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Laptop incapable of completing boot after Windows Update last week
I have updated Windows 10 to the most recent version in the past 72 hours and have encountered the problem of not being able to get my system to boot in anything but safe mode or safe mode with networking.
My boot appears to start normally. The Asus logo is in the center of the screen and the spinning white circles appear underneath. This occurs for about 20 seconds, and then things start going wrong. The screen goes black for a few seconds and then the loading circles reappear, but not the Asus logo. This 'stage' of loading can take 5 or 10 minutes to change, and when it does, it gets worse. My computer finally transitions to a screen that looks like DOS saying:
It never gets past this screen.Code:Phase 0 : Starting Watch Dog Initialization Phase 0 : Loading Config...(roots krnl, setup) Phase 0 : Pre initialization events Phase 0 : Creating Watch Dog dynamic key list. Phase 0 : subsystems initialization.
Knowing this had happened a month and a half prior, I attempted the solution that resolved the issue then. I used my installation of AVG antivirus Free Edition to run a safe mode scan. Last time I had this issue, AVG found a trojan horse, removed it, and then I was able to boot normally. This time, even the safe mode scan couldn't fix anything. Multiple non-system folders were locked (according to AVG's command line window), and although it found over 100 infections, it didn't fix any of them.
Reading online, I had found out that Windows 10 Updates and AVG products don't always get along, and so I got the AVG Removal tool and attempted to remove everything. Keep in mind, I couldn't attempt a normal uninstallation because I'm in safe mode. So I let the tool run its course and it removes Anti-virus and WebTuneUp. I restart my computer, attempting to run it without safe mode, but I still can't complete the boot. However, it's now hanging on the second step; the white loading circle without the Asus logo. It no longer goes to a black screen with command line-esque text. I attempt running the AVG Removal tool again, it says it hasn't gotten rid of WebTuneUp. I re-run the program to remove the remaining AVG software, and attempt to boot. It still hangs at the second step. I then go back into safe, run the removal tool once more, and WebTuneUp is still there despite the fact that I have now removed it and restarted three times.
At this point, I give up on trying to remove AVG stuff, and see if I can use msconfig to change my startup settings. I disabled all non-Microsoft services and disable all startup apps. While looking through my startup programs, I find a program called Avguirna. I right-click that so I can check where on the disk it's location, but to no avail. 'Open file location' is greyed-out in the context menu. I can't find any executable on the hard drive with that name. I disabled it and all other start up programs. Here is my list of startup stuff:
After disabling these and any non-microsoft services from running upon startup, I tried booting into normal mode. It hung at the same point as before I had disabled startup stuff. Next, I thought that I might attempt back everything up, and re-install Windows 10. Once everything had been backed up, I load the pre-boot start up options by pressing shift-f8 before Windows loads, and select "Reset My PC". It tells me it can't find any Administrators on my computer. I know for a fact I had an Administrator account set up, but I check regardless via Safe Mode. I confirm that I created an admin, restart, check if I can Reset the system now, and no. I try enabling the super administrator account, check again, at it still can't find an admin account. Finally, I create a whole new administrator, and it can't find that either.
I can't even use a restore point, because that too requires Windows 10 can see my Administrators from the boot recovery options. To clarify, I can see every account that is an admin listed as such if I have Windows booted up, but if it's pre-boot tools (like system restore, reset, refresh pc) we're talking about, it can't see my administrative accounts.
I decide yet again to try a completely different thing and see if I can create a bootable AVG USB stick. If it is a virus causing this, having the OS on my hard drive not loaded at all may help me scan those locked files. I go to AVG's website and download their LiveUSB package. I use a friend's PC and set up the stick. I go into my laptop's BIOS setup, and set my system to try boot from usb before the hard drive. I try booting this usb stick 3 times. I try boot with my external HDD and it works just fine. Unfortunately, my HDD's bootable media isn't the AVG usb system, so I get nowhere.
I literally have no idea what to do and I am in desperation to get my system functional again. Is there anything I can try to get any of the methods I attempted to work so that I can better work on solving this probrlem? Is there any methods that I haven't tried that I could try? For clarity's sake, I am trying to get my computer to boot fully without having to be run in safe mode.
Thanks guys. I don't have most of my specs, but I am working on getting them listed shortly.