Acer Aspire 5740G Owners Lounge

Hi guys!

My laptop is living its final days and it gave me a final puzzle to solve and i need your help.

I am having a blue screen of death problem(or i think thats what its called) where a little after the first windows logo appears i get a blue screen and if i dont turn it off it does this in a loop.
The error code is 0xc000021a
It started when i got one of the occasional blue screens that i havent been able to solve and it restarted. The original blue screen is a problem that has something to do with my gpu I think because it haapens sometimes when im streaming something or watching something on youtube. Dont know the code of that.
All i can do now is reach the F2 menu. I tried making a windows bootable usb but it hasnt worked so far. The thing is I only have access to a mac and an trying to make this usb with it but i think im doing something wrong. Im using an app called unetbootin to make it. First time i did it i found myself in a new loop from booting with that. Then i reformated the usb and did it again and this time all i get is a blank ms dos screen with a blinking cursor. A friend of mine made it with the mac terminal somehow but that did not work at all. I also tried with 2 different usb sticks. Next im going to try formatting it in ex-fat first and then burning the iso. Maybe that will do the trick.
Im running windows 10 (not sure which version but i guessed it was the anniversary update) 64-bit. If i could somehow restart in safe mode or get into windows repair mode im hoping i will be able to fix it.
Really would help if someone could point me in the right direction. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

@cannyboy888

The error code 0xc000021a is a "normal" Windows error, have you trying this ?
https://appuals.com/how-to-fix-error-0xc000021a-in-windows-8-and-10/
It's to early to say that your "occasional blue screen" is a GPU failure, maybe it's also a Windows/driver/network issue.

 

Hey @Andy53
Thansk for your answer.

From the link you sent methods 1 and 3 i cant try because i cant reach my windows. I have just finally been able to successfully create a windows bootable usb and booted it up with that.
From there I was able to enter the repair mode.

First i tried the startup repair but it just said it couldnt repair the PC. Then I tried a system restore to this one automatic restore point (the only one). That also didnt work and it says "system restore failed while copying the registryfrom the restore point. An unspecified error occurred during System Restore (0x80070570)

Then I tried a chkdsk via command promt but that also doesnt go well. This is method #5 im trying to do(from the link you sent). There first i type "c:" to switch to c and then "cd windows\system32\config"
(so it looks like C:\> cd windows\system32\config) which im not sure if im writing correctly and it says the system cannot find specified path.

This is currently where im stuck. Any further advice would be appreciated. Really need to fix this asap.

 

Also just saw this and it doesnt look too good

 

Well, I'm not a Windows expert, I'm only send you this link because its looks to have some reasonable solutions.
Looking at point 5 I think its only useful if you make some earlier backups, and looking at your screen I think its the 100 MB boot sector made from Windows , doing so since Windows Vista, Where it put the boot manager and startup file's, all hidden. ( 62Mb free from 100MB )
You can try to prompt D: to see if your Windows is there.

 

Hi @Andy53

So a small update:
I figured out that the photo I sent was system reserved rather then where my windows is and dir D: is really where it is. I was then able to do what is written in method 5. I renamed everything to make a backup and copied the files back from the RegBack. there was no backup of COMPONENTS or DRIVERS and maybe thats the problem cause it didnt work. I even did it a second time and again it didnt work.

I also successfully ran chkdsk and that also found no errors. All my files are where they are supposed to be but I windows just wont turn on.

Do you know if theres any way I can reset my windows or just install windows without losing my files?
When you boot from windows 10 bootable usb apparently "reset this pc" is not an option and when I choose install windows now, there is the upgrade option that lets me keep my files but when I choose it it says that I need to log into windows first and then I can run the upgrade option. All I need is to save some of my files Hope theres a way.

 

Now you can copy your files you want save to another partition or another usb/stick/drive if you now where the are in Windows, just for Shure.

 

But is it possible to do it with command prompt? I cant access my windows. I only see them when I do a "dir" on command.

 

Yes, for example "walk" to Favorites,
Copy Favorites E:\new map
The contents of Favorites, not the map itself will be copied to E:\new map
if new map not exist go to E: and
mkdir new map
E: is example drive an maps in maps must be copying separate.

There must be easier way to copy complete maps with maps in it to designation but I can not remember at the time, but above will do.

With cd you change from directory ,
cd windows
shows you de maps and files in windows after dir
cd\
go back to rootdrive example D:
cd..
go back one directory

 

Perfect! thank you for all your help!

Ill see what I can do tonight and write an update here.

 

Not a big problem, but perhaps someone else has also experienced this. When I activate or disactivate the touchpad on my 5740G, the light on the button is illuminated or turns off, but the little icon no longer appears on the screen. (I've tried doing a seach for this without any success).

 

Finally found a programm that allows me to control the fanspeed of the 5740G and is way more comfortable to use than RWEverything. In case someone else has similar problems with fanspeed not adjusting properly try this.

https://github.com/hirschmann/nbfc/wiki

I load the profile for the 5738G and it is working pretty well so far. If someone found some even better settings it would be cool if you could share them.

 

Howdy partners. This topic is a treasure for me. I sallute all the contributors and the thread starter!
Here to ask a question. On the road to boost our ol'trusty 5740G's , is it OK to replace the default 35w TDP processors with a 45w TDP quad core processor ? I saw a couple of times this has been discussed but couldn't see a feedback from a user experience.
*My 333G32Mn specs*
i3 M330 (ordered an i5 M560)
2+1 GB DDR3 1066 (Replaced the 1 with a 4)
Radeon HD 5650
320gb Hitachi (Replaced with Sandisk 120GB SSD, put in an USB enclosure)

 

Hello there. They did OK with those 45W CPUs. 5740G has a good cooling system (although not very quiet)

 

Glad to hear that.
Another thing, since the HD5650 is soldered/cannot be replaced, what's our best bet for the intel HD graphics?

 

Switchable graphics does not work on 5740G so of you have a dedicated card you will be stuck using it regardless. So it's 5650 till the bitter end...

 

Hey Guys, i have owned this laptop for 5 years until one day, it was overheating (again)..
i had it enough and i just put it on top of the shelf and forgot about it.

Now i am in a situation where i need a NAS, and i am thinking about using this hardware to create a NAS. May be take out the chipset into a new case or custom case if needed and plugging in my USB 3 external drives

But this laptop had USB 2.0 didn't it......is there any way i can attach sata or PCIe card something to accommodate USB 3...

 

Until you remove them physically along with some registered, i saw a janky ass video online converting a graphics card mobo into a on board one, but it was a different laptop altogether

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/acer-aspire-5740g-owners-lounge.468091/page-514
post #5139
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/acer-aspire-5740g-owners-lounge.468091/page-522
post #5212

And if you don't' need your Wlan you can use the slot also.

 

thanks Andy. This is awesome !!

but if i am reading it correctly you are getting 32Mb reading - 29Mb writing isnt that slow for USB 3 ??

 

The NEC chip on that board support both USB 2 and 3, the speed from the USB 2 is faster than the Intel chipset from our Acer.
The fastest speed I saw was about 150Mb/s but depent on chipset from usb case, best result I have from case with factory drive in it.

Edit

But If you use another case for our Acer you can also put a SATA2 or 3 card in it see,
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/acer-aspire-5740g-owners-lounge.468091/page-542#post-9599983

 

I can move the motherboard / chipset out of the laptop case, that is not a prob, i have seen people creating good solutions for out of the case laptops, example:


Yes now these are the speeds i can live with. However this is not what i was looking for and raises one more question in my mind.
I will ask point-wise

1. i have usb 3.0 external hdd(s). is there a miniPCI to usb 3.0 card ? Did you plug this card in WLAN (wifi) slot or modem slot? if i am not wrong the modem is there on the laptop and is also connected to miniPCI slot EDIT: sorry modem is not on PCI chain, saw the block diagram,
2. From your thread, where did you get the card from (Asmedia ASM1061), and secondly how did you provide power to any thing that will be plugged into these sata slots
3. I have optical drive (ODD) removed as well so that will be one more slot for expansion, how can we use this slot to expand ?

 

Lets take all clear, Asmedia ASM1061 sata is not used by me, it was a test, only mini pci e usb3 card with NEC/Renesas chipset with 2 outputs.

1 Yes mine,

http://www.conrad.com/ce/en/product/986875/1-port----USB-30-controller-card--------Mini-PCIe

another example, 4 outputs.

http://www.speeddragon.com/index.php?controller=Default&action=ProductInfo&Id=416

Search for mini pci e usb3, look if cables are included.

I put the card at 3G, but you can use both slots if you have space.


2 Look again at my project, also link 1 #5136, I solder 2 wires at the place from diode D19, its the power from the HDD, affected by sleepmode.

If you work with USB externals, Then its enough power.


3 To put a HDD on it, You see it in your example movie at about 9.40 minutes/sec .

 

Just wanted to share.
This is my my favourite laptop, especially for tinkering on.
I have it running 10.13 High Sierra.
I3-330M 2.13 GHz
Samsung 850 SSD
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470 overclocked (Core Clock 850MHz, Memory Clock 950MHz)
4GB DDR3
Dual boot Windows 10 with working VMware boot camp booting.
The MacOS install is more or less fully working (sleep/wake, graphics acceleration,Brightness, Bluetooth, FaceTime/iMessage, ethernet, audio with voodoo)
Only HDMI audio and hibernate are not working.
Looking at getting AC wifi for it
And another SSD for my caddy which replaces the optical drive.

 

Are there any results yet, I'm curious

 

Hello there, it's been a really lonh time since i last posted here.

I bought myself a tv, and i connected the laptop with the tv through hdmi, and nothing happened. not the tv nor the laptot recognized any connection.

Some years ago i connected the laptop to a friends tv through hdmi and watched a movie, but the second time i tried it it failed to connect. so the problem was known to me.

A friend of mine told me that that maybe the hdmi port is disabled inside bios. Is this a possibility? I entered bios but there's no selection for enabling hdmi or any peripherals.

My bios is updated to the version that is suggested over here, and just for info, the first time that i connected it with hdmi i had the old bios version, and by the time i realised the hdmi was not working i had the 1.22 version.

Help is appreciated, just bought a tv and can't connect my acer to it. Not happy

 

I don't have this laptop anymore but as far I'm concerned its driver issue. New drivers don't work properly with hdmi output. Easy to find is if you recover system from recovery partition hdmi will work fine regardless of bios version.
Just try different old drivers from amd website till you find lucky one.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4X using Tapatalk

 

Hard Drive burned up, i don't have the partition drive anymore..

 

I have working HDMI (at least it was working) - I'll post driver version for AMD GPU and HDMI audio (I use Realtek's driver for that) when I have this notebook on.

 

Thank you very much man, please provide me with some link and some info

 

You can also try to close the lid when you connected to HDMI.
This way you force laptop to search for a monitor.
Before doing that go to configuration/buttons behavior, to prevent laptop to go in sleepmode when closing the lid ''doing nothing when closing the lid"

 

I have an AMD GPU driver version 15.200.1062.1004, driver date 2015-08-03. This should be it.
and ATI HDMI device driver version 6.0.1.6650, driver date 2012-06-04 (that is a Realtek driver, not the one embedded by AMD in their driver pack) This one should be available at www.realtek.com under software/High definition audio codecs (can't put a direct link - click here, accept a disclaimer and confirm.)

This setup works for me on Windows 7 64 bit. Also you might need to launch the Catalyst Control Center and force it to detect connected monitors. Sometimes that might not happen automatically.

 

Thanx man, if the drivers don't work will try this too.

Thank you very much mister,k i've been waiting for your reply specifically. All these years that i own this laptop your advice has always been spot on.

To the subject, let me ask you this. Can i install these drivers on top of the ones i have? or should i uninstall the previous ones and then instal those?

Should i download the Radeon Software Crimson Edition Beta togegther with the catalyst software suite? or only the latter one?

the link for downloading in the realtek site does not work (there where it says global?)
(EDIT: found them elsewhere. Can you please guide me installing both of these drivers?)

 

@ypnos You can install drivers over the old ones. No need to uninstall the previous ones before.

 

.

Hello there again.

Tried both, but none solved the problem. I even formatted to windows 10, but that did not make a diffirence either.

Maybe you could suggest something else?

 

@ypnos Can you verify that the HDMI cable is working correctly with some other device?

 

Yes of course. Will post later with the results

 

Have same GPU driver as Downloads but,
AMD h.d. audio device 7.12.0.7723
Realtec h.d. audio dev 6.0.1.7770
Win7 64 ultimate
HD 5470 GPU
BIOS 1.28 (but I think don't matter)

Another thing to look at is some TV's have auto connect, disable it and choose port manually.

 

The cable works fine, and all the ports are enabled.

I'm thinking of reverting back to win 7 and download a driver from the acer website from 2009 or so

 

It's not a way of finding a good driver, it must be conflict free.
Yesterday I put mine on HDMI and even the BIOS booting is on the screen, so a standard driver is in the BIOS.
I now you have 1.22 an I 1.28 so can anyone with 1.22 confirm that he have also the bootscreen on HDMI ?

 

Sorry man but can't quite understand what you mean

 

When I was using this laptop sometimes i have experienced normal booting on TV connected through HDMI and disappearing screen just before log on screen on both 1.22 and 1.28 bioses.
Problem is with HDMI in this laptop. Other thing i find that I get better quality when i connect laptop to tv using VGA cable than HDMI.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4X using Tapatalk

 

That you don't need windows to use or check HDMI.
If you turn your laptop on, you see a bootscreen, or an acer screen, and it must be on your TV, even if you go straight to BIOS with F2.
I meant to read you have BIOS 1.22, mine is 1.28, so I ask if someone have also BIOS 1.22 , he can confirm that there is output on HDMI, even if you look into BIOS.
If not, then upgrade to V1.28.
If yes, then your HDMI is broken if you have no HDMI on booting.

 

If just before login HDMI disappeared then you have a driver conflict, but you can confirm that's it working on booting.
With VGA you have to put separate sound to it.

 

I know that will need separate audio what it gets me is that picture quality is better on vga than hdmi.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4X using Tapatalk

 

Aaahh, that's much clearer. Will give a try later and will inform you.

 

HDMI does not load on booting.. Does that mean that it is broke?

If i connect the laptop on a VGA screen BIOS does not lkoad either on booting, but when it enters into windows mode screen loads..

 

Not really Shure, I ask people with BIOS V1.22 ( that's yours ?) if the confirm to have the same as I have, booting and BIOS on TV.
If yes, then yours is broken.
If not, then you have to upgrade to V1.28.
But no one answers yet ......


Edit;
Can not speak for VGA, have no cable

 

What the situation for our machine about meltdown and spectre?

 

Good !!

Tool Started 5-1-2018 13:36:03
Name: ANDY-PC
Manufacturer: Acer
Model: Aspire 5740
Processor Name: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU M 640 @ 2.80GHz
OS Version: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate
Engine: Intel(R) Management Engine
Version: 6.0.0.1184
SVN: 0
Status: This system is not vulnerable.
Tool Stopped

It only counts for 6st.gen. and higher, afaik.