a Win 7 64 bits installation disk. Win 7 32 bits isn't compatible with UEFI

How do I correct this then? How do I get the RAID installed as UEFI? I also don't have an option to boot the disk as UEFI in my boot menu.

I have a Windows disk that has both 32 and 64 bit options.

 

[Megahertz07]

"I have a Windows disk that has both 32 and 64 bit options."
That explains all the trouble. It isn't an official M$ disk.
Download a Win 7 ISO from M$ Microsoft Windows and Office ISO Download Tool
Download the tool, run it and under Win 7, choose Win 7 Ultimate 64.
Burn a DVD or install it on a USB Flash disk with Rufus - Create bootable USB drives the easy way
Do a Clean install Clean Install Windows 7
Use the COA key to activate.
For the updates MS releases SP2 for Windows 7

 

[biglilsteve]

"I have a Windows disk that has both 32 and 64 bit options."
That explains all the trouble. It isn't an official M$ disk.
Download a Win 7 ISO from M$ Microsoft Windows and Office ISO Download Tool
Download the tool, run it and under Win 7, choose Win 7 Ultimate 64.
Burn a DVD or install it on a USB Flash disk with Rufus - Create bootable USB drives the easy way
Do a Clean install Clean Install Windows 7
Use the COA key to activate.
For the updates MS releases SP2 for Windows 7

It looks like the root cause was the other internal drives being connected while I installed Windows.

I created a bootable USB using Microsoft's tool and installed that way. I can't believe how quickly it installed! I knew it would be faster, but wow not that much faster. I ended up doing it before reading your post, so I don't know if I ever got it installed using UEFI. Is there any way for me to validate if a current installation is done with UEFI?

 

[Megahertz07]

Pirate copy comes with a spyware and trojans, not to mention back door to steal your data. Beware.