Chromebook gets stuck in a boot loop.

[Jake275]

I recently purchased a Chromebook 11a G6 EE from eBay, and it's been having some issues. It keeps getting stuck in a boot loop—showing the ChromeOS animation, shutting off, and repeating the cycle. When it eventually reaches the sign-in screen, the display often goes black, even during login attempts. It takes quite a while before it finally becomes usable.

While the ChromeOS animation plays upon starting, there seems to be a relatively thin line that flashes at the bottom of the screen, and there had been an instance of the screen glitching as well. Since it's a budget Chromebook, I don’t think it’s worth taking in for repairs, but I’d really appreciate any tips or troubleshooting steps I can try on my own to get it working properly.

[MysteriousMe]

Welcome to HP Support Community, @Jake275 

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

some steps will erase local data. Back up any files you can access (Google Drive, external USB drive) before doing factory reset or recovery.

1.Full power cycle

Completely shut down the Chromebook.

Unplug the charger.

Hold the power button for 10–15 seconds to force a complete power-off.

Wait 10–15 seconds, plug the charger back in, then press power to start.

2.Check charger & battery

Use the original charger if you have it; try a known-good USB-C charger (one that can supply enough wattage).

Try booting with the charger connected and also with it disconnected (battery only) to see if behaviour changes.

If the battery is nearly dead or the charger is flaky, the system can behave like you describe.

3.Boot into recovery mode to test whether the OS is corrupted

With the Chromebook off, press and hold Esc + Refresh (the circular arrow) and then press Power.

If you see a “Chrome OS is missing or damaged” screen, the OS is likely corrupted. This screen is expected for the next step (recovery).

4.Create a recovery USB and reinstall ChromeOS (this will erase local data)

On another working computer, install the Chrome OS Recovery Utility from the Chrome Web Store.

Open the utility, enter your Chromebook model (or choose from the list), and create a recovery USB/SD card following the tool’s instructions.

Insert the recovery media into the Chromebook, boot into recovery (Esc + Refresh + Power), and follow the on-screen prompts to reinstall ChromeOS.

After recovery finishes, remove the media and reboot. If the boot loop stops, the OS was corrupted and recovery fixed it.

5.If you can boot to the sign-in screen, try Powerwash (factory reset)

Sign in (if possible) and go to Settings → Advanced → Reset settings → Powerwash → Restart.

Follow prompts to reset the device. This removes local accounts and most local corruption. Only do this if recovery is not required or already tried.

6.Check ChromeOS diagnostics and system logs

Open a Chrome browser and go to chrome://diagnostics to run CPU, memory, and battery tests. Note any failures.

Visit chrome://system, click “Expand,” then “View” next to the largest logs (you can copy relevant lines). Look for repeated errors near the end of logs (storage, eMMC, or display errors). This helps identify hardware issues.

7.Test with Guest mode or a different account

At sign-in, choose “Browse as Guest” (if available) or add a new user. This rules out a corrupted user profile causing slow boots or black screens.

8.Try an external monitor

Connect an external monitor or TV via the Chromebook’s video port (or USB-C to HDMI adapter).

If the external display is stable while the Chromebook screen blacks out, the issue is likely the Chromebook’s internal display, cable, or backlight. If both screens glitch, it’s likely a GPU/board or storage issue.

9.Look for display-specific symptoms

Thin flashing line at bottom, intermittent glitching, or blackouts often point to a loose/damaged display cable, failing panel, or backlight/driver problems.

If display problems appear only during boot animation and stabilise later, it could be timing/firmware related or an intermittent hardware fault.

10.Check storage health (eMMC/SSD)

Slow or looping boots can be caused by failing internal storage. If diagnostics or chrome://system logs show read/write errors, that’s a strong sign. Recovery reinstall may temporarily help, but failing storage often returns.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.