Updated BIOS and now I can't start computer.

[KTH3]

Updated BIOS and now I can't start computer. HP logo comes on and computer holds at that screen. Pressing the esc key gets to system info and start up screen.  Can't go anywhere from there.  I have tried holding down the Windows and B key and then pressing down on the power button for 1-3 seconds, but always get the screen that tells me to press the Escape Key to enter Startup...

Looks like many other HP owners are having the same problem.  Too bad they don't print a big warning on the HP Update site warning that updating BIOS can prevent computer from operating.

Hope someone can help me!

[BeemerBiker]

I am having trouble locating your system.  Can you provide better information such as prioduct number and / or serial number?

I looked here and found 8 possibilities

https://support.hp.com/my-en/drivers/selfservice/identify?q=HP%20Envy%20Recline%2027&filter=&origin=...

none of those "Envy Recline 27" had a bios listed. Where did you obtain your bios?

Not sure what you mean by "Startup Screen" can you be more specific?

[KTH3]

Serial number is [Personal Information Removed].  I had a hard drive failure, so purchased a new hard drive and used HP recovery disk to reload original software.  All was working fine until I opened the HP update software (one of the programs originally installed I on the computer.  The HP update software automatically detected drivers and suggested updates needed.  The HP drive update section recommended updating the Bios.  After the update attempt, the computer stopped working.  When powering on the computer screen gets stuck showing the HP logo.  Pushing the esc key takes you to a B&W screen that shows the computer specs and at the bottom of that screen it says, "press the Esc Key to enter Startup".  I think it's supposed to take you to the BIOS start up, but the esc key does not work.  I have tried all of the suggestions listed by people responding to this same problem others are having, and no solutions provided have worked for me.  any ideas.

[BeemerBiker]

This is actually a known problem

HP ENVY Recline TouchSmart All in One - 27-k350xt CTO BIOS u... - HP Support Community - 7865138

some extreme measures to fix problems 

HP ENVY 23 corrupted firmware BIOS fix - YouTube

[BeemerBiker]

I think I know what the problem is and if you have a backup of the entire drive you might be able to restore the bios.

I saw the following in an HP bios update script and it got me thinking about a potential problem.

mountvol z: /s
del z:\efi\hp\bios\current\*.bin
copy .\CU3_819.ROM z:\efi\hp\bios\current
mountvol z: /d
safuwin CU3_819.ROM /p /b /n /r /reboot

The above puts a copy of the bios on the EFI partition (That is the "/s" parameter)  

The bios is then updated with the safuwin app.

As an aside, On my HP 3400 the "/s" is not recognized as I do NOT have an EFI partition.

I suspect the the Win+B or the Win+V load the copy from the EFI partition.

A clean install of win10 or any OS will wipe out the EFI partition as a new one is created.

If something goes wrong during or after the OS install there is no BIOS that can be loaded.

Possibly, if you have a  full backup of the original disk you could use another computer to restore the backup and then try booting it..  It will fail but maybe the WIN+B will then work.

Just a guess.

[KTH3]

I am a little confused about your suggestion - "Possibly, if you have a full backup of the original disk you could use another computer to restore the backup and then try booting it..  It will fail but maybe the WIN+B will then work."  I have a recovery disk (on usb) that would allow me to restore all of the software originally installed on the computer (including Win 8.1).  How do I get this loaded on my computer?  I can't modify the boot up sequence to access the usb.  Not sure what you mean by - using another computer to restore the backup.  Can you provide some additional instructions on how I do that?

[BeemerBiker]

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@KTH3 wrote:

I am a little confused about your suggestion - "Possibly, if you have a full backup of the original disk you could use another computer to restore the backup and then try booting it..  It will fail but maybe the WIN+B will then work."  I have a recovery disk (on usb) that would allow me to restore all of the software originally installed on the computer (including Win 8.1).  How do I get this loaded on my computer?  I can't modify the boot up sequence to access the usb.  Not sure what you mean by - using another computer to restore the backup.  Can you provide some additional instructions on how I do that?

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I am guessing that when entering "WIN + B" the bios bootstrap (if it is not damaged) will attempt to load a file from C:\EFI\whatever.bin (EFI is a partition that can be mounted on C)

I had a thought that if you had a clone of the "C" drive that the bios might be able to retrieve a copy if you attach the drive to the computer and try the WIN+B.  I do not have an HP system that is new enough to try out my idea.  Maybe WIN + B does not work like that.  Maybe it does.  HP software engineers would know.  I have a lot of Acronis image backups of various systems but none have the WIN + B feature that could be tried.  I was unaware until recently that HP keeps bios backups in the C EFI partition.

The only alternative I see are to purchase a bios chip and solder it or obtain a programming kit. 

[EDIT]  For example:  I have Acronis backup of my "Area-51" and Dell has copies of the current and previous bios as shown.  There is no WIN+B for my system but I could select the previous bios and copy it to a flash drive then look around for a way to burn it.  I suspect all you have to do is attach a C drive to your system that has the correct bios and try WIN+B.  If the bios bootstrap is not corrupted then it *should* be able to get a list of bios to allow restore.   Just a thought.  If one has to be running windows before the "WIN + B" works then obviously none of this will work.