How to boot to BIOS when Function Buttons are not Showing?

OK, given up. Taking it to a Samsung repair shop

 

I understand perfectly. Your computer was essentially bricked, and you have shown admirable persistence trying to fix it yourself. If you don't have warranty, and if Samsung won't help you at a reasonable price, you could check local repair shops if they have BIOS flashing capability. We just got this post from a member in France with a similar problem, who found a flashing service to take care of his bricked AB4.

Once you have put this behind you, if you can find the time to summarize what you tried these last couple days, I would love to hear it. And I am sure it would add valuable information to this thread.

 

I plan to summarize a post and link it and share that link on my first post to take visitors straight there.

I guess the things to learn from this experience;
* Do not install on ExpressCache
* UPDATE ALL Drivers to Windows 8 via OEM website before doing ANY Windows 8.1 update.

Your support @Dannemand has been awesome.

 

That's great, I look forward to that. You could post a link in our Win8,1 Update thread as well.

I would add that updating BIOS can be crucial as well before performing Win8.1 update.

Also, it cannot be stressed enough, that the problem of installing to the iSSD is not limited to the user intentionally or accidentally selecting it as destination: Windows Setup does it all by itself anytime you install from USB, EVEN though you select the HDD as destination -- because Setup incorrectly sees the iSSD as the primary boot device. This is true on all models with ExpressCache, and is probably a big reason why Samsung stopped adding ExpressCache on 2014 models -- even in the high-end Ativ Book 8 which has a slow 5400 RPM 1TB HDD that would have benefited tremendously from it.

The simplest solution is to install from DVD instead. OR to leave the original boot partition on the HDD intact, so that there is a working boot partition on the HDD after the installation.

But all of that assumes you can get into your BIOS in the first place to select a boot device -- or press F10 to temporarily select one. Once those are gone, you're at least partially bricked.

You know all that by now. This is just for the history books.

 

Most definitely. Let's see if Samsung repair centre will repair it under warranty. I'll be very disappointed if they don't. I'll be going in there kicking and screaming.

 

Can I have it? I'll pay for the courier.

 

They have found a fault in the motherboard and looking at replacing it. I will get it back by next Tuesday unfortunately.

 

They usually replace the motherboard when there are BIOS problems. Presumably they re-flash the BIOS afterwards, then recycle the motherboard into the next bricked machine they receive. But that's also why it's too expensive to fix when out of warranty.

It sounds like they're covering you here. I really hope they do

 

They said it's covered under warranty, thank goodness.

I'm thinking of ghosting my machine when I get it back (if it's Windows 8) and do an update to 8.1 and replicate my original issue lol. This time, I won't install onto ExpressCache.

 

That's a relief

Unfortunately partition images (ghosts) made with 3rd party tools will usually break Samsung Recovery Solution (irreparably) when you restore them. But you can use SRS to create a factory image backup on a USB stick and/or to clone the entire disk. Those will preserve working Recovery. We have lots of references and guides on that.

Also, if you DO try another clean install, please do it from DVD. Otherwise it WILL install the boot partition on the iSSD, no matter what you select in setup. You can choose OS Mode Selection=UEFI and CSM OS to help boot the DVD, as long as the HDD is partitioned as GPT. I recommend formatting just the Windows partition and leave the others intact. Again, we have guides on that.

And finally, if you choose to update to Win8.1 (if Samsung doesn't put 8.1 on the HDD already), make sure to update BIOS before (with the standalone updater), and run SW Update and Windows Update both before and after the 8.1 updater. It's in Samsung's 8.1 update guide and our 8.1 thread.

Gotta sleep now.

 

Hi all,

same probleme for me :

I can't enter bios with F2 key, the mSSD boot loop and always boot first dispit the bios order (i enter the bios a first time with a W8 DVD but do the stupid thing to deactivate uefi and choose CMOS instead).
But i can boot on USB if i unplugged the mSSD.

So my question is :

can i expect to repare or format the mSSD with another computor (with an msata/sata or msata/usb adaptor) and boot on USB with this repared (i have made a full copy of the mSSD after buying my np900x3c-a04fr with TodoBackup last year) or formated disk ?

I know reparing the disk can't make W8 working because i disable secure boot and uefi but perhaps it'll offer me booting other devices with the mSSD plugged and then i can reinstall W8 or at least W7 without uefi ?

Thks.

 

You should be able to get into the BIOS with F2. My method is to start tapping the F2 key about twice per second starting immediately after pressing the power button to turn the computer on.

Another route is using F10 which should give a one time boot order list but also includes a link to the BIOS setup.

If none of these will work for you then you may want to try the suggestions here and here.

John

 

Hello Halback, welcome to NBR.

Your problem is different from that of member KcKepz earlier in in this thread: His Samsung model has a small SSD soldered onto its motherboard (so-called iSSD) which is not bootable and can only be used for caching. Once his boot partition ended up on that iSSD (and he accidentally wiped his main HDD), him being locked out from the BIOS effectively bricked his computer, because that iSSD cannot be removed without replacing the motherboard.

In your case, it is still troubling that you cannot enter BIOS (F2) and it is quite possible that you will not be able to fully fix this without contacting Samsung service.

You should technically still be able to boot your computer, even though you changed OS Mode selection from UEFI OS to CSM OS. But since you are now in CSM mode (the good old BIOS mode) you have to boot from a disk using MBR layout. Your SSD currently uses the new GPT layout (all Win8.x-delivered computers do) which can only be booted in UEFI mode.

1) First make sure you are trying hard enough to get into BIOS with F2 since the timing can be very difficult: With power on, hold the power button for a few seconds to force the computer off. Then start tapping F2 immediately after you power on, and keep tapping it repeatedly about 2-3 times per second.

2) If getting into BIOS still fails, then your computer does indeed seem to suffer from the problem of messed up CMOS. Try the BIOS/CMOS reset procedures mentioned on the first page of this thread. (In fact, make sure you study the entire thread, not just the fist page.) If that allows you to get back into BIOS (F2), then change OS Mode Selection back to UEFI OS. For now, leave SecureBoot disabled and disable Fast BIOS/Boot to make it easier to boot USB. Once everything is working, you can re-enable Fast BIOS/Boot to speed up boot times and SecureBoot to protect from malware.

(To clarify: CMOS or NVRAM is the memory where BIOS saves its settings. CSM OS (Compatibility Support Module) is a setting that makes modern computers compatible with good old BIOS instead of using the newer UEFI standard. If you do not understand the difference between UEFI/GPT and BIOS/MBR, you may want to avoid the installation procedures described below. This post gives an introduction and links to Microsoft articles.)

3) If you are still unable to get into BIOS, you can try booting WinPE from a USB stick (read KcKepz's posts about that earlier in this thread). By pressing F10 immediately after power on, you may be able to select a boot device. Having the SSD removed should help. If you are able to boot this, you can try re-flashing your BIOS, which will often clear CMOS/NVRAM. If you are NOT already on the latest BIOS version, you can simply update to the latest using the Samsung BIOS Update utility. Please follow advice in the thread linked below to minimize risk:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/698094-samsung-bios-update-problems.html#post8963047

If you are already on the latest BIOS, you need to roll back to an earlier version, then update again to the latest. This is a tricky procedure described in the thread linked below. Make sure you study the entire thread before you start:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sam...ptops-roll-back-bios-updates.html#post8940344

4) Your other possibility is to convert your SSD to MBR and install Windows on it using a USB stick on another computer. It doesn't matter which Windows version. That computer MUST be running BIOS mode (either an older computer originally delivered with Win7, or switched to CSM mode if it's a newer computer delivered with Win8.x). The install guide here contains steps to convert the disk to MBR along with BIOS settings for Samsung laptops. Of course you can use any brand of computer, as long as you use BIOS/MBR mode. Make sure the SSD is selected as the boot device on that computer before you start installing, otherwise Windows will place its boot partition elsewhere.

Note that the SSD will be wiped when you convert it to MBR, losing your Windows installation, data and Samsung Recovery. Of course it is even better if you have another mSATA SSD you can use. Otherwise you can make a complete disk image of the SSD using Clonezilla (from a Linux LiveCD) and save for later. Other partition imaging tools can be used, but will most likely lose your Recovery.

Do NOT complete the Windows installation on the other computer, only proceed until Windows Setup has copied files and tries to boot for the first time. Then turn it off, swap the SSD back into your Samsung, plug in the USB stick and power on. With a little luck, the installation will proceed, boot from the SSD (which is now MBR, as your BIOS wants) and install matching drivers for the Samsung.

Once you (hopefully) have Windows up and running, you can use the description above to re-flash your BIOS and hopefully unlock F2. Unfortunately Windows in BIOS mode can not access your firmware settings as can Windows in UEFI mode; otherwise that would be a way to get back into BIOS.

As you can see, this is rather involved, and there is no guarantee of a positive outcome. If you still have warranty (being in Europe should give you two years) I would definitely contact Samsung before getting too deep here.

In any case, please keep us posted with the outcome.

Edit: I see John beat me to it. Our timing is often impressive: We usually end up posting responses within minutes of each other

 

On this occasion you were delayed by the time needed to prepare your more much more detailed response.

John

 

Hi,

thks for yours answers.

I do the bios/cmos reset and now waiting 48 h...

 

Thank for you the update. Understood. I cross my fingers that it will work for you!

 

Hi,

reset partialy work :

Bios is back to it's default settings so i can now enter with a W8 CD but Fn keys still doesn't worked and changes in Boot order priority are lost on reboot.
The SSD still boot first and fail :-(

My Bios is P07ABK, before trying re-invented the wheel perhaps someone already done a WinPE CD/USB for the samsung biosupdate ?

Thks

 

You remind me of my trip down the same road hehehe.

Are you saying you can't get into bios?

Boot order will not stay when booting up. If you can get into bios, you're best trying to install Windows "8" first, then install all the Samsung "updated" drivers to install Windows 8.1.

 

Hi,

i can get into bios only if i disconnect the mSSD and use a W8 CD to enter UEFI bios.
So i can't install nothing on the mSSD because if connected it always load first and fail and i can't boot on my W8 CD first to do an installation on the mSSD :-(

I read on the firsts posts you try WinPE, did you succeed to do a biosupdate by this way ?

 

Hi again Halback,

Congrats on that partial success from the CMOS reset. If indeed your BIOS was reset to default settings, it should be back to OS Mode Selection=UEFI OS. Otherwise, if you can get to the firmware settings through a W8 DVD (as you mention) you can also manually set it back to UEFI OS. Make sure to then disable SecureBoot and Fast BIOS/Boot while you can.

With those settings, you should be able to boot Windows on your SSD (assuming it is still intact). And that's all we want for now: Just be able to boot ANY Windows, so you can start the next phase of your project, to re-flash the BIOS in the hope of getting your F-keys back. In other words, if you can boot your original Windows, that's pretty great, and you don't have to mess with WinPE.

Just be very careful here, so you don't lose the ability to boot Windows again: That is your backdoor into the BIOS settings.

@KcKepz: I much appreciate you chiming in here, since you lived through this and tried a lot things. Halback is a little better off than you were, because there is no un-removable Expresscache iSSD involved and his original SSD is still intact. But the goal is still to clear the CMOS/NVRAM.

 

So Halback doesn't have a HDD but a SSD instead?

Boot order is USB disk drive so if you have one, you can "should" be able to boot to your DVD/CD before the iSSD. With my experience, the disc would read but would not boot up. Because of this reason, I pretty much gave up and thought that there was something wrong that was beyond my control. I then rang Samsung and asked if my lappy was still under warranty and thank fully, I still had another month. Took it in and they told me it was a faulty MoBo and so they replaced it and it has been awesome ever since. Was able to update to Windows 8.1.

The thing is, ALL drivers MUST be updated for Windows 8 before doing the Windows 8.1. Once I did this after I got it back from the repairers, it's been smooth sailing. However, I don't know how having a corrupt update ruin the MoBo? Go figure...

In your case, you should be able to boot external drive (DVD/CD). If it reads but does not boot, then we must do something else instead.

Keep us posted.

 

D O N O T I N S T A L L W I N D O W S W I T H O U T T H E H D D / S S D P L U G G E D I N ! ! !

You'll ruin your chances of doing anything else after that.

 

Hi,

i can boot external USB/CD/DVD drives but only with my mSSD unplugged so i can't make no change on the mSSD and unfortunatly it's W8 installation is broken (boot loop on a blue screen in a few second exactly like your video).

Since Fn keys and boot order priority doesn't work i need to find a way to boot external drive first with the mSSD plugged so i can try some repairing stuff on it.

I try to boot on the W8 CD first and plugged the mSSD after (that was risky) but the mSSD wasn't see by the W8 CD.

I see 2 options :

- try to repair the mSSD in another computer (but i've some doubts about the right adaptator, i read some advertising over msata vs pci-e and i don't know the right choise)

- try to update the bios with WinPE and hope that fix the Fn keys and preserve the boot order priority on reboot.

 

LOL

Halback's model (Series 9) has a pure SSD, instead of the HDD+iSSD of your model and mine (Series 5 and 7). So that particular disaster that happened to you cannot happen here. But there are other potential pitfalls, so great care is definitely advisable!

@Halback: I am working on some suggestions for you. Please be careful what you try until you see it...

Edit: Is your Win8 DVD an original Microsoft/Samsung disc? I ask because Win8 ISOs downloaded with Microsoft's Update tool have been known NOT to boot properly from DVD in UEFI mode. However, they DO boot fine from USB stick (when created as FAT32). Full ISOs downloaded from MSDN are fine as well, both as DVD and USB stick.

Installing from USB stick is fine on your model (again, different from models with ExpressCache like my Series 7 or KcKepz' Series 5).

 

What you are seeing is normal behavior for UEFI mode, not a result of the CMOS/NVRAM/F-keys corruption: With SecureBoot enabled, the computer will ONLY boot from a signed OS, and with Fast BIOS/Boot it will ONLY boot from the SSD, not from USB or DVD. However, when removing the SSD, it WILL look for a valid boot source on USB or DVD.

What you need is to disable SecureBoot and Fast BIOS/Boot in BIOS. With those disabled, you should be able to boot Win8 Setup from USB or DVD, even AFTER you put the SSD back. Are you able to change those through the firmware page when booting the Win8 DVD?

With those two disabled, you normally should be able to select a boot source by pressing F10 immediately after power on. But maybe that one fails too, along with F2 and F4. If so, we have to get Boot Priority working. The reason Boot Priority doesn't work in UEFI mode is usually that EITHER SecureBoot and/or Fast BIOS/Boot are enabled OR that no valid UEFI boot source is found when selecting Boot Priority.

So here is what I suggest:

1) Make sure you have a valid, UEFI comaptible Win8 Setup source. This is not as trivial as most people may think. In fact, it is the most common source of Win8 installation problems:

a) If you have an ORIGINAL Microsoft or Samsung disc (and a DVD drive) you are fine. If you have a Win8 disc created from a full MSDN ISO download, that's fine too.

b) If you have an ISO downloaded with Microsoft's Update tool, those have been known NOT to boot as DVDs in UEFI mode. In that case you need to put it on a USB stick instead. Do NOT use Microsoft's USB/ISO flashing tool (it doesn't work with UEFI). Instead, use Rufus (Google it) to create a FAT32 USB stick. Or create it manually as described in this guide in our Windows forum.

c) If your model has ExpressCache you should ONLY install Windows in UEFI mode from DVD, NOT from a USB stick. Otherwise there is an actual risk of semi-bricking. Series 5 and Series 7 models with HDD up until 2012 DO have ExpressCache; Series 9 / Ativ Book 9 models do NOT have it; neither do ANY models from 2013 or later. (I mention this for completeness, even though it doesn't apply in Halback's case).

2 With the SSD still removed, boot the Win8 installation media, get into firmware settings and disable SecureBoot and Fast BIOS/Boot. Save and reboot.

3) With the SSD still removed, boot the Win8 installation media and get into firmware settings again, and check the Boot Priority page. You should (hopefully) be able to select the USB/DVD source. Save and power off.

4) Re-install the SSD (with the working but corrupt Win8 installation).

5) Power on with the Win8 installation media inserted. Hopefully Win8 Setup will load. Perform repair functions or clean install Win8.

Alternative: If you still cannot get the Win8 install media to boot, you can try to temporarily set OS Mode Selection=UEFI & CSM OS. It should help booting Win8 installation media that are not properly UEFI compatible. I generally don't advise it, as it might confuse Windows Setup as to whether it should install in UEFI/GPT mode or BIOS/MBR mode.

Once again, I would not bother with WinPE, since you are this close to being able to boot your original Win8 or re-install it. I suppose you could try a repair using Win8 setup on another computer, though it would be my last option.

Again, the way I see it, if you can get Windows working again on your original HDD, you have a fully running machine. You can then pursue re-flashing the BIOS to see if it will unstick the F-keys. But as pointed out in my very first response, there is no guarantee here: You may have to let Samsung repair it after all. Several people (like KcKepz) have had to do that despite glorious efforts to fix it on their own.

 

Hi,

I've already done the step 1-4 (my W8 DVD is an original W8 Pro 64 from box), i even try to create an uefi usb flash drive with ruffus.
And stuck at step 5 with UEFI, CMOS or both mode : it's always the mSSD who boot first and do infinite loops.

Thks

 

Damned !

i manage to restore the installation according to this page :

Windows 8.1 upgrade from 8.0 on Samsung Series 9 laptop results in - Microsoft Community

and i succeed to restore W8, do my configuration and enter in W8.

Victory ?

No :-(

on reboot it fail on blue screen but this time i have a error message (/windows/system/winload.efi) and some options are show F8...

 

When you say you followed that procedure, you mean you powered the computer on without the SSD and pressed F4, then hot swapped the SSD while it was running, and got into Recovery that way?

While impressive, I cannot generally recommend this: I think the risks of shorting something during a hot swap like that and/or the risk of corrupting the SSD is too high. And if you subsequently should need Samsung service, I can see them deny warranty if they know (or can detect) that such a procedure has been attempted.

That said, it is interesting that the F4 key would work (to enter Recovery) even when other F-keys do not work (F2 or F10). Have you tried simply entering Recovery with the SSD installed, without the hot swap?

When you performed that Factory Restore in Recovery, did you enable Partition Settings? That should make it re-partition the drive and recreate the EFI boot partition, not just the Windows partition.

If you are still able to get into Recovery, I HIGHLY recommend you use that opportunity to create a so-called bootable factory image backup on a USB stick as described in this post. A 16GB stick should be enough for your model (though some require 32GB). Choosing the right type of USB stick can be critical, as described in the linked post. Having a secondary backup is generally advisable, as described in this post, particularly if preserving Recovery is important for you. The backup you made with TodoBackup probably will NOT preserve your Recovery (even if you backed up the entire disk).

Once you have that, you should be able to wipe the SSD on another computer (use Minitool partition Wizard or DISKPART) making sure it is still GPT. I would assume with a blank SSD installed in the Samsung, you should be able to boot either your Win8 DVD or the USB Recovery backup you just made. The latter will completely re-image your SSD to factory state.

Disclaimer: Nothing here behaves exactly as expected, which underscores that there is some BIOS/CMOS/NVRAM corruption going on. Given that, I cannot guarantee that wiping the SSD will work -- or even not get worse than what you have now. You may still have to contact Samsung for help in the end, and you should consider whether this is worth your effort and the risks.

 

Hi,

yes i hotswap the SSD after hiting the F4 key.
With the SSD plugged first the F4 key do nothing.
All options in Recovery (F8) failed to boot Windows but the ESC key make me enter bios.

The error /windows/system32/winload.efi missing or corrupt make me suspect the SSD is perhaps defective on some sectors.

I just hit the "recovery" button in the Samsung Recovery Software.

Will try with the option you mention "partitions settings" and perhaps do a bios update if i can do it on the first launch of W8 without a reboot.

Note that the Fn keys and boot on USB drives with the SSD plugged still doesn't worked.

 

OK, thank you for the update.

Rather than a defect sector, I think it is more likely that your last restore in Recovery (F4), while it restored the Windows partition, did NOT properly refresh the EFI system partition (boot partition). I am hoping Partition settings will see to that.

If you plan to try wiping the SSD, I (once again) HIGHLY recommend you make that bootable factory image backup in Recovery first (again, F4). I cannot begin to tell you how many users here have wished they made such a backup while they still had a working Recovery, but only realized it AFTER they either lost their Recovery partitions or lost the ability to load Recovery with F4.

Also, if you (hopefully) are able to boot Windows and re-flash your BIOS, make sure you follow the advice for safe flashing that I described in my first response to you: If you can simply update (because there is a newer BIOS available) then do NOT just flash the BIOS from inside SW Update, but instead download it and run it standalone. But you may have to do the roll-back first in order to force a clearing of the NVRAM.

 

Hi,

A thousand of thanks, it works !

I 've made the USB Key bootable image file, a copy on an USB HDD and a no-bootable image file on a USB HDD.
I will make a full SSD Copy later with Clonezilla.

The partition settings option and/or the bios update did the trick, i don't know because i did the bios update immediatly in W8 before rebooting.

Now the Fn keys, the boot order priority and W8 works.

Thank for your precious help.

 

Thank you for the update, Halback. I am very pleased to hear of your success. You did really well there!

So just to make sure I understand correctly what you did, as it might help others:

1) You made those Recovery backups as a precaution, in case you'd have to wipe the disk (described here).

2) You performed a factory restore in Recovery, this time with Partition settings enabled. At the very least did that solve the boot problems that began after the previous restore without Partition settings. It is also possible that this could also have solved the Boot Priority problem in BIOS, since such a restore re-creates the EFI boot partition.

3) Once you were able to boot Windows (the factory Win8 you had just restored) you updated to the latest BIOS (using the safe procedure described here). This presumably cleared the NVRAM and allowed your F-keys to work again when your computer starts up (F2 to enter BIOS, F4 to enter Recovery, F10 to select boot device). And probably it is also what solved the Boot Priority problem. I understand that you did NOT have to roll back to an earlier BIOS first.

Is that correctly understood? Otherwise please correct me.

Once again, you did very well there

 

Hi,

Yes all steps are corrects except i can't confirm the partitions setting option solve the boot loop because i don't take the risk of another reboot after the first launch of W8 and do a bios update immediatly in W8 after the configuration steps (from P07ABK to P10ABK with the file ITEM_20131114_21268_WIN_P10ABK.exe).

So what i do exactly :

1) unplugged the SSD.

2) Power on, wait for a message that said all the boot options failed and invite me to press F4.

3) Hit F4 and after plugged the SSD quickly : The Samsung Recovery start to launch !

4) Make a lot of backup for safety and restore with Partitions setting options ON.

5) W8 start it's first launch : do configurations steps and when i have the control download biosupdate.exe from Samsung website.

6) Execute biosupdate.exe : it download the ITEM_20131114_21268_WIN_P10ABK.exe file. Execute this file in admin mode and let the update go on.

7) Now W8 and the bios are fully fonctionnal.

8) Update to W8.1 with hard pain and a very lot of time but it's another story

++

 

Thank you, again, for posting these results and the exact steps, Halback.

I understand what you said about being unable to confirm that Recovery with Partition settings was what fixed the boot problem. It is a good guess that it did, though, since that setting forces Recovery to re-write the EFI system partition which contains the boot loader. So when paired with Recovery backups like you did (in case something fails during the full Recovery or later) I think enabling Partition settings is good advice when fixing major problems such as the ones discussed in this thread.

But it is almost certain that the BIOS update was what fixed the BIG bug that kept you locked out from BIOS.

We're done here. That was a good story

 

Hello,

I have a NP530U3C-A07SE and I'm in a similar situation.
I tried reinstalling Win7 and, before reading about the bizarre hardware/software setup of this computer, wiped the entire HDD and hence deleted the recovery partition.
I also poked around in the BIOS settings probably resetting it to factory defaults and hence enabling fastboot and secure boot. I don't remember if I also changed the boot sequence.
By now, both the iSSD and the HDD can be seen as properly wiped after various installation attempts.

So, this is what works;
* Pressing F9 on the BIOS boot screen to make it boot from (any) USB disk/stick and install Ubuntu or Windows onto both the iSSD and the HDD.
* Pressing F10 on the BIOS and enter the empty boot selection window.
Pressing F2 or F4 on the boot screen equals pressing nothing and results in reboot (looping).

I have tried every combination of Win7, Win8.1 and Ubuntu installations.
I've tried with another HDD to rule out sector defects.

The computer simply refuses boot from the HDD!

The nearest I got to a HDD boot was booting SysRescCD 4.5.2 from USB and selecting "boot from second hard drive" and continuing Win8.1 setup which fails after a while. This method also works for running Ubuntu from the HDD.

I've tried to reset the BIOS CMOS by soft disconnection of the battery overnight without success. I've noticed that there is a RTC battery, which I only disconnected for a short while (together with soft battery disconnect) without success.

The scenario leaves the following alternatives;
* Resetting the BIOS by reflashing it. The BIOS is a Phoenix BIOS, version P03AAJ from 20th of June 2012. Requires finding a suitable BIOS file, BIOS writer and probably booting from WinPE.
* Restoring the recovery partition. Requires access to suitable ISO and that F4 works on the boot screen.
* Turning it in for repair to Samsung. Probably expensive...

Any other ideas?

Thanks in advance.

 

My first thought is that the Windows installer has put the boot files on the iSSD.

You can read more about about this problem and the solutions / work-arounds in this thread. If, after going through those fixes, you still have a problem, then come back for some more suggestions.

John

 

Thanks, but I've tried the methods from http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...tall-windows-7-or-8-via-usb-on-np700z.697841/

My main problem is that I can't access BIOS settings.

 

Sorted it out now by reflashing the BIOS and resetting the variables.

I succeeded with the help from the http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/samsung-laptops-roll-back-bios-updates.696197/ thread, however in WinPE only WinFlash64 works and it has a slightly different parameter set.

Thanks for a great forum!

 

What was the difference?

 

"WinFlash64.exe /file P03AAJ.rom /bak old.rom /v /sd /cvar", if I remember it correctly.

 

Hi, im having the same exact problem as KcKeps. I'm wondering if anyone has found a solution to the problem hear. Thanks so much.

 

I know you are in a panic situation but please do not ask much the same question in different threads.

John

 

Try pressning F9 after power-on to force booting from USB.

 

Hello, I have just joined and I'm wondering if this thread is still active? I have similar problems with my laptop and this is by far the most useful thread going when i googled my problem.

I have a samsung np270e5e which is stuck in a restart loop. Getting into BIOS through the f keys is not working.

Therefore, I removed the hard drive and turned on the laptop, and got the 'all boot options are tried...' message. So, pressing any key takes me to some sort of setup page, where I can disable fast bios mode, and also disable secure boot. I can also change the boot device priority.

I have formatted my usb to be able to boot, using rufus, and it is currently formatted to run the easyre repair tool. I can get the laptop to boot when i exit the setup page, and the easyre programme runs fine. The problem is, I can only get any of this to work when the hard drive is not in, making the repair tool useless. Once i put the hard drive back in I can no longer access any sort of bios or setup page as it is back to the restart loop. The boot priority option doesnt work as it is obviously not saving as i want it to.

I feel like I am getting close, just getting into a different screen other than a constant restart loop is encouraging. But i need to be able to get into this setup screen when the hard drive is inserted....

the laptop is windows 8. I am thinking about downloading windows seven and booting from my usb. although I can only do this when the hard drive is not in.

Any advice would be very welcome. Thanks v much

 

@dmftm: Welcome to NBR.

Check the Samsung Forum Sticky List (on top of Samsung forum). It has a link titled "Unbricking when F-keys don't work" (or similar). That's where you will find the most discussion of your particular situation.

In brief: The NVRAM used by your UEFI BIOS is corrupted and needs to be cleared. You can do this by upgrading the BIOS or by running the BIOS flashing utility with the the right parameters. But in order to do that, you need to be able to boot something. WinPE on a USB stick is a good candidate (with the HDD disconnected).

The fact that you are able to get into BIOS settings is great. Definitely disable Fast BIOS mode for now. I would also consider temporarily disabling UEFI (OS Mode Selection=CSM OS) to help boot that USB stick. But be warned that some members felt this made things worse for them.

Again, that link will take you to a guide in a thread with much more discussion.

 

excellent, thanks for the reply , I will check that out

 

I am struggling to find BIOS updates on the samsung sites. I purchased the laptop in norway so I went on the samsung norway site first, and have also been on the us one. Cant find bios downloads anywhere....any ideas?

 

It is covered in our BIOS Rollback thread, including how to find, download and extract previous BIOS versions. Again, check out the guide I mentioned in my last response. It has links to this as well.

 

hi there. im struggling to understand most of the discussions on here to be honest. im completely out of my depth with this sort of stuff. but i feel like im getting close to fixing it. i was wondering if you could help me again.

i have managed to make my usb into a bootbale device with lazesoft. this only works with the hd disconnected. i have got bios update on the usb too but dont seem able to run it (both the.exe file and the file from the sw update from the samsung site). i have an ethernet cable but i have no idea how to configure it on lazesoft to access the internet. all of the boot repair facilities on the lazesoft program do not work without the hd connected.

any advice? thanks in advance.

 

I understand. The nature of the problem, and the procedures to fix it, are indeed somewhat technical in nature. And since a misstep can make the problem worse, it is good that you show caution.

Unfortunately I cannot offer much assistance beyond what is described in that guide I mentioned (that was a link). I have not performed these steps myself; when I wrote that guide, I was merely summarizing experiences posted by member @Fitztorious in that thread. Since then, many others have contributed their experiences, and we are quite confident that the procedure works.

If you are able to boot a USB stick with WinPE, and from there run Samsung's BIOS Update utility, then that should clear the NVRAM and get your laptop back to normal. Having the HDD disconnected is usually the best way to boot a USB stick in these situations. Follow the safe BIOS update approach described in our BIOS Update thread (that was a link).

If you are already on the latest BIOS version, the BIOS Update utility will not do anything, and unfortunately you need more work: You must find an earlier BIOS update file and extract its contents. The steps for that are described in our BIOS rollback thread (that was a link) where member @isosunrise has written a guide on how to do this. This can be performed on any PC. If you already have a BIOS update file for your laptop (any version should do, but it must be for your model) you merely need to extract its content.

Once you have extracted the contents of a BIOS update file, you need to place it on your WinPE USB stick, boot it on the sick laptop, and run the flashing utility with the parameters /cvar /patch. That too will clear the NVRAM.

This can be a big project, and requires careful study of the NVRAM clearing guide in Fitztorious's thread (again here) and isosunrise's BIOS rollback guide (again here). Trying to walk someone without sufficient technical skill through it remotely is many hours of work back and forth AND carries a great risk of mistakes. So I highly recommend you find a friend or family member with technical experience who can help you.

You or they should post in the NVRAM clearing thread (again here) for any follow-up questions. There is much better chance that members who went through the same ordeal will subscribe to that thread and be ready to answer.

Edit:
Something I forgot: I am not familiar with the Lazesoft tool you mention, but keep in mind that this is NOT merely a boot problem, and NOT something that a generic tool can fix by repairing boot files on the HDD. It is caused by corruption in the memory used by your computer's BIOS and boot routines (NVRAM) and it can only be fixed by a tool that clears that. The best tool for this (that we know) is the BIOS update/flashing utility. But it requires some form of Windows to run, such as WinPE.

Most users are unable to boot anything in this situation, and cannot get to their BIOS settings which would allow them to change their boot settings. You are very fortunate to be able to boot a USB stick, meaning that clearing the NVRAM should be a lot easier.