Unbearably slow BIOS boot

[RHinNC]

I have Win7 64 bit, on a Alienware Area 51. Lately when I start or reboot my PC the BIOS is taking about 2.5 mins before my startup begins on the PC.

The BIOS is the latest available, and I have changed boot order but still takes so long in the BIOS mode. Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks so much!

 

[fireberd]

Is it the actual BIOS or just that it takes that long before Windows starts?

If its just how long it takes for Windows to start loading, it sounds like a hard drive issue. Run checkdsk /f and see if that improves anything. A disc defrag may also help.

There is a special users forum on the Dell community just for Alienware users; you could also try there for this problem. Alienware Club - Dell Community

 

[Dwarf]

Unplug the HDD (it doesn't matter which cable, data or power). Then reboot and see how long the BIOS phase lasts (don't worry about not being able to load an OS, this is to be expected since you disconnected the drive).

If the BIOS now completes more quickly, then it could be an issue with the drive. Reconnect it, and check the integrity of the data cable at both ends.

 

[RHinNC]

Will try...

Thanks to both of the posters to offer advice. I will take the steps to resolve my issue and report back. I am disabled and not able to move the PC to remove the side of the PC to unplug the drive cable. My PC is a monster and I can not move it to access it, so will have to wait until a friend moves it for me.

Again thanks!

 

[AddRAM]

Use Smart Defrag and do a 1 time boot defrag, it is safe. See if it helps. At the longest a bios should take no more than about 15 seconds to run.

Best Free Disk Defrag Software, your free disk defragmenter FOREVER

 

[gregrocker]

Is there a newer BIOS update on the Dell Support Downloads webpage? Try running the last available BIOS update even if you have it already.

Run Startup Repair a few times with reboots to see if it finds anything to repair.

I'd also Clean Up Factory Bloatware to tame some of the preinstalled crap that throttles Win7 native performance.

However you can get the cleanest possible install and best possible performance by doing what most tech enthusiasts do which is to Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7

 

[AddRAM]

Something is DEFINETLY wrong if your bios is taking 2.5 minutes. Have you considered a new motherboard ? How old is the machine ? Did it always do this since you`ve owned it or did it just recently start ? Have you done any changes that brought on the issue ?