Do I Want Clean Install Or Upgrade?

I want neither. I want a fix.

I downloaded and put on USB that Microsoft thing designed for when you've got a BSOD or that BCD thing - when you're computer is in dire need of help.

Lucky I did. Come home today and my computer is sitting there with a blue screen asking me what keyboard type I want - USA, etc . ?

Where the hell that came from I don't know.

But it wouldn't boot.

So I put that USB in and tried again. It still wouldn't boot into Win10 but it did boot into something and questioned me about what I wanted: go to device or this or that or USB.

So I selected USB and it rebooted and hung on the 'press F2 or Del for BIOS' screen.

I figured it wanted me to go to BIOS and set boot order for USB so that's what I did.

So then it proceeds for a whlle and stops again asking me 'it looks like you started an upgrade and booted from install media... do you want to continue if so pull the media and pick 'Yes' or a clean install if so pull the media (implied) and pick 'No'.

I want neither.

Which should I do?

How much does it complicate things if I go the wrong way?

Perhaps either way leads to the choice I"m looking for (was promised, I think) 'repair' ?

What happens when you boot the computer without the USB flash drive inserted?

I just crashed it in order to find out.

It hung for the longest time on the pre-bios screen. You know what I mean? Asking for F2 or Del to go into Bios.

Normally that screen only last a few seconds, if that. Now it hangs forever.

I got tired of waiting for it continue to Windows so pressed f2 and del for good measure. It took another long, long time and I was about to give up when it did go into the BIOS.

So I saw the boot order was back at the system drive, I think - not sure because there's three apparent just about the same drives there as optional boot and I don't which is which. So I assume it is still in the configuration it was in when I went out today and which it has been in for months. So I just 'save and exit' and it tells me I"ve made no changes.

Okay. So that should attempt to boot to Windows on the system drive.

Last I looked it was still hanging at the 'pre-bios' screen.

Right: After about 3 minutes it went into a windows screen with a message about the BCD had no valid info error 0X0000098

and giving me a choice between F1 for recover and ESC for UEFI Firmware or something.

And it clicked itself off.

But when I switched the machine back on again it came back to there promptly. So it was just in hiding.

So I went F1.

Wait, it said.

Choose keyboard it said.

I chose USA.

It then offered me choices between Devices, something else and Off.

I chose Devices.

It offered me these choices:

Hard drive UEFI dvd etc.
USB UEFI something
USB UEFI net

I picked the top USB choice
And I chose then to put the USB in.

It went to the Pre-BIOS screen. (that'd be the Asus Splash Screen maybe?)

I input F2 and del.

Eventually it went to BIOS and I had these choices in the boot order:

Three SATA6_G and a UEFI Sandisk Cruzer.

I picked the Cruzer. Dragged it to the top. First choice

It asked me if I wanted to save because I'd made no changes, it said. Changing the boot order isn't a change it seems.

Then it went to the Pre-BIOS again.

Then after a few minutes it went to where we came in:

A notice: 'It looks like you started an upgrade.. blah, blah, blah.. do you want to continue or do you want a clean install?'

?