UEFI Problem

[Cheemag]

Hello,

I want to do a clean installation of Windows 7 over a corrupt version of the same OS.

I cannot do so booting from the setup disc as it insists on saving all the old rubbish. The Asus A68HM UEFI won't let me boot from the CD. Any attempt to alter the boot order fails. The UEFI tells me I haven't changed any setting when clearly I have. Boot menu won't work either.

Apart from taking the disc out to reformat it, is there any other way I can wipe the C: partition ?

 

[Megahertz07]

Is your BIOS up to date? Update it by BIOS update feature.
Try to reset BIOS. Take out the battery and wait 5 minutes.

After you change BIOS settings you must press F10 (save and exit).

 

[JLAF5150]

use parted magic


PartedMagic - Partitioning, Cloning, Rescue, and Erasing.

 

[AddRAM]

Have you ever installed Windows 7 on this PC before ? Are you certain your Windows 7 install dvd works properly ?

1) Windows 7 does not come on a cd, but I`m sure you know that.

2) Did you make any changes to the Bios before you attempted the install, if so set it to defaults by hitting F5, then F10 to save and exit.

3) Sounds like you are not choosing a custom install.

4) You`re using UEFI, is the disk initialized as GPT ?

5) "Boot menu won`t work" are you talking about the one time boot menu ? Not the Bios ?

Clean Install Windows 7

Bootable Partition Manager| MiniTool Partition Wizard Bootable Edition

 

[Papaya]

Restore the UEFI BIOS to default settings and then set the following settings, if you want to install Windows 7 either in UEFI mode or in Legacy BIOS mode.

ASUS motherboards.

CSM (Compatibility Support Module) - Allows you to configure the CSM items to fully support the various VGA, bootable devices and add-on devices for better compatibility.

Secure Boot - Allows you to configure the Windows Secure Boot settings and manage its keys to protect the system from unauthorized access and malwares during POST.

Boot > CSM (Compatibility Support Module) > Launch CSM
- [Auto]: The system automatically detects the bootable devices and the add-on devices.
- [Enabled]: For better compatibility, enable the CSM to fully support the non-UEFI driver add-on devices or the Windows UEFI mode.
- [Disabled]: Disable the CSM to fully support the Windows Security Update and Security Boot.

Boot > Secure Boot > OS Type
- [Windows UEFI Mode]
- [Other OS]

You do not need to change the boot order of drives in your UEFI BIOS settings. If you have changed the settings, then restore the default settings.

- Connect your Windows 7 USB/DVD.
- Restart the computer.
- Press the correct key (ASUS motherboards F8) to enter the boot menu.

To install Windows 7 in UEFI mode you need to boot from the Windows 7 USB/DVD installation media in UEFI mode (marked UEFI in the boot menu). To install Windows 7 in Legacy BIOS mode you need to boot from the Windows 7 USB/DVD installation media in Legacy BIOS mode (not marked UEFI in the boot menu).

UEFI mode uses the GUID Partition Table (GPT) partition style. Legacy BIOS mode uses the Master Boot Record (MBR) partition style.

 

[Cheemag]

Is your BIOS up to date? Update it by BIOS update feature.
Try to reset BIOS. Take out the battery and wait 5 minutes.

After you change BIOS settings you must press F10 (save and exit).

I'd rather not go down that road. I'd rather take the disc out and reformat it on another machine via a USB caddy.

Could this be due to that Secure Boot system preventing alterations to the BIOS/UEFI ? I thought that was from W8+1 onwards, but the UEFI probably was meant to cope with everything up to W10.

 

[Cheemag]

Have you ever installed Windows 7 on this PC before ? Are you certain your Windows 7 install dvd works properly ?

Yes. But update failed completely and there were other problems.

1) Windows 7 does not come on a cd, but I`m sure you know that.

It does: The install CD which came with the machine. I realise I could download a W7/SP1 iso and make my own CD on the other machine, but it still isn't going to boot from the CD.

2) Did you make any changes to the Bios before you attempted the install, if so set it to defaults by hitting F5, then F10 to save and exit.

No.

3) Sounds like you are not choosing a custom install.

I am, but a custom install will only give a clean reinstall if it's booted from the CD. Start it by running Setup.exe and it'll keep all the old rubbish and retain all the old directories.

4) You`re using UEFI, is the disk initialized as GPT ?

No idea.

5) "Boot menu won`t work" are you talking about the one time boot menu ? Not the Bios ?

The one-time boot menu and the boot menu in the UEFI are the same. Press F8 and you end up in the UEFI: same page as you get if you'd gone into the UEFI with DEL and gone to the Boot menu. You then have to Save & Exit, at which point you're told that you haven't made any alterations ! In short both F8 and DEL take you into the UEFI, F8 taking you directly to the Boot menu rather than the intro page.

Clean Install Windows 7

Bootable Partition Manager| MiniTool Partition Wizard Bootable Edition

I'll have a look at that. Thanks for your response.

 

[Cheemag]

Restore the UEFI BIOS to default settings and then set the following settings, if you want to install Windows 7 either in UEFI mode or in Legacy BIOS mode.

ASUS motherboards.

CSM (Compatibility Support Module) - Allows you to configure the CSM items to fully support the various VGA, bootable devices and add-on devices for better compatibility......

Thanks. I don't pretend to understand it, but I've saved the text and will look at it for clues as to what to do next.

 

[Cheemag]

use parted magic


PartedMagic - Partitioning, Cloning, Rescue, and Erasing.

Thanks. I'v tried a couple of these boot discs, but they both depend on booting from the CD to get into the Grub boot thing. I can't boot from a CD directly

 

[Megahertz07]

Win 7 isn't compatible with Secure boot. Also disable fast boot.

Follow Papaya instructions from post 5

 

[Papaya]

I don't pretend to understand it, but I've saved the text and will look at it for clues as to what to do next.

Here is more info.

Source: Microsoft

Windows Setup: Installing using the GPT or MBR partition style

Many PCs now include the ability to use the UEFI version of BIOS, which can speed up boot and shutdown times and can provide additional security advantages. To boot your PC in UEFI mode, you'll need to use a drive formatted using the GPT drive format.

Many PCs are ready to use UEFI, but include a compatibility support module (CSM) that is set up to use the legacy version of BIOS. This version of BIOS was developed in the 1970s and provides compatibility to a variety of older equipment and network configurations, and requires a drive that uses the MBR drive format.

However, the basic MBR drive format does not support drives over 4TB. It's also difficult to set up more than four partitions. The GPT drive format lets you set up drives that are larger than 4 terabytes (TB), and lets you easily set up as many partitions as you need.

Boot to UEFI mode or Legacy BIOS mode

Boot into UEFI mode or legacy BIOS-compatibility mode when installing Windows from your USB, DVD, or network location.

If you install Windows using the wrong mode, you won’t be able to use the features of that firmware mode without reformatting the drive.

Select the firmware mode during bootup.

1. Boot the PC. As the firmware starts to run, press the key that opens the boot device menu. For example, press the Esc, F2, F8, F9, F12, or other key to enter the firmware or boot menus.

2. On the boot device menu, select the command that identifies both the firmware mode and the device. For example, select UEFI USB Drive or Network - BIOS.

   Note

You might see separate commands for the same device. For example, you might see UEFI USB Drive and BIOS USB Drive. Each command uses the same device and media, but boots the PC in a different firmware mode.

Here is an example of the one-time boot menu.



If your Windows 7 USB flash drive is formatted as FAT32 file system, then it should be bootable in UEFI mode. When you boot from the USB flash drive, UEFI mode starts the boot process either from the "\efi\boot\bootx64.efi" file or from the "\efi\boot\bootia32.efi" file. There are only a few computer systems that have the 32-bit UEFI firmware and in that case you must use a 32-bit version of the Windows 7 USB flash drive.

64-bit UEFI firmware:
As long as the USB flash drive is FAT32 formatted and has \efi\boot\bootx64.efi file, it should be bootable in UEFI mode.

32-bit UEFI firmware:
As long as the USB flash drive is FAT32 formatted and has \efi\boot\bootia32.efi file, it should be bootable in UEFI mode.

The \efi\boot\bootx64.efi or \efi\boot\bootia32.efi file does not exist by default in the Windows 7 installation media, so you need to create this file by using the Rufus program, if you want to install Windows 7 in UEFI mode. Rufus automatically creates the boot folder in the efi folder and puts the bootx64.efi or bootia32.efi in the folder, when you create a Windows 7 USB flash drive.

Rufus - Create bootable USB drives the easy way

If you want to install Windows 7 in UEFI mode, then select the following settings.

Under Partition scheme and target system type, select GPT partition scheme for UEFI.
Under File system, select FAT32.

If you want to install Windows 7 in Legacy BIOS mode, then select the following settings.

Under Partition scheme and target system type, select MBR partition scheme for BIOS or UEFI-CSM.
Under File system, select NTFS.

SOURCE: USB Flash Drive - Create to Install Windows 10 - Windows 10 Tutorials

 

[AddRAM]

For some reason he is incapable of bringing up the boot menu. :huh: