Solved SDHC ReadyBoost Card Stops Boot Process ?

[FredM8]

I have just installed a Integral 16 GB SDHC card and dedicated it to ReadyBoost. Windows default settings decided to only take about 4GB of it for ReadyBoost so the rest of it is available for general use. The problem is that after I shut down the computer and then re-booted with the card in place, the computer got stuck half way through the boot process and just stayed there. I shut down the machine, removed the card from the onboard reader, re-booted and all was fine again. What's going on ?

 

[A Guy]

Welcome to Seven Forums FredM8. Can't answer for the freezing, unless it is related. But see if the card is formatted Fat32, if so you will need to format it NTFS to use more than 4GB for Readyboost. A Guy

 

[FredM8]

Thank you A Guy. I will try NTFS on my card, but the problem with the boot stall is my main concern. Having the card in place seems to be having the same effect as leaving a floppy disc in place when booting up. Is that normal ?

 

[A Guy]

Check BIOS to make sure the OS disk is 1st in the boot order. Hopefully it isn't trying to boot from the SDHC card.

 

[FredM8]

I have formated the card to NTFS and windows has now taken about 9GB of the 16GB available. I have ticked dedicate this device to ReadyBoost. In the BIOS my hard drive is first in the boot sequence but the card still makes the compuer stall at startup ?

 

[A Guy]

I take it by stall, you mean it freezes and never starts? Can you boot to safe mode? Did you install any drivers for the card? This card installs into a PCI slot? What is the make and model of the card? You say the card works after the PC is booted? A Guy

 

[FredM8]

It's not a PCI card it's just one of those small cards that fits into the multi card reader on the front of my machine. It's a Integral Ultima class 10 16GB giving up to 20MB/s. By stall I mean that it gets only part of the way through the boot process and stops with a black screen and a flashing underscore in the top left of the screen. If I insert the card after the computer has booted it does all the things that a card is meant to do ? I have not considered "Safe Mode" No drivers were suggested by on the card specifications on the blister pack it came in. I have been to the Integral web site and no drivers are suggested or seem to be available.

 

[A Guy]

Ahhh, ok, I misunderstood. I thought you meant it was an internal card of some sort Does the PC freeze if any other type of card is in the reader? I'll have a look around with some new search terms. A Guy

 

[FredM8]

It's the only card I have at present.

 

[A Guy]

OK, we know it's not the card reader, as it boots with no card in. It's likely not the card as it works after PC is booted. I'd suspect the drivers. Open Device Manager and expand the categories and see if you have any errors. I don't have a card reader, so am not sure if it is listed under usb devices, or? I can't find any support for your PC, but you'd want to see if they have any drivers. A Guy

 

[FredM8]

I have done as you suggested and the SD card shows up under the heading Disc Drives. It is reporting that it is functioning correctly, and that the best drivers are currently installed.

 

[A Guy]

OK, I'll point the Gurus towards this thread as it's almost 2:30, and I need to get some sleep. A Guy

 

[seavixen32]

Fred, a few points to ponder.

1. You may only see any benefit from ReadyBoost if your RAM is 1 GB or less. You have 4 GB, but may see some benefit if you use a 32-bit version of Windows. Your specs state you are using the 64-bit version.
2. SDHC cards have known issues when being used for ReadyBoost.
3. Faster 7200 HDDs and SSDs won't see any benefit from it.
4. You may want to consider not using it.

http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/wi...look-at-readyboost-features-in-windows-7/2225

 

[Petey7]

While Seavixen makes a good point it doesn't really solve the issue. Some computers just have issues starting up with USB flash drives and SD cards attached. It is usually a BIOS issue. I can't find a new BIOS on the Fujitsu support site. To see if it is a matter of having the card inserted, rather than an issue with readyboost, turn readyboost off, format the SD card, and restart your computer. If the same thing occurs, it might just be an issue you have to live with for the time being.

 

[Dave76]

Agree with seavixen32, you won't see any performance gain from ready boost with your system specs.
I seem to recall reading somewhere that ready boost doesn't work well from a card reader, will post if I find a reference on it.

By all means, check if the flash card is functioning.

 

[DeaconFrost]

Others beat me to it...but end the frustration by doing away with the card. That will solve your issue and you won't be missing out on any performance.

 

[kado897]

If you are having problems booting with the card in just wait until Windows has loaded then insert the card. You won't gain anything on the boot anyway with 8GB of RAM.

 

[Slartybart]

I don't know if you can return the card, but the money spent on the card would be better spent on additional memory.

 

[FredM8]

Many thanks to you all !!!
The qwery allways was realy, that the system would stall with the card in place. I don't think that this should happen.
I am running DDR2 on my RAM with 2 X 2 GB slots. The next option is that there are now 4GB DDR2 cards on the market, so I will upgrade to 2X 4 GB, total 8GB in the near future. Unless my system will not accept/see it. As I have a 64 bit system I believe that it should find the extra RAM. Do you forsee any problems with this particular upgrade ? My next stop is to look at the "Graphicm Card Update" forum as I am running a iiyama ProLite E2607WSD 26inch widescreen with a :RES of 1900 X 1200 on a NVIDIA GE Force GT120 card with 1 GB of RAM. I want to run an additional 5.4 aspect ratio monitor for my help files in the future. About 17 or 19 inch seems about right for this. I started my computer experiences on monitors of less than 12 inch, so you can understand my desire for "SPACE" !!
But still, the card problem will still be be a problem, untill resolved. After all, it is a function that is not functioning, and there must be a reason. If my spelling ang grammer in this post are "Rubbish" then please excuse me as I have just got back from the pub.

 

[seavixen32]

For advice on the best RAM configuration for your computer, please download and run the Crucial memory scanner.

SDRAM, DDR2 and DDR RAM memory upgrades from Crucial.com

If you do decide to upgrade your RAM, make sure you do it before you go to the pub! I know full well what eight pints of McEwans Export can do to your cognitive processes and reflexes.