Win7 PC boot failure - bad driver to blame?

[LaurieD227]

I rebooted my ProStar Win7 Pro PC 4 nights ago,and it would not boot all the way up. It got as far as the black screen with the "Starting Windows" phrase and would not go further.

I rebooted, at which point Startup Repair tried to fix the problem but couldn't. I wrote down the results (the details are in the attached txt file). The results said something about a "bad driver." I was able to get it to boot all the way, and at that point I applied my most recent Restore point. As far as I can tell, it was successful, and I have not had a boot problem since.

The reason I'm posting this is because I figure I still need to solve the driver problem, and I'm not sure what I should do next. I've done the following:
-I ran chkdsk which found no problems (results attached)
-I ran sfc /scannow multiple times, both before and after running the SUR tool. The results were the same each time - the only errors found were some files related to Windows Update KB3068708 that I later discovered were not actually corrupt (that's a whole different thread). The most recent results are attached.
-I ran the SUR tool, which found no errors. (Logs attached)

So - any ideas?

 

[LaurieD227]

I also ran Norton Internet Security and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. Neither found any evidence of any infections or issues, with the exception that Norton found and removed some tracking cookies.

 

[Ztruker]

Any dumps (.dmp files) in C:\Windows\minidump? If yes, zip them up then post in the Crashes and Debugging forum.

 

[LaurieD227]

Nope, there isn't even a "minidump" subfolder in my Windows folder. I also searched my Windows folder for any file with the file extension ".dmp" and found nothing. Would it have been wiped out when I applied the System Restore point that predated the boot failure?

Also, I will ask to have this thread moved to the Crashes and Debugging forum. I didn't think to go there initially since my machine never actually "crashed."

EDIT: So the Crashes and Debugging forum is the BSOD forum? This didn't seem serious enough to me to belong with the BSOD issues. Or am I just confused?

 

[Boozad]

This appears repeatedly in the sfc results (as you've stated):

2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    0000033f [SR] Cannot repair member file [l:24{12}]"utc.app.json" of Microsoft-Windows-Unified-Telemetry-Client, Version = 6.1.7601.18869, pA = PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE_AMD64 (9), Culture neutral, VersionScope = 1 nonSxS, PublicKeyToken = {l:8 b:31bf3856ad364e35}, Type neutral, TypeName neutral, PublicKey neutral in the store, hash mismatch
2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    00000341 [SR] Cannot repair member file [l:66{33}]"telemetry.ASM-WindowsDefault.json" of Microsoft-Windows-Unified-Telemetry-Client, Version = 6.1.7601.18869, pA = PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE_AMD64 (9), Culture neutral, VersionScope = 1 nonSxS, PublicKeyToken = {l:8 b:31bf3856ad364e35}, Type neutral, TypeName neutral, PublicKey neutral in the store, hash mismatch
2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    00000343 [SR] Cannot repair member file [l:24{12}]"utc.app.json" of Microsoft-Windows-Unified-Telemetry-Client, Version = 6.1.7601.18869, pA = PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE_AMD64 (9), Culture neutral, VersionScope = 1 nonSxS, PublicKeyToken = {l:8 b:31bf3856ad364e35}, Type neutral, TypeName neutral, PublicKey neutral in the store, hash mismatch
2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    00000344 [SR] This component was referenced by [l:162{81}]"Package_250_for_[B][COLOR=Red]KB3068708[/COLOR][/B]~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.1.0.3068708-814_neutral_GDR"
2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    00000346 [SR] Cannot repair member file [l:66{33}]"telemetry.ASM-WindowsDefault.json" of Microsoft-Windows-Unified-Telemetry-Client, Version = 6.1.7601.18869, pA = PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE_AMD64 (9), Culture neutral, VersionScope = 1 nonSxS, PublicKeyToken = {l:8 b:31bf3856ad364e35}, Type neutral, TypeName neutral, PublicKey neutral in the store, hash mismatch
2015-06-24 20:03:37, Info                  CSI    00000347 [SR] This component was referenced by [l:162{81}]"Package_250_for_[B][COLOR=Red]KB3068708[/COLOR][/B]~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.1.0.3068708-814_neutral_GDR"

Go to Control Panel > Programs > Programs & Features > View Installed Updates then uninstall KB3068708. If it returns through Windows Updates hide it so as to stop it installing in future. (you'll find more info on that here among many other threads http://www.sevenforums.com/performa...exe-how-seriously-should-i-take-report-2.html ). Best to remove it from the equation and see how things go, if the problem persists we'll dig deeper.

 

[LaurieD227]

As indicated, I found the Microsoft information regarding the "false positives" - the fact that the files associated with KB3022345 and KB3068708 show corrupt in sfc when they really aren't corrupt.

I also found that both of these updates are installed on my older Dell D630 Win7 Pro SP1 machine (32-bit), and the SFC /SCANNOW results come back clean - no report of corrupt items whatsoever, and this is without any "fixing" or intervention. Maybe it's due to differences in configuration (hardware and/or software and/or both) between the two machines, or maybe to the order or timing of the installs - or maybe phases of the moon (who knows?)

Regardless, I went ahead and uninstalled both updates from the ProStar machine (Win 7 Pro SP164-bit), and the SFC /SCANNOW results are now clean.

However, I don't think this has anything to do with my "failure to boot - bad driver" problem.

 

[LaurieD227]

After tracing back, I finally realized that the last thing I did before the "failure to boot" issue was that I copied a set of files to an older USB stick - a 4GB "Attache" stick manufactured by PNY Technologies. I have used this stick before with my older machines, but I can't remember if this was the first usage on the ProStar. It has never caused a problem, never been infected - it just worked.

When I inserted the USB, the usual process occurred - recognizing a new device, installing the driver, and pronouncing it ready for use. (see attached generic jpgs that show what I mean)

I copied my files to the USB, removed it, and shut down my laptop. the next time I tried to boot up, the failure occurred and the Startup Repair couldn't fix it. That's when the problem signature results contained a reference to a "bad driver." (Text attached)

My "Restore" seems to have worked, as the problem has not occurred again. However, I have not tried to use this device again, and I don't know how to figure out what driver would drive it, let alone what caused the problem, how to fix that driver if it is still broken, or how to prevent problems with it in the future. It is possible that my Restore may have fixed it, since it restored back to a time before I used the USB, but I don't know how to tell for sure

This all assumes that I'm correct, and that this event is the cause of the failure to boot - but I don't know for sure if I'm right.

 

[GokAy]

If it does it again

You can use DriveCleanup (Drive Tools for Windows) to get rid of those drivers:
- Remove the USB stick (if attached)
- restart
- run DriveCleanup as admin
- restart
- plug in the USB stick (it should auto install)

This will remove all drivers for devices not attached at that time, so your other USB sticks/HDD will go through the regular device driver installation phase.

 

[LaurieD227]

Sorry for the delayed reply - I've been on the road

When I get home, I will try the USB stick again to test it and its driver to see if it was just a faulty install the previous time. If it fails again, I will try your solution and will post the results

Thanks!!!