Alienrespawn fail!

So I decided to AlienRespawn my machine and everything was going well until it restarted. After the reboot, the windows logo pops for a second followed by the BSOD for a quick flash second and it restarts. I've tried to do it a couple of more times, but I still get the same result. All the hardware is the same as when I first got it back in April. Now I'm afraid I bricked the thing. The only thing that I can think of it's the BIOS version. At one point I switched from A09 to A08, could this be the cause it? If so, is there a way I can reinstall it outside of windows? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

It could be that a setting is different. Try going into the BIOS and default it then search for the 'blind flash' method. Or maybe someone else can link for you?

You have to put the BIOS file with a specific name onto a USB stick (fat 16/32 formatted not NTFS), put the USB into the eSata port on the right side, and go through a startup procedure with the battery out.

Is sounds like it happens at the point windows is loading the hardware drivers. You've not 'bricked' it since you get past the BIOS screen. Did you change any BIOS settings? I'm thinking of the HD access mode for the RAID driver.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...-case-you-brick-your-m17x-r3.html#post7791370

 

Load the BIOS defaults (F9 in BIOS) and follow this troubleshooting.

 

What does the bluescreen say?

 

1-Use the Bios recovery method with A09
2-F2-Load defaults F9-Save and exit F10- restart -F2
3-Apply same Bios settings as when recovery image was created and try again.

 

Ok, I'm currently gone on a business trip, but I will try this once I get back this weekend.

As far as the Blue Screen, it's too fast for me to read, it only comes up for less than a second, too fast to even read what it says.

I will search into the Bios recovery - A08 to A09 - and try again. If this doesn't work I guess I have two options. 1. call Alienware and have them help me through this or 2. Do a fresh install by wiping the entire drive (to include the recovery partition and install my own copy of W7.

I tried to install a fresh copy of W7 into one of the partitions but it fails "unable to install windows services due to hardware". My guess is because of the recovery partition.

In any event, I will go ahead and try the Bios recovery and take it from there I guess.

 

Yes, load BIOS defaults and try to boot into Windows.

This is also a good idea, format the partition and perform a clean windows installation. In that same article you will see your system listed. Click your model to find all the drivers.

 

Sounds like the boot mode has changed from RAID to ACHI or vice versa.

 

Exactly what I thought, I mentioned this in an earlier post

 

:thumbsup: Just got back from my trip, and this was the first thing I checked. Now, she is back up and running, thank you. Now to install my newly purchased 830 SSD

 

Good news , - I did mention this in the first reply to your original post

 

I'm glad that you got it sorted out

 

Yeah, everything is good now. I did a clean install, but it looks like I have to run on A09 BIOS. A08 just doesn't like my intel video card. Also, the screen it's not as bright. So it's either SATA III but deal with that, or just get back on A09, run on SATA II but have my switchable cards active again and no dimness. I've tried to upgrade the AMD driver but it crashed my computer, so 12.1 it is. SSDs are so sweet, never going back