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  • #4037309

    Update broke Windows 11

    Locked

    by doniel ·

    Windows installed an update today and rebooted. When it came back up, I was greeted by a black screen. Strangely, one startup program was displayed. And when I invoked Task Manager, it showed me that all my programs were up and running.
    I rebooted and chose the option to uninstall the latest update, but the geniuses at Microsoft reupdated me when I rebooted to Windows. The same thing happened when I did a system restore.
    I disconnected from the Internet and did a restore from a backup of two days ago. To my astonishment, the black screen persisted. That one I can’t figure out at all.
    Whatever options are open to me are limited, since I can’t do anything within Windows 11, as I can’t see anything.
    Short of doing a clean install, is there anything I can do?
    If not, I’d do the install from 22H2 version I downloaded from Microsoft. Since I’d be installing from my Windows 10 drive to a different physical drive, what do I need to do to make sure the installation asks me where I want to install to?

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    • #4037313
      Avatar photo

      About where to install to.

      by rproffitt ·

      In reply to Update broke Windows 11

      Unplug drives you don’t want touched during install. There are countless discussions about installs that wiped out drive content. Not much has changed, that is, backups are still not optional.
      As to the Windows 11, what happens in Safe Mode?

    • #4037326
      Avatar photo

      Re: install

      by kees_b ·

      In reply to Update broke Windows 11

      Don’t install from Windows. As rproffitt says, disconnect all disks except the one you want to install on, then boot from a bootable USB-stick you can make when downloading the Windows installer. All will be fine if the hardware is OK.

      You might like to boot from a Linux disc or stick first to see if that works correctly. If not, it’s some hardware issue.

      • #4037328

        Reply To: Update broke Windows 11

        by doniel ·

        In reply to Re: install

        I take it you don’t see any other options for me to try.
        I didn’t think of Safe Mode. Will try that and post back here. But I don’t recall the procedure to get into Safe Mode.

        • This reply was modified 1 year, 1 month ago by doniel.
        • This reply was modified 1 year, 1 month ago by doniel.
        • #4037344
          Avatar photo

          Re: boot into Safe mode

          by kees_b ·

          In reply to Reply To: Update broke Windows 11

        • #4037361

          Thanks, kees_b

          by doniel ·

          In reply to Re: boot into Safe mode

          Safe Mode yielded the same black screen (Actually, blacker, since startup programs didn’t load.)
          Okay, next question. The iso file is too big for the fat system on my stick drives. I tried converting them to GPT a while back and it wouldn’t let me do it.
          I can burn it to a DVD, but how do I make the DVD bootable? I’m not asking how to boot from a DVD. But I just tried burning the files to an image and the program warned me that it’s a non-bootable DVD.

        • #4037377
          Avatar photo

          I haven’s used the .ISO method for close to a decade.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to Thanks, kees_b

          I let the Microsoft tool make my bootable USB drive.

          Also, the ISO does not get copied to the USB stick. It is used to create a bootable USB stick and in the process will ERASE whatever is on that stick or drive.

          I do not advise use of the ISO since so many try it and then end up with a stick that does not boot.

          Read https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/create-installation-media-for-windows-99a58364-8c02-206f-aa6f-40c3b507420d to get the tool.

        • #4037390

          Thanks, Bob

          by doniel ·

          In reply to I haven’s used the .ISO method for close to a decade.

          But . . .
          First, I repeat: The installation file downloaded from Microsoft is larger than 4GB, the limit for my sticks.
          Second, in order to disconnect all drives but the target, as per your recommendation, the installation file needs to be on an independent device, i.e., a stick or DVD. Stick is out, as explained above. That leaves DVD. So I need to know how to make a DVD bootable.

        • #4037409
          Avatar photo

          The media creation tool is very small.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to Thanks, Bob

          And I run it on Windows. The tool and how it works is explained elsewhere but all we need is a USB stick or recordable DVD media. The tool will create either for us.

          Folk that download an ISO work too hard in my opinion.

          Question: What size USB stick do you have?

          It doesn’t matter what file system is on said stick since the media kit has to wipe that out and create bootable media.

        • #4037414

          32GB & 128GB

          by doniel ·

          In reply to The media creation tool is very small.

          I was hoping to avoid this, but I’m going to have to explain. My PC won’t pass the requirements checks for Windows 11. Someone “fixed” the problem, but it involves extracting the files from the downloaded .iso and modifying boot.wim and one other change. I ran it through my antivirus program before using it. But I know, Bob, that you won’t support something like this. I’m not asking you to. I just want to know how to make a DVD bootable after burning the files back into an .iso.
          Can you help me with that without you feeling like you’re compromising your principles?

        • #4037613
          Avatar photo

          Re: bootable DVD

          by kees_b ·

          In reply to 32GB & 128GB

          The burning program has to write the boot info on a blank DVD. You can’t change that on a burned DVD.

          All you can do: ask that “somebody” to patch the installer on a USB-stick or on your Windows 10 HDD/SSD. In principle it’s easy: uncompress it, do the necessary changes on the uncompressed files, and compress it again. And no, we don’t support that.

          The easy solutions:
          1. Don’t use Windows 11. Windows 10 is nice enough and supported for at least 2 years.
          2. Buy a Windows 11 compatible PC or replace the motherboard on your current PC.
          However, some people love challenges like this. It seems you do.

        • #4037760

          Not burned yet

          by doniel ·

          In reply to Re: bootable DVD

          Thank you for the info. But I don’t understand what makes you think we’re talking about a DVD that’s already burned.
          Using Windows 10 is just delaying the inevitable. (Though it IS possible that I’ll upgrade my computer in the interim, in which case Windows 10 as a stop-gap measure IS an option.)
          Many products in the country we live in are expensive compared to the U.S. That’s why I don’t upgrade so easily. Even though my motherboard’s 10 years old (from purchase – it may be older than that as far as hitting the market), it and my other components do the job.
          And while challenges can sometimes be enjoyable, I could happily do without this one.

        • #4037776
          Avatar photo

          A 32GB USB stick is more than big enough.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to 32GB & 128GB

          But we don’t copy the ISO file since we don’t need the ISO file.

          Why? Because the Microsoft media creation tool creates the USB for us.

          And about the making of DVD or such outside of the media creation tool would be something those other web sites have to reveal. I’ve never done that because it’s never been needed.

        • #4037788

          I’m asking a general question

          by doniel ·

          In reply to A 32GB USB stick is more than big enough.

          How to make a DVD bootable. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never used a DVD for installing Windows. My question is simply if you know how to make a DVD bootable at the time that you’re burning an .iso onto it.

        • #4037802

          By the way

          by doniel ·

          In reply to I’m asking a general question

          When I say computers and accessories are expensive here, here’s a fresh example. The one fan in my case (besides the CPU fan) stopped working. I’ve been looking for a replacement case (it’s an old case and even if I just swap the fan, who knows how long the psu will last?) and I just received links to a few possibilities from one of the stores I contacted. The Antec P101 Silent without a psu is about (after converting from the local currency) $168.

        • #4037827
          Avatar photo

          The Microsoft tool

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to I’m asking a general question

          From the last time I used it did create bootable DVD media.

          As to the .ISO, there is NO WAY to make a DVD bootable by burning a ISO file to it.

          What?

          We create a DVD from the ISO, never write the .ISO file to the DVD! The ISO is the entire image of a DVD along with boot information. Which is why there are tools like ISOBURNER and similar out there.

          -> Again, it’s been over a decade since I used the .ISO file for this. I use the media creation tool and the job is done.

        • #4037870

          Got it

          by doniel ·

          In reply to The Microsoft tool

          Just to absolutely confirm: You don’t see any way to save my current installation?

        • #4037934
          Avatar photo

          May have to make a new discussion.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to Got it

          How to create Windows install and repair media is one thing. Fixing a busted Windows is something that there must be a million prior discussions.

          What have we learned from all those prior discussions? My take is that it’s never the same thing and that repair is always uncertain.

        • #4037951

          That’s clear

          by doniel ·

          In reply to May have to make a new discussion.

          What I’m asking is: If this were your Windows installation and you didn’t want to have to go through installing all your programs again and tweaking all your settings again, are there any steps you’d take to try to salvage the installation?

        • #4037964
          Avatar photo

          My methods.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to That’s clear

          1. Restore from backups.
          2. Google it (again.)
          3. Safe Mode.
          4. Make the machine smaller.

          Remember I have yet to use the .ISO files of Microsoft Windows but for you I looked up a possible method using VENTOY. As I have never used this, I can’t write more about it but read https://www.computerworld.com/article/3626363/build-the-ultimate-bootable-windows-repair-drive.html

          Note that it supports booting from a .ISO file! Also noted is what file system to have on said USB.

        • #4037966
          Avatar photo

          Let me expand on the “Make the machine smaller” here.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to My methods.

          Often a cranky PC’s problems can be traced to some hardware.

          Which is where I get out the screwdriver. I remove power and if a laptop the battery so I can downsize the PC to just its boot drive, no WiFi card, one stick of RAM and if it has a desktop Graphics Card I move to onboard/motherboard video for the repair session.

          Usually that gets the BIOS and Windows to show me more detail and often fixes the Windows OS to the point I can start thinking about what could be wrong with this PC.

        • #4038002

          I’m truly grateful

          by doniel ·

          In reply to Let me expand on the “Make the machine smaller” here.

          That you spent time researching for me is above and beyond.
          It’s already late at night here and I won’t be able to work on this for the next couple of days, but I hope to report back here on Sunday.
          If you were here, I’d kiss you. Wait. Do you have a beard? 🙂

        • #4039678

          Reply To: Update broke Windows 11

          by teampades ·

          In reply to I’m truly grateful

          I can burn it to a DVD, but how do I make the DVD bootable? I’m not asking how to boot from a DVD. But I just tried burning the files to an image and the program warned me that it’s a non-bootable DVD.

        • #4039813
          Avatar photo

          Again no.

          by rproffitt ·

          In reply to Reply To: Update broke Windows 11

          You can make a bootable DVD but you can’t make a DVD bootable.

          If you want to add or change files to the ISO then use ISOBurner or such to create a DVD, sure but I have never seen or heard of a way to make a DVD bootable after one puts files on a DVD.

          At this point I worry this is ARCANE knowledge. Folk seem to have forgotten how to make bootable media! It’s not as if the web articles are not out there. But hey, seems like folk want things to work that would never work.

    • #4044480

      Thank you, but . . .

      by doniel ·

      At some point, the option to reply was no longer showing in this thread and so I continued it by starting a new thread titled An update broke Windows 11.

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